Chapter Summaries

Xiao Yan returned to the cave after fighting a second-rank Magic Beast, then collapsed from the beast’s lingering influence. While Yun Zhi cared for him, Xiao Yan discovered and expelled a Beast Spirit from his body, and Yao Lao explained its uses.

• Yun Zhi waited anxiously for Xiao Yan, who stumbled into the cave and collapsed against her after warning her not to go outside.
• Xiao Yan woke as Yun Zhi awkwardly fed him water, and she offered to grill fish while he recovered.
• Xiao Yan entered cultivation and traced his agitation and dizziness to an unknown energy inside his body.
• Xiao Yan used his Soul Power to force out the energy, which gathered in his palm as a pale-yellow flame that gave off wolf howls.
• Yao Lao identified the flame as a Beast Spirit, explained how powerful Magic Beasts could leave one behind, and confirmed it was a valuable material.

Xiao Yan learned that the beast spirit might be drawn toward the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire, and Yao Lao warned him not to dismiss rare chances or grow complacent. After Yun Zhi served him badly burned fish, Xiao Yan realized she had seasoned it with an aphrodisiac, leaving them facing an unexpected predicament.

• Yao Lao identified the beast spirit's pull as a possible sign of the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire, which ranked twenty-second among the strange fires.
• Yao Lao reprimanded Xiao Yan for looking down on the fire and urged him to seize every precious opportunity.
• Xiao Yan accepted Yao Lao's warning and put away the beast spirit as Yun Zhi offered him grilled fish.
• Xiao Yan ate the burnt, flavorless fish and questioned Yun Zhi about its seasoning.
• Xiao Yan recognized that the bottle Yun Zhi had used contained an aphrodisiac and told her what it was.

After accidentally releasing an aphrodisiac, Xiao Yan gave Yun Zhi Purification Pills to clear its effects. With Yun Zhi planning to break her seal the next day, they agreed to help each other find what they wanted in the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

• Xiao Yan and Yun Zhi realized that an aphrodisiac had been released, and Xiao Yan gave them both Purification Pills to suppress its effects.
• Yun Zhi asked about the pills, and Xiao Yan praised their maker, Wan Guniang, leaving Yun Zhi quietly unsettled.
• Yun Zhi said she expected to break her seal the next day and asked Xiao Yan to enter the Amethyst Winged Lion King's cave to find the Violet Spirit Crystal while she drew the beast away.
• Xiao Yan agreed to help Yun Zhi and asked her to help him retrieve a Heavenly Flame from the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

Xiao Yan and Yun Zhi raided the Amethyst Winged Lion King's cave, securing the Violet Spirit Crystal and Amethyst Accompanying Source before escaping. Meanwhile, Nalan Yanran continued training with Yao Wan and found herself wanting more conversation from her.

• Yun Zhi agreed to help Xiao Yan search for the Otherworldly Flame and planned the next day's operation with him.
• Yun Zhi lured the Amethyst Winged Lion King away while Xiao Yan entered its cave and used poisoned bait to put the Little Amethyst Winged Lion to sleep.
• Xiao Yan took the Violet Spirit Crystal and Amethyst Accompanying Source, then escaped the cave as Yun Zhi fled after drawing him to her.
• Xiao Yan thanked Yun Zhi for the Violet Spirit Crystal, and she carried him toward a safer place outside the Magical Beast Mountain Range.
• Nalan Yanran trained with Yao Wan at the foot of Yun Lan Mountain and asked whether Yao Wan had anything to say to her.

Nalan Yanran lost another sparring match to Yao Wan, then asked her to continue the story she had been telling. Meanwhile, Yun Zhi and Xiao Yan settled in a mountain cave for the night, where she worried about helping him pursue a Heavenly Flame.

• Yao Wan defeated Nalan Yanran in their spar, and Nalan Yanran accepted the loss and sat down to rest.
• Nalan Yanran asked Yao Wan to finish her story, and Yao Wan sat beside her to continue it.
• Xiao Yan and Yun Zhi found shelter in the Magical Beast Mountain Range and agreed to spend the night there.
• Yun Zhi checked that Xiao Yan was unharmed, then privately worried about the danger of helping him obtain a Heavenly Flame.
• Xiao Yan returned with firewood and lit a fire, leaving Yun Zhi looking at him as they recalled the time when her Dou Qi had been sealed.

