Chapter Summaries

Nalan Chaoge spent a rain-soaked night with Medusa, who ate his purple spirit crystal and returned to his sleeve as the Heaven Swallowing Python. A month later, he reached Stone Desert City and learned that Xiao Yan had driven out the Sand Mercenary Group and put the city under the Desert Iron Mercenary Group’s control.

• Medusa thanked Nalan Chaoge for the companion amethyst source, and the two sat together in a cave as a storm broke outside.
• Medusa asked Nalan Chaoge who he was, then accepted the name Sisi and devoured the purple spirit crystal he gave her.
• Medusa transformed into the Heaven Swallowing Python and slipped into Nalan Chaoge’s sleeve, while he later learned that the Python’s influence had shaped her behavior that night.
• After resting, Nalan Chaoge set out to deliver Qing Lin to the Snake-People Tribe, but another month passed before he returned to Stone Desert City.
• Nalan Chaoge learned from a mercenary that Xiao Yan had subdued the Sand Mercenary Group and made Stone Desert City the territory of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group.

Nalan Chaoge went to the Desert Iron Mercenary Group’s headquarters to find Xiao Ding and learned that its members were mocking him as a good-for-nothing ahead of the three-year pact. After one mercenary insulted Nalan Yanran, Chaoge struck him down and was surrounded, until the second regiment leader arrived.

• Nalan Chaoge left an older man behind and went to the Desert Iron Mercenary Group’s headquarters, where he heard its members celebrate Xiao Yan’s victory and gossip about the three-year pact.
• Two mercenaries said Xiao Yan would face Nalan Chaoge in Jia Ma Holy City in half a year and laughed that the Nalan heir was a good-for-nothing.
• Nalan Chaoge asked the mercenaries where to find Xiao Ding, then identified himself when they mocked him as Nalan Chaoge the good-for-nothing.
• One mercenary taunted Chaoge and spoke lewdly about Nalan Yanran, so Chaoge kicked him through a wall and left him near death.
• Dozens of Desert Iron mercenaries surrounded Chaoge, and the second regiment leader arrived with an authoritative shout.

Nalan Chaoge confronted Xiao Li and Xiao Ding at the Desert Iron Mercenary Group, demanding to know where Qing Lin was. Xiao Li attacked him, while Xiao Ding secretly arranged for Nalan Chaoge to be killed so the Xiao Family could avoid the consequences of the three-year pact.

• Nalan Chaoge revealed his identity to Xiao Li and demanded to know where Qing Lin was.
• Xiao Li recognized Nalan Chaoge as Xiao Yan’s opponent in the three-year pact and ordered the mercenaries to shut the gates and attack him.
• Nalan Chaoge learned the Desert Iron Mercenary Group regarded Qing Lin as a maid and grew more worried about what had happened to her.
• After hearing that A'san was dying, Xiao Li unleashed his Lightning Arc Three Stages Dance against Nalan Chaoge.
• Xiao Ding decided Nalan Chaoge had to die and quietly instructed a woman to prepare to keep him from leaving alive.

Nalan Chaoge fought the Desert Iron Mercenary Group while searching for Qing Lin, then learned the Mo Family of Salt City had taken her. He left the courtyard, and Xiao Li appeared to be dying from the wound Nalan Chaoge had dealt him.

• Xiao Li attacked Nalan Chaoge with his lightning spear, but Nalan Chaoge blocked his strikes and pierced him through his Electric Light Silver Shield with a Chidori Sharp Spear.
• Nalan Chaoge demanded to know where Qing Lin was, then threw Xiao Li into a wall after Xiao Li threatened his family.
• The Desert Iron Mercenary Group fired a volley of crossbow bolts at Nalan Chaoge, who deflected them into the mercenaries, before he confronted Xiao Ding.
• Xue Lan told Nalan Chaoge that the Mo Family of Salt City had taken Qing Lin and that the Third Regiment Leader had gone after them, so Nalan Chaoge left.
• Xiao Ding found Xiao Li gravely wounded and gave him two Healing Pills, but the physician said Xiao Li could not be saved.

Xiao Li survived his seemingly fatal chest wound, and the physician concluded that Nalan Chaoge had deliberately spared the Desert Iron Mercenary Group. Nalan Chaoge reached Salt City and learned that Nalan Yanran was still there for Mo Cheng’s birthday celebration.

