Recaps

After breaking through to One-Star Dou Shi, the narrator recovered with Yun Yun and agreed to help her obtain amethyst spirit crystal from the Amethyst Winged Lion King's lair. Yun Yun carried him toward the lair, where they arrived ready to begin their plan.

• The narrator condensed a new Dou Qi vortex and became a One-Star Dou Shi, then collapsed from exhaustion into Yun Yun's arms.
• The narrator recovered over several days while Yun Yun tended to him, and he asked her to share his quilt when she sat on the cold stone.
• Yun Yun explained that she planned to face the Amethyst Winged Lion King again and asked the narrator to sneak into its lair for amethyst spirit crystal while she drew it away.
• The narrator accepted a crystal that could detect amethyst spirit crystal and asked Yun Yun for an unspecified favor, which she agreed to consider.
• The next morning, the narrator prepared his Dragon Slayer Crossbows and armor, and Yun Yun flew him toward the beast's lair by holding his collar.
• Yun Yun slowed near the treetops and warned the narrator that the Amethyst Winged Lion King's lair was just ahead.

Yun Yun drew the Amethyst Winged Lion King into battle while the narrator secretly entered its lair to find the amethyst spirit crystal. He discovered a symbiotic amethyst source and prepared to confront the Lion King's cub with the Dragon Slayer Crossbow.

• Yun Yun offered the Amethyst Winged Lion King a trade, but he attacked her and the two fought in the sky.
• The narrator watched their battle, then used his Purple Cloud Wings to slip past the frightened magical beasts and enter the lair.
• The narrator adjusted to the cave's darkness and carefully made his way through its natural passages.
• The narrator found a symbiotic amethyst source fused to a platform and realized he would need the amethyst spirit crystal to break it open.
• The narrator moved deeper into the lair to face the third-rank cub, confident in the deadly weapon he had brought.

The narrator used a Dragon Hunting Crossbow to kill the Little Lion King, then collected its amethyst spirit crystals and harvested the symbiotic amethyst source. He left the cave with six and a half bottles of the source.

• The narrator found the Little Lion King asleep in a cave and prepared a Dragon Hunting Crossbow with a special bolt.
• The narrator lured the Little Lion King around a bend and struck the crossbow's trigger, driving the bolt through its chest.
• The narrator killed the wounded Little Lion King with Thunder Crescent Slash and stored its corpse in his Ring of Holding.
• The narrator treated the blood with medicinal powder, collected several dozen amethyst spirit crystals, and returned to the symbiotic amethyst source.
• The narrator cracked open the source with an amethyst spirit crystal, filled six and a half jade bottles, and licked the shell clean.

After Nalan Jie was spotted escaping the Amethyst Winged Lion King’s territory, Yun Yun rescued him and fled with him toward Wu Si City. The Lion King pursued them beyond the Monster Mountain Range, and the city gathered its forces to face the coming attack.

• The Amethyst Winged Lion King spotted Nalan Jie, who fled through the forest while more than a dozen magical beasts chased him.
• Yun Yun rescued Nalan Jie after he injured his back while dodging a flying beast, and he told her he had killed the Little Lion King.
• Yun Yun carried Nalan Jie out of the Monster Mountain Range as the Amethyst Winged Lion King followed, demanding his son’s return.
• Yun Yun and Nalan Jie reached Wu Si City, where she warned City Lord Mo Wang that the sixth-rank Amethyst Winged Lion King was approaching.
• Nalan Jie urged the city to fight outside its walls, and the City Lord’s Mansion, local families, and Mercenaries Groups assembled more than seventeen hundred fighters west of Wu Si City.

The narrator watched Wu Si City prepare for the Amethyst Winged Lion King’s assault, doubted the disorganized allied force could win, and returned to the city while Yun Yun faced the beast. The Lion King arrived and withstood the army’s opening barrage, leaving the battle unresolved.

• The narrator forced the Four Great Families to accept Mo Wang as commander, then asked Yun Yun about their chances; she said she could protect herself but could not keep the Lion King there.
• The narrator returned to Wu Si City and saw residents fleeing, families escaping with their valuables, and criminals looting while soldiers struggled to maintain order.
• The Amethyst Winged Lion King arrived, rejected Yun Yun’s demand that he return to the Monster Mountain Range, and attacked her with a purple fireball.
• Yun Yun drew the Lion King into the allied force’s formation, and Mo Wang ordered the army’s crossbows and catapults to fire at him.
• The Lion King melted the crossbow bolts with his Purple Flame, then was caught in a volley of fifteen hundred javelins after Yun Yun forced him back down.
• The remaining javelins struck the Lion King after his flames weakened, but they failed to pierce his defenses.