Xiao Yan and Yun Zhi discussed the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire and why Xiao Yan wanted to find it. Yun Zhi agreed to help him, while privately considering whether to invite him to the Yun Lan Sect after their search.

• Xiao Yan explained that a beast spirit he obtained was being drawn toward something in the Magical Beast Mountain Range, which might be the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire.
• Yun Zhi asked why Xiao Yan sought such a dangerous Strange Fire, and Xiao Yan mistakenly thought she wanted to stop helping him.
• Yun Zhi clarified that she would help Xiao Yan and said she was only curious about his reasons.
• Xiao Yan said he wanted to become stronger to fulfill an agreement and catch up to someone who had always helped him.
• Yun Zhi suggested they rest and discuss the search the next day, then considered inviting Xiao Yan to the Yun Lan Sect.

Xiao Yan and Yun Zhi traveled through the Magical Beast Mountain Range while the beast spirit in his Storage Ring grew increasingly restless near the Strange Fire. Yao Lao decided to help Xiao Yan refine the beast spirit, and Xiao Yan asked Yun Zhi to guard him as they prepared to begin.

• Xiao Yan and Yun Zhi set out toward the Strange Fire, with Xiao Yan using Qi Recovery Pills to keep flying.
• Xiao Yan told Yun Zhi that the beast spirit could help locate the Strange Fire and that they were moving closer to it.
• The beast spirit struggled violently inside Xiao Yan's Storage Ring, and Yao Lao restrained it before it could escape.
• Yao Lao concluded that the Strange Fire had changed the beast spirit and proposed refining it for possible use.
• Xiao Yan asked Yun Zhi to protect him while Yao Lao prepared to refine the beast spirit.

Xiao Yan refined the beast spirit and discovered evidence of a Strange Fire beneath the Magical Beast Mountain Range. He awoke to find Yun Zhi watching over him.

• Xiao Yan asked Yun Zhi to protect him, then sat down to investigate the beast spirit with Yao Lao.
• Yun Zhi formed a Wind Shield around Xiao Yan and watched for danger from a nearby tree.
• Yao Lao helped Xiao Yan release and refine the increasingly violent beast spirit.
• Xiao Yan endured the beast spirit’s soul attack and successfully refined it.
• Xiao Yan sensed fire hidden beneath the mountain range and excitedly opened his eyes, startling Yun Zhi.

Xiao Yan told Yun Zhi that he had found the Heavenly Flame and led her back to a stretch of hills. After Yun Zhi opened a deep passage and cleared its air, they descended together, with Yun Zhi warning Xiao Yan to stay close and wait for her to confirm it was safe.

• Xiao Yan told Yun Zhi that he knew where the Heavenly Flame was hiding and led her back the way they had come.
• Xiao Yan asked Yun Zhi to open a deep hole in the hills, and she used a storm of Dou Qi to excavate the passage.
• Yun Zhi warned Xiao Yan about underground miasma and ventilated the hole with wind channels before allowing him to enter.
• Yun Zhi told Xiao Yan not to act rashly underground, and they flew down together as she promised to keep him by her side.

Xiao Yan and Yun Zhi followed the heat through a hidden cavern and found the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire surrounded by beast spirits. As they prepared to approach it, Yun Zhi volunteered to test its power while Xiao Yan stayed behind to watch.

• Xiao Yan and Yun Zhi explored the cavern and sensed the Strange Fire deeper inside.
• They reached a vast hall and saw the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire surrounded by circling beast spirits.
• Yao Lao identified the flame, and Yun Zhi offered to test it directly.
• Xiao Yan objected to Yun Zhi taking the risk, but agreed after she argued that probing it herself was the quickest way.
• Yun Zhi reminded Xiao Yan that he would owe her, then stepped back to face the fire.

Yun Zhi battled the beast spirit of the Amethyst Winged Lion King as she fought her way toward the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire. She exploited the spirit’s lost physical body and landed a decisive sword strike, though the chapter ended before revealing what happened next.

