Chapter Summaries

Gu He deduced that the missing Heavenly Flame was likely the Green Lotus Core Flame, hidden beneath the desert, and set out with Yun Yun’s group to investigate. Zhu Zhuqing appeared through a Space Rift, warned them to keep her presence secret, and vanished, leaving Gu He convinced she had taken the flame.

• Gu He realized the Heavenly Flame could be the Green Lotus Core Flame, concealed underground beneath the desert.
• As Gu He and Yun Yun’s group took flight, Zhu Zhuqing appeared through a Space Rift and stunned them with her power.
• Gu He and Yun Yun introduced themselves and bowed to Zhu Zhuqing, who recognized their purpose and warned them not to reveal her presence.
• Zhu Zhuqing vanished, and Gu He decided the group should return, believing she had taken the Heavenly Flame.

Zhu Zhuqing rescued Xiao Yixian from a Snake People Dou King pursuing her across the Tagel Great Desert. Xiao Yixian reunited with her Young Mistress and recounted why she had left Qingshan Town and what she had faced on her journey toward the Chu Yun Empire.

• A Snake People Dou King pursued Xiao Yixian across the desert, and she dodged his Thunder Spear before its lightning serpents sprang from the crater.
• Zhu Zhuqing appeared between Xiao Yixian and the lightning, absorbed the attack, and made the Snake People Dou King flee.
• Zhu Zhuqing chose not to pursue him, knowing he was destined to die by Xiao Yixian’s hand in the future.
• Xiao Yixian knelt to thank Zhu Zhuqing, then explained that she had left Qingshan Town after Manager Yao grew suspicious of her rapid progress.
• Xiao Yixian described her journey toward the Chu Yun Empire, including magical-beast attacks, falls from cliffs, narrow escapes, and acquiring Dou Skills.

Zhu Zhuqing agreed to take Xiao Yixian with her after learning how the girl had grown stronger by consuming poison and provoked a Snake-person Dou Wang. Zhu Zhuqing built and animated a new airship, then set course for the Black Corner Region with Xiao Yixian aboard.

• Xiao Yixian recounted how she had advanced to a three-star Dou Ling by consuming poison and ambushing Snake People, eventually drawing the attention of a Dou Wang.
• Zhu Zhuqing decided not to seek revenge against the Snake-person Dou Wang and instead allowed Xiao Yixian to accompany her.
• Xiao Yixian described her progress with the Seven-Colored Poison Scripture and Heart Separation Control, and Zhu Zhuqing urged her to keep practicing.
• Zhu Zhuqing created a sixth-tier airship, named Jing Lei, and used Spirit Imbuement to give it an artificial intelligence.
• Zhu Zhuqing brought Xiao Yixian aboard Jing Lei and ordered it to fly to the Black Corner Region.

Zhu Zhuqing traveled to Black Demon City in the Black Corner Region, absorbing Evil Energy until she reached two-star Dou Zong. To draw more experts into the region and fuel further chaos, she arranged to auction a replica Green Lotus Core Flame.

• Zhu Zhuqing absorbed Evil Intent during her journey and reached two-star Dou Zong upon entering the Black Corner Region.
• Xiao Yixian arrived with Zhu Zhuqing at Black Demon City and asked what they should do there.
• Zhu Zhuqing decided to let the Black Corner Region remain chaotic and said they would experience its local customs.
• Zhu Zhuqing brought a Green Lotus Core Flame to the Black Demon Auction House, where the appraiser reacted with delight and shock.
• Zhu Zhuqing planned to use the Heavenly Flame as bait to draw experts to the Black Corner Region and provoke conflicts.

Zhu Zhuqing forced Ou Di to publicize the Green Lotus Core Flame auction, then toured Black Demon City with Xiao Yixian as she prepared to gather poisonous materials. The auction announcement drew countless experts into Zhu Zhuqing’s sphere of influence, where their malice became a source of Evil Energy for her.