Yun Yun and the Wu Si City forces fought the Amethyst Winged Lion King, while Nalan’s narrator admired Mo Wang’s command and sought to recruit him. After the beast died, the narrator threatened to have Mo Wang executed unless he resigned and became a follower.

• The Amethyst Winged Lion King attacked the Left Army, and Mo Wang ordered the Central and Right Armies to bombard it with javelins despite the casualties among his own troops.
• The Lion King feigned retreat and dove at Mo Wang, but the narrator’s Dragon Hunting Crossbow stopped its strike, giving the Central Army time to hold out until Yun Yun arrived.
• Mo Wang rallied the Central Army while Yun Yun continued fighting, and she ultimately killed the Amethyst Winged Lion King with her sword.
• The narrator offered the Rui Er Family head compensation and control of disaster relief in exchange for the Lion King’s corpse, while Yun Yun flew back to the city alone.
• The narrator accused Mo Wang of causing the Left Army’s deaths and threatened to have him executed unless he resigned as city lord and became the narrator’s follower.

Nalan Ye recruited Mo Wang as his follower, left Wu Si City with Yun Yun, and traveled to the empire’s Northwest Territory. In Mo City, near the Tagor Desert, Mo Wang asked why they had come, and Nalan Ye mentioned a map seller he wanted to visit.

• Mo Wang brought Nalan Ye the Rui Er Family Clan’s Ring of Holding and the Amethyst Winged Lion King’s Sixth-Order Magic Core, then accepted Nalan Ye’s offer to become his follower.
• Nalan Ye and Yun Yun left Wu Si City after its unrest subsided, and he handed her the magic core.
• After more than ten days of travel, the group reached a city near the Tagor Desert and dismounted from the flying magical beast.
• Mo Wang asked Nalan Ye why they had come to Mo City, and Nalan Ye said he wanted to see an old man who sold maps.

Nalan Ye visited Hai Bodong’s Ancient Maps shop, revealed the Ice Emperor’s identity to Yun Yun, and asked about the azure lotus core flame. Hai Bodong demanded to know why Nalan Ye had come, and Nalan Ye named the exotic flame as his purpose.

• Nalan Ye found a fragment of the purifying lotus demon fire map among the maps in Hai Bodong’s shop.
• Ling Lin and three young men tried to drive Nalan Ye away, but the Nalan Family shop manager identified him and Mo Wang escorted them out.
• Nalan Ye introduced himself to Hai Bodong, then revealed the old mapmaker was the Ice Emperor and invited Yun Yun to greet him.
• Hai Bodong asked Yun Yun about Yun Shan and mocked her master for failing to break through to Dou Zong.
• Hai Bodong demanded to know why Nalan Ye had disturbed his seclusion, and Nalan Ye said he had come for the azure lotus core flame.

Nalan Ye persuaded Hai Bodong to travel with him to Stone Desert City, offering the Nalan Family’s help in obtaining an Exotic Flame and a free Sixth-Rank Pill for the Mitre Family. On the way, Yun Yun sensed two unfamiliar Dou Emperor auras; when Nalan Ye went to investigate, he unexpectedly found Xiao Meier, Xiao Yan, and Xiao Xun'er among the Stone Desert Mercenary Group.

• Nalan Ye told Hai Bodong that the Nalan Family knew the location of the azure lotus core flame and promised a free Sixth-Rank Pill for the Mitre Family in exchange for Hai Bodong’s help; Hai Bodong agreed.
• Yun Yun sensed two unfamiliar Dou Emperor auras near Stone Desert City, so Nalan Ye ordered the flying magical beast to change course and investigate.
• Hai Bodong cautioned Nalan Ye to approach slowly to avoid provoking the unfamiliar Dou Emperors, and Yun Yun later pointed out two mercenary groups facing off below.
• Nalan Ye and Mo Wang went down to inspect the mercenaries, and Nalan Ye recognized Xiao Meier, Xiao Yan, and Xiao Xun'er in the Stone Desert Mercenary Group.
• Nalan Ye ran up to Xiao Meier and greeted her excitedly, while Xiao Yan identified him to his First Brother and Second Brother as Xiao Meier’s fiancé.