• Xiao Ding vowed to avenge Xiao Li and their fallen brothers by attacking Nalan Yanran and the Nalan Family, while Xue Lan worried about provoking the Misty Cloud Sect.
• Xiao Li sprang up when Xiao Ding pressed his wound, and the physician found that the injury had missed his heart and was only flesh-deep.
• The elderly physician realized that Nalan Chaoge had avoided killing Xiao Li and the other wounded mercenaries, leaving the Desert Iron Mercenary Group astonished by his strength and mercy.
• Nalan Chaoge arrived outside Salt City, where he saw unusually heavy guards and suspected Yaoye had arranged extra security because Nalan Yanran remained there.
• Mercenaries told Nalan Chaoge that Mo Cheng was celebrating his birthday and that the Misty Cloud Sect’s Young Sect Master had stayed in Salt City for over three months; Nalan Chaoge realized Nalan Yanran had not yet left.

Nalan Chaoge entered Salt City to investigate whether the Mo Family had abducted Qing Lin and learned that Mo Cheng’s birthday celebration would take place that evening. He recognized Xiao Yan and heard his resolve to challenge the Misty Cloud Sect, then encountered someone familiar who blocked his path.

• Nalan Chaoge waited two hours to enter Salt City, where Nalan Yanran arrived with a Misty Cloud Sect companion and stirred up the queue.
• Nalan Chaoge learned that Mo Cheng’s birthday celebration would be held that evening and began investigating the Mo Family before making his move.
• Nalan Chaoge recognized Xiao Yan speaking with a Black-Robed Elder about the Misty Cloud Sect’s influence.
• Xiao Yan declared that he would keep challenging the Misty Cloud Sect, even if he had to grow stronger all the way to Dou Emperor.
• Nalan Chaoge wondered who the Black-Robed Elder was and headed toward a neighboring establishment instead of following Xiao Yan.
• A familiar person suddenly blocked Nalan Chaoge’s path.

Nalan Yanran reunited with Nalan Chaoge in Salt City and brought him to the Mo Family inn, where they encountered Xiao Yan clashing with the Mo Family’s young lady. Xiao Yan nearly killed her with a mysterious flame, then warned the Mo Family not to rely on the Misty Cloud Sect for protection.

• Nalan Yanran found Nalan Chaoge, teased him about Yaoye, and insisted he return home with her after the Mo Family’s birthday celebration.
• Nalan Chaoge decided to secretly rescue Qing Lin and eliminate Mo Cheng without putting Nalan Yanran in a difficult position.
• Nalan Yanran led Nalan Chaoge into the Mo Family inn as a quarrel broke out between Xiao Yan and the Red-Clothed Woman, Ling Lin.
• Xiao Yan burned Ling Lin’s whip with a mysterious yellow flame and sent another wisp toward her, but a middle-aged man rushed in and pulled her to safety.
• Xiao Yan warned the middle-aged man not to let the Mo Family act arrogantly under the Misty Cloud Sect’s protection, and Ling Lin hid behind him in fear.

Xiao Yan confronted the Mo Family at their inn, but Nalan Yanran stepped in and accused him of deliberately provoking them. Their reunion stirred Xiao Yan’s anger and insecurity, while Nalan Chaoge watched from a distance and identified Xiao Yan’s heavenly flame as the Mysterious Yellow Flame.

• Xiao Yan attacked a Mo Family member at the inn, and Nalan Yanran intervened to defend the Mo Family and challenge his accusations against the Misty Cloud Sect.
• Xiao Yan recognized Nalan Yanran after three years apart and struggled to control the emotions her appearance stirred in him.
• Xiao Yan asked Old Yao to assess Nalan Yanran’s strength, and Old Yao explained that an item she wore blocked his detection.
• Nalan Yanran listed the reasons she believed Xiao Yan had come to provoke the Mo Family, prompting the hall’s onlookers to side with her.
• Xiao Yan silently vowed to destroy the Misty Cloud Sect, while Nalan Chaoge identified the dark yellow heavenly flame as the Mysterious Yellow Flame.

Xiao Yan backed down after Nalan Yanran revealed she had reached the Dou Ling realm, while Yao Chen urged him to conceal his identity and grow stronger for his future confrontation with Nalan Chaoge. After Xiao Yan left, Nalan Chaoge considered Yao Chen’s connections to major events across the Jia Ma Empire, and Nalan Yanran reunited with the Mo Family and Ge Ye.