• Ou Di coveted Zhu Zhuqing’s Heavenly Flame and her, but Zhu Zhuqing’s pressure forced him to his knees and made him promise to announce the auction across the Northwest Region within a month.
• Ou Di reported the auction to the City Lord, who sent him back rather than risk confronting a suspected Dou Zong.
• Zhu Zhuqing asked Xiao Yixian what she wanted to buy and gave her money to purchase poisonous creatures and toxic materials in Black Demon City.
• Xiao Yixian resolved to grow stronger and protect Zhu Zhuqing, whom she believed had shown kindness by sparing her enemies.
• News that the Green Lotus Core Flame would be auctioned spread across the region, drawing countless experts to Black Demon City and feeding Zhu Zhuqing’s power with their malice.

News of the Green Lotus Core Flame drew powerful experts from across the Northwest Continent to Black Demon City, including Han Feng, Gu He and Yun Yun, and Protector Wu. As Zhu Zhuqing’s cultivation surged to five-star Dou Zong, the Three Great Empires’ strongest forces approached her airship, bringing the standoff over the Heavenly Flame to a breaking point.

• Han Feng gathered the Golden Silver Elders and over a dozen Dou Huangs to pursue the Green Lotus Core Flame, hoping to seize it and evolve his Fen Jue.
• Yun Yun agreed to accompany Gu He to the Black Corner Region, and the two left the Cloud Mist Sect to seek an opportunity amid the scramble for the Heavenly Flame.
• Protector Wu learned of the Heavenly Flame and headed for Black Demon City, intending to take it by force.
• As powerful experts flooded the region and clashed, the Negative Energy reaching Zhu Zhuqing drove her battle qi and Soul Power cultivation to five-star Dou Zong in ten days.
• Xie Bi Yan, Luo Yan Tian, and the Mu Lan Empire’s three peak Dou Huangs gathered in Black Demon City and flew toward Zhu Zhuqing’s airship.

Zhu Zhuqing rejected envoys from the Chu Yun, Luo Yan, and Mu Lan Empires who sought to meet over the Heavenly Flame, while Han Feng waited for them to clash so he could exploit the aftermath. She ordered the envoys to leave and provoked Luo Yan Tian into unleashing his aura, then told Xie Bi Yan to get lost as well.

• Han Feng decided to wait, expecting the three empires to quarrel over Zhu Zhuqing and the Heavenly Flame and give him a chance to intervene.
• Xie Bi Yan, Luo Yan Tian, and the Mu Lan Three Elders introduced themselves and asked to meet the Heavenly Flame's owner.
• Zhu Zhuqing appeared before the five envoys, and they recognized her as a Dou Zong before admiring her beauty and strength.
• Zhu Zhuqing told the envoys to leave and said they could bid at the auction in half a month.
• Luo Yan Tian reacted to Zhu Zhuqing's insult by letting his Battle Qi surge, while Xie Bi Yan mocked him and claimed the Chu Yun Empire despised the Luo Yan Empire's sissies.
• Zhu Zhuqing told Xie Bi Yan to get lost too.

Zhu Zhuqing rejected Xie Bi Yan’s attempt to take her by force, and he joined Luo Yan Tian and the Mulan Three Elders to surround her. She revealed overwhelming power and crippled the Mulan Three Elders, leaving Xie Bi Yan and Luo Yan Tian terrified.

• Xie Bi Yan proposed that he and Luo Yan Tian and the Mulan Three Elders join forces to capture Zhu Zhuqing, offering them the Heavenly Flames in exchange for her.
• Luo Yan Tian and the Mulan Three Elders agreed and surrounded Zhu Zhuqing with Xie Bi Yan.
• Zhu Zhuqing released her five-star Dou Zong aura, frightening the five attackers, then drew Jueying and Hanguang.
• The Mulan Three Elders combined their auras to defend themselves, but Zhu Zhuqing appeared behind them and severed their arms and legs.
• Zhu Zhuqing turned toward Xie Bi Yan and Luo Yan Tian as they watched the Mulan Three Elders fall and felt intense fear.

Zhu Zhuqing pursued Luo Yan Tian and Xie Bi Yan after crippling the Mulan Three Elders, catching both fugitives despite their attempts to escape. Xie Bi Yan tore open a Space Rift and fled into Spatial Turbulence, but Zhu Zhuqing followed him and sealed the surrounding space, leaving him desperate and preparing to self-destruct.