Nalan Ye reunited with Xiao Yan, Xiao Meier, Xiao Xun'er, and the Xiao brothers in Stone Desert City, where the Sand Mercenary Group confronted them. Xiao Xun'er explained that the Mo Family’s sudden expansion had weakened local mercenary groups and driven the Sand Mercenary Group to target the Desert Iron Mercenary Group.

• Xiao Ding ordered the Desert Iron mercenaries to lower their weapons and let Nalan Ye and Mo Wang join their formation.
• Nalan Ye greeted Xiao Meier, Xiao Xun'er, Xiao Yan, Xiao Ding, Xiao Li, and Xiao Yu, while his exchanges with Xiao Li and Xiao Yan remained awkward over the broken engagement.
• Xiao Yu identified Luo Bu, leader of the Sand Mercenary Group, as the man who wanted to take Xiao Meier as his wife, provoking an argument among the Xiao family members.
• Xiao Xun'er explained that the Mo Family had moved large numbers of guards and mercenaries into Stone Desert City, damaging local groups’ standing.
• Xiao Xun'er said the Sand Mercenary Group had absorbed smaller groups to protect its interests but had now turned against the Desert Iron Mercenary Group.

Nalan Ye used his Nalan Family standing and his engagement to Xiao Meier to force Luo Bu to back down from attacking the Desert Iron Mercenary Group. He demanded that the Sand Mercenary Group merge under the Xiao brothers, leaving Luo Bu angry and the confrontation unresolved.

• Nalan Ye realized the Stone Desert City operation had been secretly carried out by the Nalan Family and that it had drawn the Xiao brothers and their Desert Iron Mercenary Group into the conflict.
• Luo Bu arrived with the Sand Mercenary Group and demanded that Xiao Ding and Xiao Li agree to merge their group into his.
• Xiao Ding refused and invited the Desert Iron mercenaries to stay and fight or leave without blame, and they all chose to stand with him.
• Nalan Ye declared his identity and revealed that Xiao Meier was his fiancée, then intimidated Luo Bu with the Nalan Family's power.
• Luo Bu apologized and promised to leave the Desert Iron Mercenary Group alone, but Nalan Ye demanded that the Sand Mercenary Group merge under the Xiao brothers or die, angering Luo Bu.

Nalan Ye forced Luo Bu to surrender and merge the Sand Mercenary Group into the Desert Iron Mercenary Group by threatening him with the Nalan Family’s influence over the Mo Family. He returned to Xiao Ding after securing the merger.

• Luo Bu activated his Dou Qi Armor and prepared to fight, but Nalan Ye warned that the Mo Family would answer his call.
• Nalan Ye bet that the Mo Family would come to Stone Desert City if he sent them a letter, and Luo Bu realized he could not resist.
• Luo Bu knelt and offered to place the Sand Mercenary Group under Nalan Ye’s service, but Nalan Ye demanded that it merge into the Desert Iron Mercenary Group instead.
• Luo Bu accepted the merger and began addressing his mercenaries.
• Nalan Ye returned to Xiao Ding and reported that he had persuaded Luo Bu to merge the Sand Mercenary Group.

After helping arrange peace between the Desert Iron Mercenary Group and the Sand Mercenary Group, Nalan Ye urged Xiao Yan to meet Yun Yun, the Yun Lan Sect Master who had forced the end of Xiao Yan’s engagement to Yanran. Xiao Yan refused, so Nalan Ye dragged him toward her.

• Nalan Ye teased Xiao Meier about his actions, while Xiao Yu flirted with him and provoked Xiao Meier.
• Nalan Ye found Xiao Yan and Xiao Xun'er together and thanked Xiao Yan for helping avert a fight with the Sand Mercenary Group.
• Nalan Ye explained that the Nalan Family had opposed breaking Xiao Yan and Yanran’s engagement, but the Yun Lan Sect Master had pressured them into it.
• Xiao Yan said he did not want to meet Yun Yun or accept compensation from her.
• Nalan Ye seized Xiao Yan and began dragging him toward Yun Yun, insisting that he should take advantage of the free benefits.