• Nalan Yanran released the power of a Dou Ling and challenged Xiao Yan, stunning the inn’s guests and prompting them to gossip about her broken engagement.
• Yao Chen calmed Xiao Yan’s anger and persuaded him to leave without revealing his identity, while proposing that he use their future confrontation with Nalan Chaoge to challenge Nalan Yanran.
• Xiao Yan apologized and departed with the Black-Robed Elder, leaving Nalan Yanran and the hall’s guests surprised by his retreat.
• Nalan Chaoge wondered whether Yao Chen’s presence connected the many extraordinary people and events in the Jia Ma Empire, while Nalan Yanran warned Ling Lin and the Mo Family to stay cautious.
• Nalan Yanran greeted Ge Ye, who arrived with Yun Feng, the Mo Family’s eldest legitimate son, whose real name was Mo Li.

Nalan Chaoge faced Mo Li’s challenge in Salt City and defeated him with a single casual kick, stunning the spectators. Afterward, he told Nalan Yanran that he could not gauge the strength of the two black-robed men they had seen earlier.

• Mo Li challenged Nalan Chaoge to a match, revealing that he had reached the Great Dou Shi level.
• Nalan Chaoge asked Mo Li whether he had hidden strength or special techniques, then said Mo Li would lose if he could not withstand one move.
• Mo Li attacked with the Wind Spirit Splitting Sword, but Nalan Chaoge defeated him with a casual kick without opening the Eight Inner Gates.
• Ge Ye praised Nalan Chaoge and began recounting his exploits at Jia Nan Academy before Nalan Yanran stopped him.
• Nalan Yanran asked Nalan Chaoge about the two black-robed men, and he said their strength was beyond his ability to gauge.

Nalan Chaoge sought Qing Lin in Salt City and suspected the Mo Family, while Xiao Yan prepared to infiltrate the family’s birthday gathering with the mysterious man in black. The chapter left both sides poised to search for Qing Lin as the man in black considered Xiao Yan’s offer to serve as his guard.

• Nalan Chaoge accepted Mo Yan’s invitation to the Mo Family residence and asked him to help find Qing Lin, who had been abducted and brought to Salt City.
• Mo Yan promised to report the matter to the family head, while Ge Ye stayed with Nalan Chaoge and the others headed to the Mo Family headquarters.
• Nalan Chaoge told Nalan Yanran that he suspected the Mo Family wanted Qing Lin’s eyes, and he vowed to act if the family refused to release her.
• At Mo Cheng’s birthday banquet, another Mo Family elder entertained Nalan Chaoge while Mo Yan remained absent, and Nalan Chaoge waited for events to reveal Qing Lin’s whereabouts.
• Xiao Yan recovered from his exhaustion and planned to sneak into the Mo Family residence with the mysterious man in black to find Qing Lin and confront Mo Cheng.
• Xiao Yan offered the man in black a Po E Pill and promised to gather ingredients for a Purple Spirit Recovery Pill in exchange for his continued help, and the man considered the bargain.

Xiao Yan made a one-year bodyguard arrangement with the mysterious Black-Robed Elder and infiltrated the heavily guarded Mo Family estate to investigate Qing Lin. At Mo Cheng’s birthday banquet, Mo Lan welcomed the province’s powerful guests while Nalan Chaoge sat quietly among them.

• The Black-Robed Elder agreed to protect Xiao Yan for one year in exchange for Xiao Yan gathering the ingredients and refining a Purple Spirit Recovery Pill, and Yao Chen warned that the elder might once have been a Dou Zong.
• Xiao Yan and the Black-Robed Elder reached the Mo Family estate and found its defenses unusually tight because of Mo Cheng’s birthday celebration.
• Xiao Yan climbed the fortress wall and used mysterious yellow flame to kill the patrolling guards, allowing the pair to slip into the estate.
• Mo Lan welcomed Salt City’s Lord Bo Er and Ye Family head Ye Cong, whose presence suggested the Mo Family’s influence was growing across the Northeastern Province.
• Mo Lan worried that Mo Cheng might refuse to hand over Qing Lin, considered denying that the Mo Family had her, and privately dismissed Nalan Chaoge’s stated reason for coming.