• Yun Zhi ignored the cavern’s lesser beast spirits and charged toward the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire, provoking them to attack.
• The Amethyst Winged Lion King’s beast spirit blocked Yun Zhi and attacked her with fire, matching her wind-based strikes.
• Yun Zhi realized that the Lion King’s lack of a physical body was its weakness and maneuvered behind it.
• Yun Zhi blocked the Lion King’s purple flame with Wind Push, charged through the whirlwind, and split its beast spirit with her sword.

Yun Zhi defeated the Amethyst Winged Lion King's beast spirit and reached for the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire, but the spirit attacked her from behind and severely injured her. Xiao Yan rescued her and brought her back to the cave, where he began treating her wounds.

• Yun Zhi split the Amethyst Winged Lion King's beast spirit in two and moved toward the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire.
• Yao Lao warned Xiao Yan that Yun Zhi was in danger, and Xiao Yan shouted for her to retreat.
• The Amethyst Winged Lion King struck Yun Zhi with a purple energy beam, leaving her badly wounded as other beast spirits closed in.
• Xiao Yan grabbed Yun Zhi and flew with her to the cave entrance, where the beast spirits stopped pursuing them.
• Xiao Yan discovered Yun Zhi's injured back and prepared medicine and supplies to treat her.

Xiao Yan treated Yun Zhi’s severe burns, cleaning the wounds and drawing out the lingering Purple Fire while she endured the pain. After bandaging her and covering her with a black robe, he told her he would rather not see her in this vulnerable state if it meant she had to suffer for it.

• Xiao Yan tore away Yun Zhi’s bloodied clothing and saw the severe burns covering her back.
• Xiao Yan warned Yun Zhi that cleaning her wounds and drawing out the fire would hurt, and she insisted she could endure it.
• Xiao Yan used medicinal liquid to remove the blood scabs and lingering Purple Fire as Yun Zhi bit his shoulder through the pain.
• Xiao Yan sprinkled medicinal powder on Yun Zhi’s wounds, bandaged her, and draped a black robe over her.
• Yun Zhi asked whether Xiao Yan preferred her current appearance, and he said he would rather not see her this way if it meant she had to suffer.

Xiao Yan decided to refine the beast spirits surrounding the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire, hoping to reach it without fighting. After rescuing Yun Zhi and beginning his third refinement, he endured the beastly instincts with growing skill, while Yao Lao was surprised by his speed.

• Xiao Yan gave Yun Zhi a pill and told her to recover while he dealt with the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire.
• Xiao Yan proposed that the beast spirits might recognize him as one of their kind because he had refined a beast spirit before.
• Yao Lao warned Xiao Yan that refining the many beast spirits would severely test his Soul Power and could overwhelm his mind, but agreed to help him.
• Xiao Yan approached a wandering beast spirit and used his Soul Power to begin refining it.
• Xiao Yan resisted the beast spirit's instincts by focusing on the candlelight of his self-awareness, and Yao Lao noticed he was refining it unusually quickly.

After returning from refining four beast spirits, Xiao Yan collapsed from exhaustion, and Yun Zhi pulled him into her embrace so he could sleep. The chapter then shifted to Nalan Yanran waking from a nightmare while lying in a beauty’s embrace.

• Yun Zhi cultivated in the cave and reflected on meeting Xiao Yan while recovering from her injuries.
• Xiao Yan returned exhausted and summoned four beast spirits he had refined, prompting Yun Zhi to realize he was pursuing the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire.
• Yun Zhi pulled Xiao Yan into her embrace and let him rest his head there; he fell asleep before responding to her embarrassed warning.
• Yun Zhi held the sleeping Xiao Yan close and hoped the brief warmth would ease his weariness.
• Nalan Yanran woke abruptly from a nightmare and recognized the beauty whose embrace she was lying in.

Yao Wan continued training Nalan Yanran and discussed why Sun Wukong accepted Buddhahood instead of seeking revenge. She argued that he had been arrogant and wrong, and that repentance and change did not erase his identity as the Great Sage Equal to Heaven.