The narrator reunited with Yun Yun and brought his fiancée Xiao Meier and her relatives aboard her flying magical beast after concealing the source of the Dou Emperor aura. As they set off for Stone Desert City, he awkwardly asked Yun Yun to give the newcomers a first-meeting gift.

• Xiao Meier and Xiao Yu argued about meeting a Dou Emperor, while the narrator told Xiao Yan that Yun Yun had sensed an unfamiliar Dou Emperor aura nearby.
• Xiao Yan and Xun Er pretended not to know about the aura, and the narrator played along with their explanation.
• The narrator asked Yun Yun to take Xiao Meier, Xiao Yu, Xiao Yan, and Xun Er to Stone Desert City, and Yun Yun agreed.
• The narrator introduced the four to Yun Yun, whose indifference toward Xiao Yan angered him, and then asked her for a first-meeting gift.

Nalan Ye introduced Hai Bodong to the Xiao Family and gave Xiao Meier a Small Supplement Pill, revealing that he had already reached the One-Star Dou Shi stage. When Xiao Yu interrupted their private conversation and admitted she had overheard them, Nalan Ye struck her on the forehead, leaving Xiao Yan to remark that her luck had finally run out.

• Nalan Ye introduced Hai Bodong to the Xiao Family, but Hai Bodong refused to give the youngsters welcome gifts.
• Yun Yun gave the four youngsters gifts, and the group continued by flying magical beast toward Stone Desert City.
• Nalan Ye offered Xiao Meier a Small Supplement Pill and showed her that he had advanced to One-Star Dou Shi.
• Xiao Meier accepted the pill and called Nalan Ye "Ye Gege," but Xiao Yu entered and teased them after overhearing their conversation.
• Nalan Ye rapped Xiao Yu on the forehead, and Xiao Yan told her that he had warned her she would suffer for her temperament.

Nalan Ye told the Xiao Family that their group had come to the Tagor Desert to find an Exotic Flame, while assuring Xiao Yan that his brothers would be safe. As their flying magical beast descended toward Stone Desert City, Nalan Ye hinted to Xiao Xun'er that an Exotic Flame might someday be bought.

• Xiao Yu challenged Nalan Ye to fight again, but she backed down after seeing his Dou Master strength.
• Xiao Yan asked whether Nalan Ye's plans would endanger his brothers, and Nalan Ye promised their safety and the chance for them to gain benefits.
• Nalan Ye revealed that the group had come for an Exotic Flame, prompting Xiao Yan and Xiao Yu to react with surprise.
• Xiao Xun'er comforted Xiao Yan by saying he could obtain another Exotic Flame someday, and Nalan Ye suggested one might be purchased.
• The flying magical beast descended toward Stone Desert City.

Nalan Ye arrived in Stone Desert City with Yun Yun, Hai Bodong, and the Xiao Family members, then met his Nalan relatives and discussed the planned expedition for the Azure Lotus Core Flame. He insisted the flame existed and asked Nalan Jie to gather the people in charge before he revealed the plan.

• Nalan Ye led his companions through Stone Desert City’s crowded streets to the Nalan Family shop, where the manager took them to the fortified courtyard.
• Nalan Ye greeted Nalan Jie, Nalan Tie, and Nalan Dong, then brought Yun Yun, Hai Bodong, and the others into the courtyard.
• Hai Bodong and Nalan Jie exchanged greetings, and Nalan Jie explained that his Branding Iron Poison had left him in poor health.
• Hai Bodong asked about the expedition, and Nalan Jie learned that he had not known Hai Bodong’s full history.
• Nalan Ye assured Nalan Jie that the Azure Lotus Core Flame existed and asked him to gather the city’s leaders so he could explain the plan to everyone.
• Nalan Ye introduced Xiao Meier, Xiao Yan, and Xiao Xun'er to the Nalan elders, who reacted with particular interest to Xiao Meier and Xiao Yan.

Nalan Ye recognized the maid Qing Lin as possessing a bloodline that could aid his plan to seize the Azure Lotus Core Flame. He asked to take her with him, and Xiao Yan insisted that Qing Lin must agree first.