Nalan Chaoge warned Mo Li that the Mo Family would pay if Qing Lin was harmed, then suspected a plot meant to turn Xiao Yan against Nalan Yanran and the Mo Family. At Mo Cheng’s banquet, Nalan Yanran became the center of attention as Mo Cheng presented her to Salt City’s influential figures, while Chaoge still planned to find Qing Lin.

• Mo Li told Nalan Chaoge that Qing Lin was not with the Mo Family and promised the family would help search for her.
• Nalan Chaoge warned Mo Li to tell Mo Cheng that he would kill him if Qing Lin was harmed, and wondered who had taken her and why.
• Nalan Yanran entered the banquet in an elaborate blue gown, and Nalan Chaoge realized she might be the target of the scheme.
• Mo Cheng introduced Nalan Yanran to the guests and praised her presence at his banquet; she offered brief greetings and hopes for future cooperation.
• Mo Cheng led Nalan Yanran around the hall to meet Salt City’s influential guests, presenting her as someone connected to the Mo Family.

At Mo Cheng’s banquet, Xiao Yan interrupted the Mo Alliance announcement and demanded that the Mo Family hand over Qing Lin. After revealing his deadly heavenly flame and confronting Nalan Yanran, Xiao Yan appeared behind Mo Cheng and seized him by the neck.

• Mo Cheng announced that the Mo Family planned to establish the Mo Alliance, and minor factions began agreeing to join.
• Xiao Yan appeared at the banquet and demanded that Mo Cheng release Qing Lin, whom the Mo Family had captured in Stone Desert City.
• Mo Cheng ordered his fighters to attack Xiao Yan, but Xiao Yan’s mysterious yellow flame melted their swords and killed several men.
• Nalan Yanran questioned Mo Cheng about Qing Lin and confronted Xiao Yan, who told her to get out of his way.
• Xiao Yan rushed behind Mo Cheng and pressed a hand against his neck.

Xiao Yan confronted the Mo Family over Qing Lin and killed Mo Cheng after discovering the elder had transformed himself with magical beast parts. The hall fell silent as Mo Cheng’s frozen body shattered, while Ge Ye lay badly injured and Nalan Yanran faced the consequences of the clash.

• Xiao Yan severed Mo Cheng’s arm and demanded that he release Qing Lin, then struck down Mo Lan when he attacked.
• Mo Lan agreed to bring Qing Lin, but Mo Cheng resisted, and Nalan Yanran confirmed that the Mo Family had taken the girl.
• Mo Cheng revealed his transplanted magical beast claw and wings and attacked Xiao Yan, who blocked the blow and froze him with the Bone Spirit Cold Flame.
• Ge Ye rushed to stop Xiao Yan from killing Mo Cheng, but Xiao Yan struck him aside and left him injured.
• Mo Cheng’s ice sculpture fell and shattered, leaving no trace of him as the hall went silent.

Xiao Yan killed Mo Cheng at the Mo Family gathering, then accepted Nalan Yanran’s challenge for the Misty Cloud Sect. After recognizing her technique as one used by Yun Zhi, he hesitated long enough to be wounded, but ultimately engulfed Nalan Yanran in Bone Spirit Cold Flame.

• Nalan Yanran confronted Xiao Yan over killing Mo Cheng and challenged him to defend the Misty Cloud Sect’s honor.
• Xiao Yan accepted Nalan Yanran’s challenge, driven by memories of his humiliation by her and his desire for revenge.
• Nalan Yanran struck Xiao Yan with Extreme Wind: Meteor Kill while he recalled Yun Zhi, and Yao Chen shielded him from a potentially fatal wound.
• Xiao Yan realized Nalan Yanran was Yun Zhi’s disciple, while Yao Chen warned that killing her could make him an enemy of Yun Zhi.
• Yao Chen sensed another hidden presence nearby and urged Xiao Yan to leave with Qing Lin, but Xiao Yan turned on Nalan Yanran and engulfed her in Bone Spirit Cold Flame.

Nalan Chaoge saved Nalan Yanran from Xiao Yan’s bone spirit cold flame and fought him with copied techniques and his own abilities. After Xiao Yan took to the air to avoid Chaoge’s Underworld Swamp, Chaoge opened the sixth Inner Gate and launched Morning Peacock.