• Luo Yan Tian and Xie Bi Yan agreed to attack Zhu Zhuqing, then fled in opposite directions as soon as the fight began.
• Zhu Zhuqing summoned three Dou Huang-level Black Shadow Soldiers to guard the Mulan Three Elders and caught up with Luo Yan Tian, who screamed as she reached him.
• Xie Bi Yan fled until he encountered Zhu Zhuqing, then shattered space and plunged into a Space Rift to escape her.
• Zhu Zhuqing followed Xie Bi Yan into Spatial Turbulence, froze the chaotic currents, and safely stepped through the rift using Xuanji Steps.
• Xie Bi Yan found himself trapped in sealed space and began swelling his body, determined to fight for a final death.

Zhu Zhuqing sealed Xie Bi Yan and the other five defeated men, then created a Demon Suppressing Tower to imprison and torture them for Negative Energy. After the onlookers witnessed the tower’s power, she turned her attention to the one troublesome opponent still remaining.

• Zhu Zhuqing used Dark Seal to seal Xie Bi Yan’s Dou Qi and had Black Shadow Soldiers seize him when he pretended to be insane.
• Zhu Zhuqing sealed the other five defeated men and used Divine Skill: Creation to form a black tower.
• Zhu Zhuqing filled the tower with life-restoring flames and Black Shadow Soldiers equipped with instruments of torture.
• Zhu Zhuqing collected the five men into the tower, where they became its first prisoners and were tortured.
• Han Feng and the spectators witnessed Zhu Zhuqing’s victory and the tower, while she noted that one troublesome opponent remained.

Zhu Zhuqing confronted Protector Wu and used a forbidden soul technique to replace his personality, preventing him from exposing her to the Hall of Souls. The new Protector Wu swore loyalty to her, while the distant Hall of Souls did not recognize the brief flicker of his Soul Lamp as a serious warning.

• Protector Wu planned to report Zhu Zhuqing to the Soul Clan, but she appeared behind him and stopped him from escaping.
• Protector Wu begged Zhu Zhuqing to spare him and offered her the Hall of Souls’ protection and resources.
• Zhu Zhuqing decided not to kill or release Protector Wu and began creating a second personality from fragments of his soul.
• Protector Wu screamed and cursed as Zhu Zhuqing fed his soul into the new personality until his original self was completely devoured.
• Protector Wu’s Soul Lamp flickered in the Central Plains, but its guardian ignored the brief disturbance.
• The new Protector Wu knelt before Zhu Zhuqing and addressed her as Young Mistress.

Zhu Zhuqing continued harvesting Negative Energy from Black Demon City, reaching six-star Dou Zong and turning her attention to improving her skills. Han Feng coveted her Heavenly Flames, while Xiao Yixian and Cai Lin competed to become her strongest subordinate.

• Zhu Zhuqing sent the modified Protector Wu away to keep the Hall of Souls from focusing on the Northwest Continent.
• Fear from Black Demon City flowed into Zhu Zhuqing, raising her cultivation from one-star to six-star Dou Zong, and she rejected the idea of plunging the continent into despair for faster growth.
• Han Feng recognized the Green Lotus Core Flame and Life Spirit Flame and coveted them, but reassured the Golden and Silver Elders that he would not offend Zhu Zhuqing.
• Zhu Zhuqing gave Xiao Yixian a Storage Ring and sent her incarnations to continue studying their domains.
• Cai Lin captured a nameless Dou Huang who tried to sneak aboard the airship, and Zhu Zhuqing rewarded her with Storage Rings and ordered her to put him in the Demon Suppressing Tower.
• Xiao Yixian and Cai Lin vied over their rewards and cultivation prospects as they headed off to train and dispose of the captive.

Xiao Yixian reluctantly auctioned Zhu Zhuqing’s Green Lotus Core Flame before the gathered powers of Black Demon City, whose representatives offered an array of treasures in hopes of meeting Zhu Zhuqing’s unknown aim. Han Feng stood out with his pill formulas and promise to refine Sect Breaking Pills, while Gu He watched feeling inadequate.