• Yao Wan teased Nalan Yanran for sleeping late after their intense training, then told her she could reach Da Dou Shi in about three months.
• Nalan Yanran asked whether the end of Journey to the West was truly all Yao Wan knew.
• Nalan Yanran questioned why Wukong accepted becoming a Buddha without taking revenge on the Gods and Buddhas or resisting the Tightening Headband.
• Yao Wan challenged Nalan Yanran's belief that Wukong's actions against the Heavenly Court were justified, pointing out his arrogance and wrongdoing.
• Yao Wan explained that Wukong had repented and changed, becoming the Victorious Fighting Buddha while remaining the Great Sage Equal to Heaven.

Yao Wan used the story of Sun Wukong and the Six-Eared Macaque to encourage Nalan Yanran to move beyond her past mistakes and become better. She told Nalan Yanran that she cared about her, and the two grew closer as Nalan Yanran cried in her arms.

• Nalan Yanran rejected the idea that the Monkey King who reached the Western Heaven was the Six-Eared Macaque.
• Yao Wan argued that Wukong's transformation showed his firm will and that what mattered was what someone did after making mistakes.
• Nalan Yanran realized Yao Wan had told her the story to help her reflect and felt hurt that Yao Wan seemed not to trust her growth.
• Yao Wan told Nalan Yanran she cared about her and had liked her from the beginning, despite her mistakes.
• Nalan Yanran asked to hug Yao Wan, then held her and silently cried.

Nalan Yanran asked Yao Wan to stay by her side if she defeated Xiao Yan, and Yao Wan agreed on that condition. Meanwhile, after three months of refining beast spirits, Xiao Yan prepared to attempt the Amethyst Winged Lion King's spirit to get closer to the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire.

• Nalan Yanran stopped crying and insisted on continuing her training because she had little time left.
• Nalan Yanran asked Yao Wan what she would receive if she won against Xiao Yan, then asked her to stay by her side; Yao Wan agreed if Nalan Yanran defeated him.
• Over three months, Xiao Yan repeatedly refined beast spirits while Yun Zhi recovered and quietly helped him.
• Xiao Yan's Soul Power and soul control improved rapidly, and he sensed a faint connection with the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire.
• Xiao Yan told Yun Zhi he planned to refine the Amethyst Winged Lion King's beast spirit the next day, and Yun Zhi was astonished by his progress.

Xiao Yan attempted to refine the Amethyst Winged Lion King's beast spirit so he could challenge the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire, but its fierce resistance overwhelmed him. As he struggled to hold on, Yao Lao suspected the spiritual flame was involved in the beast spirit's abnormal strength.

• Xiao Yan prepared to refine the Amethyst Winged Lion King's beast spirit after strengthening his Soul Power by refining many weaker spirits.
• Xiao Yan drew the Amethyst Winged Lion King's beast spirit into its flame-like form and pierced it with his Soul Power.
• The beast spirit roared and violently struck Xiao Yan's Soul Power, nearly making him faint.
• Xiao Yan stopped advancing and defended against the beast spirit's attacks while trying to understand why its strength seemed abnormal.
• Yao Lao agreed that something was wrong and suspected the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire was responsible.

Xiao Yan risked his soul by abandoning his defenses to refine the Amethyst Winged Lion King's beast spirit and gain control of the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire. As Yao Lao struggled to hold back the fire, a Scroll left by Yao Wan emerged from Xiao Yan's Storage Ring and shielded him.

• Yao Lao explained that the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire had sensed Xiao Yan through their growing connection and would no longer let him refine beast spirits safely.
• Yao Lao urged Xiao Yan to attack and refine the Amethyst Winged Lion King's beast spirit before the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire could escape his control.
• Xiao Yan gave up protecting his mind and drove his Soul Power into the beast spirit, enduring severe soul pain as he burned away its instincts.
• Yao Lao used his Soul Power to stop the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire from strengthening the beast spirit, buying Xiao Yan time to continue refining it.
• A Scroll flew out of Xiao Yan's Storage Ring and shielded him from the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire, surprising Yao Lao, who recognized it as one Yao Wan had left behind.