• Nalan Yanran stepped forward to face Xiao Yan, but Nalan Chaoge arrived and used his green lotus core flame to drive away Xiao Yan’s bone spirit cold flame.
• Nalan Chaoge told Nalan Yanran to stand back, then confronted Xiao Yan and revealed that he knew about Xiao Yan’s broken engagement to her.
• Xiao Yan attacked with Eight Extremes Collapse, but Nalan Chaoge copied the technique with his Sharingan and detonated hidden force inside Xiao Yan, injuring him.
• Xiao Yan prepared Flame Splitting Wave Ruler, but Nalan Chaoge cast Underworld Swamp, forcing Xiao Yan to escape into the air with his Purple Cloud Wings.
• Nalan Chaoge opened the sixth Inner Gate, the Gate of View, and began Morning Peacock against Xiao Yan.

Nalan Chaoge defeated Xiao Yan with Morning Peacock but was left immobilized by its aftereffects. When a Black-Robed Elder attacked Qing Lin and then turned his assault on Nalan Chaoge, the chapter ended with Nalan Chaoge waiting for the Seven-Colored Heaven Swallowing Python to strike.

• Nalan Chaoge battered Xiao Yan with Morning Peacock and sent him crashing into a pillar, but the move's aftereffects left Nalan Chaoge unable to move.
• Nalan Yanran recognized Nalan Chaoge by his birthmark, learned he wanted his identity concealed, and reunited with Qing Lin when she arrived.
• A Black-Robed Elder attacked Qing Lin, but Nalan Yanran used her Wind-Splitting Whirlwind Dance and Flying Catkins Movement Technique to shield her and evade his first blows.
• The Black-Robed Elder overpowered Nalan Yanran, seized Qing Lin, and moved beside Nalan Chaoge before attacking him with an Energy Blast.
• Nalan Chaoge recognized the attacker's familiar eyes and prepared to rely on the Seven-Colored Heaven Swallowing Python in his sleeve.

Nalan Chaoge and a green-clothed woman fought Xiao Yan and a black-robed elder over Qing Lin, whose Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils had drawn their attention. The woman escaped with Qing Lin, but Xiao Yan remained convinced she and Nalan Chaoge were allies as the two sides faced off.

• Nalan Chaoge's green-wood prison trapped the black-robed elder, allowing the green-clothed woman to strike him and take Qing Lin.
• Xiao Yan and the elder pursued the woman, and the elder reclaimed Qing Lin before Nalan Chaoge's whip forced him to release her.
• Nalan Chaoge knocked the elder and the green-clothed woman away from Qing Lin, then struck at Xiao Yan with a Great Void Palm.
• Nalan Chaoge summoned a great toad's esophagus, forcing Xiao Yan and the elder to flee while the green-clothed woman escaped with Qing Lin.
• The green-clothed woman denied working with Nalan Chaoge and tried to persuade Xiao Yan to join forces against her, but Xiao Yan distrusted her.
• Nalan Chaoge called to the woman to take Qing Lin and leave, and Xiao Yan rejected the offer to cooperate.

Xiao Yan and the Black-Robed Elder fought the Green-clothed Woman as she tried to escape with Qing Lin, while Nalan Chaoge manipulated the conflict and then joined the battle. The chapter ended with Xiao Yan striking Nalan Chaoge and sending him flying toward the Green-clothed Woman.

• Xiao Yan and the Black-Robed Elder attacked the Green-clothed Woman, who defended herself with wooden barriers and vines before escaping with Qing Lin.
• The Green-clothed Woman blocked Xiao Yan's pursuit with Heavenly Flames, but the Black-Robed Elder's Twin Dragon Kill forced her to flee through a gap with Qing Lin.
• Nalan Chaoge's stratagem left the Mo Family disgraced and vulnerable, and Mo Lan realized the family had lost its allies and Great Elder.
• Nalan Chaoge rose to join the fight as four Dou Emperors faced off above Salt City, drawing crowds of spectators into the streets.
• The Green-clothed Woman tossed Qing Lin toward Nalan Chaoge, but he sent the girl back and charged the Black-Robed Man while claiming he would hold off the others.
• Xiao Yan met Nalan Chaoge's Eight Extremes Collapse with the same move, remained steady after their collision, and sent Nalan Chaoge flying toward the Green-clothed Woman.