• Zhu Zhuqing sent Xiao Yixian to auction the Green Lotus Core Flame, with Cai Lin accompanying her, and Xiao Yixian overcame her nerves to step onto the platform.
• The audience was startled by Xiao Yixian’s youth and Dou Wang strength, and their envy and fear produced more Negative Energy for Zhu Zhuqing.
• Xiao Yixian displayed the Heavenly Flame without setting a minimum bid, prompting the experts to offer valuable herbs, techniques, pills, and unusual items.
• Han Feng offered numerous seventh- and eighth-grade pill formulas and a Yin-Yang Profound Dragon Pill, then promised Sect Breaking Pills to those who helped him obtain the flame.
• Gu He compared his modest offering with Han Feng’s wealth of resources and felt dejected, while Yun Yun could not use the Cloud Mist Sect’s resources to support him.
• The auction house grew more animated as the representatives presented treasures, but everyone waited for Zhu Zhuqing to choose.

Zhu Zhuqing rejected Han Feng’s valuable offerings and chose a Dou Wang’s fragmentary scroll of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame in exchange for the Heavenly Flame. Han Feng then demanded that Mingtai hand over the flame, offering to grant any request.

• Han Feng offered increasingly valuable treasures, culminating in Yao Chen’s Ninth-grade Qiankun Yiqi Pill Formula, while Zhu Zhuqing remained unimpressed.
• Zhu Zhuqing noticed a fragmentary scroll of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame among a Dou Wang’s belongings and realized she had forgotten Hai Bodong’s fragmentary scroll in the Tagel Great Desert.
• Zhu Zhuqing directed the Heavenly Flame away from Han Feng and toward the obscure Dou Wang, taking his items in exchange.
• The Heavenly Flame went to Mingtai, whose collection included the fragmentary scroll; Han Feng recognized that the scroll was likely the prize Zhu Zhuqing wanted.
• Han Feng suppressed his anger, then confronted Mingtai and offered to fulfill any request if Mingtai gave him the Heavenly Flame.

Han Feng tried to take Mingtai’s Green Lotus Core Flame, but Su Qian intervened and persuaded Mingtai to join Jia Nan Academy. Han Feng vowed to seize the flame once they left Black Demon City, while Zhu Zhuqing watched the conflict unfold.

• Han Feng offered to teach Mingtai alchemy in exchange for the Green Lotus Core Flame, but Mingtai doubted his promise and hesitated to surrender it.
• Su Qian arrived and offered Mingtai a place at Jia Nan Academy in return for future flame seeds, prompting Mingtai to join the academy.
• Su Qian took Mingtai away to fuse with the Heavenly Flame and warned Han Feng not to cause trouble in Black Demon City.
• Han Feng shattered a jade slip in anger and ordered his allies to kill Mingtai once Su Qian left the city.
• Han Feng promised rewards to anyone who helped him obtain the flame and vowed to take Jia Nan Academy’s Heavenly Flame as well.

Zhu Zhuqing left Black Demon City to intensify the conflict and harvest Negative Energy, while Han Feng and the Golden Silver Elders ambushed Su Qian for the Heavenly Flames. Su Qian fled toward Jia Nan Academy under pursuit as the battle’s destruction spread and Zhu Zhuqing’s cultivation rose.

• Zhu Zhuqing left with Xiao Yixian and Cai Lin, expecting the chaos over the Heavenly Flames to produce more Negative Energy.
• Han Feng rejoiced at Zhu Zhuqing’s apparent departure, but Su Qian took Mingtai toward Jia Nan Academy with the Green Lotus Core Flame.
• The Golden Silver Elders and more than twenty Dou Huangs surrounded Su Qian, demanding that he surrender the Heavenly Flames.
• Su Qian sent Mingtai back toward Black Demon City and fought the attackers to keep the Green Lotus Core Flame from Han Feng.
• Su Qian fled toward Jia Nan Academy after being pushed to the brink, and the pursuing fighters spread destruction through Black Demon City.
• Zhu Zhuqing harvested the Negative Energy generated by the suffering and chaos, increasing her cultivation.

The Four Great Empires and Han Feng’s forces fought over the Heavenly Flame, creating a wave of Negative Energy that Zhu Zhuqing absorbed to break through to Dou Zun. She chose to remain in the Northwest Continent and cultivate, while a Silver Nine-Colored Little Snake slipped away from her flying vessel.

• The Four Great Empires and Han Feng gathered forces to seize the Heavenly Flame, and Su Qian fled after their combined attacks left him badly injured.
• The battle for the Heavenly Flame filled the Black Corner Region with Negative Energy, which Zhu Zhuqing absorbed to break through from Dou Zong to Dou Zun.
• Zhu Zhuqing assessed her new strength and decided to stay in the Northwest Continent until she could reach Dou Sheng before considering Central Plains.
• Zhu Zhuqing entered seclusion to cultivate, while a Silver Nine-Colored Little Snake quietly escaped from the flying vessel.

After a month of slaughter in Zhu Zhuqing’s domain, Han Feng claimed the Green Lotus Core Flame, but Cai Lin ambushed him and swallowed the Sea Heart Flame he used to attack her. Cai Lin then caught fire from within, while Zhu Zhuqing watched and mocked her.

• Zhu Zhuqing’s domain and Negative Energy drove armies across the Black Corner Region into a month-long frenzy of slaughter.
• Han Feng waited until the fighting had nearly ended, killed a wounded Dou Huang of the Mu Lan Empire, and took the Green Lotus Core Flame.
• Cai Lin devoured countless corpses across the battlefield and advanced to Nine-star Dou Zong.
• Cai Lin attacked Han Feng and seized the Green Lotus Core Flame, but Han Feng launched a Sea Heart Flame attack at her.
• Cai Lin swallowed Han Feng along with the Sea Heart Flame, then burst into azure flames as Zhu Zhuqing mocked her.

Zhu Zhuqing suppressed the Sea Heart Flame inside Cai Lin, then watched Cai Lin recover and fall asleep as a bracelet around her wrist. She sent Xiao Yixian to retrieve a map and set off for Wu Tan City, unaware that a surprise awaited her there.

• Zhu Zhuqing sealed the Sea Heart Flame inside Cai Lin and divided her Green Lotus Core Flame into five pieces for different regions.
• After a month absorbing Negative Energy, Zhu Zhuqing reached six-star Dou Zun, while Cai Lin returned to her and fell asleep on her wrist.
• Zhu Zhuqing ordered Xiao Yixian to find a map and gave her a pill to exchange for it, warning her to handle any trouble herself.
• Xiao Yixian left to retrieve the map, and Zhu Zhuqing assigned a Dou Zong-level Shadow Servant to protect her without intervening unless she faced mortal danger.
• Zhu Zhuqing set off for Wu Tan City, unaware that a surprise awaited her there.

Zhu Zhuqing discovered that Protector Wu had destroyed the Xiao Family and taken its Ancient Emperor Tuoshe Jade, undermining her plans for the Soul Clan. She reunited with Xiao Xun'er, who would soon return to the Ancient Clan, while Zhu Zhuqing chose to remain in the Northwest Continent and grow stronger before going to the Central Plains.

• Zhu Zhuqing used her power to review the Xiao Family's destruction and saw Protector Wu steal its jade and demolish the family, though Xiao Xun'er had been away and survived.
• Zhu Zhuqing realized Protector Wu's actions would make the Soul Clan target the other ancient clans sooner, leaving her less time to develop and fewer chances to absorb Negative Energy.
• Zhu Zhuqing returned to her residence, where Xiao Xun'er greeted her and explained that she had not been involved in the Xiao Family's destruction.
• Xiao Xun'er said the Ancient Clan's escort would arrive soon and invited Zhu Zhuqing to leave for the Central Plains with her.
• Zhu Zhuqing declined to leave yet, saying she would go to the Central Plains after becoming stronger, and Xiao Xun'er accepted that she would have to wait.