• Nalan Ye told Xiao Meier he would lead the operation after the next day's deliberations and assured Xiao Yan he would explain how he planned to seize the Azure Lotus Core Flame later.
• Nalan Ye visited Xiao Ding and Xiao Li at the Desert Iron Mercenary Group base, where Xiao Ding agreed to put the group under his command.
• Nalan Ye noticed green scales on the maid's wrist, grabbed her, and demanded to know whether she was one of the Snake-People.
• Qing Lin introduced herself as human, and Xiao Ding explained that some children born after Snake-People attacked nearby villages bore scales.
• Nalan Ye apologized, then asked Xiao Ding to let Qing Lin stay with him because her bloodline could help his plan.
• Xiao Yan objected to using Qing Lin and said Nalan Ye could take her only if she agreed to help.

Nalan Ye offered Qing Lin gold coins to help him, and she cautiously accepted only a few before agreeing to leave with him. As Nalan Ye gathered the remaining coins, Xiao Yu’s remarks about Snake-People slaves left him stunned.

• Nalan Ye offered Qing Lin a thousand gold coins, and Xiao Yan agreed she could leave with him if she accepted freely.
• Qing Lin’s jade eye three flower pupils briefly dazed Nalan Ye, who recognized their unusual power despite her low cultivation.
• Qing Lin took only a few gold coins, saying they were already plenty, and Nalan Ye corrected her about his name.
• Xiao Yan told Nalan Ye to make up the difference because Qing Lin had received too few coins.
• Xiao Yu suggested that Nalan Ye wanted Qing Lin because wealthy men in Gama City bought Snake-People slaves, shocking Nalan Ye.

Nalan Ye woke after drinking with the Xiao Family and joined Xiao Yan and the others for breakfast, but an unexpected lockdown and mercenary mobilization in Stone Desert City revealed that Nalan Family forces were surrounding its own shop. He suspected Yun Yun or Hai Bodong might be inside, but could not determine the cause as Xiao Meier tried to comfort him.

• Qing Lin woke Nalan Ye and helped him dress, and he gave her a necklace after awkwardly patting her head.
• Nalan Ye joined Xiao Yan, Xiao Yu, Xiao Meier, and Xun Er for breakfast, where a mercenary reported that the Mo Family had sealed Stone Desert City and imposed martial law.
• At the Council Hall, Xiao Ding asked Nalan Ye what was happening, and Nalan Ye suggested contacting his family's shop for information.
• Reports and Xiao Li's map showed more than two thousand mercenaries converging to surround the Nalan Family's shop.
• Nalan Ye suspected Yun Yun and Hai Bodong were the formidable enemies behind the mobilization, but could not make sense of their motives.
• Xiao Meier held Nalan Ye's hand and told him he looked frighteningly pale.

Nalan Ye learned that Pill King Gu He had arrived with a powerful force to claim the Azure Lotus Core Flame, then went to meet him with Xiao Yan and the others. At the Nalan Family’s command post, Nalan Ye confirmed the Exotic Flame’s existence and asked Guardian Elder Nalan Jia to let him enter.

• A guard reported that Gu He had arrived with two Dou Wang experts, seven Dou Ling, and twenty-four Da Dou Shi, and Nalan Ye decided to meet him.
• Xiao Yan, Xun Er, Xiao Yu, and Xiao Meier joined Nalan Ye, while Xiao Ding and Xiao Li stayed behind at the compound.
• Nalan Ye’s group found the shop surrounded by two thousand Nalan Family elite guards armed with Dragon Slayer Crossbows and Dragon Hunting Crossbows.
• Nalan Ye met Guardian Elder Nalan Jia at the command post, confirmed that the Azure Lotus Core Flame existed, and asked permission to enter.

Nalan Ye entered the courtyard with the Xiao Family members and confronted Gu He and the powerful figures gathered around him over the threat to his exotic flame. Lion King Yan Shi mocked Nalan Ye’s offer to pay the other seniors to stay out of the dispute, leaving the courtyard laughing at him.

• The Guardian Elder ordered Nalan Zhan to escort Nalan Ye inside, and the Da Dou Shi outside let them pass rather than challenge the Nalan Family.
• Nalan Ye entered the courtyard and greeted Hai Bodong, Yun Yun, Nalan Jie, Lion King Yan Shi, Wind Walker, and the others.
• Yan Shi criticized Nalan Ye’s manners and pressured him with his Dou Wang aura, but Nalan Jie blocked the attack and rebuked him.
• Nalan Ye bluntly asked Gu He whether he had come to seize the exotic flame, and Ba Gu Li ordered him to leave before Nalan Tie defended his grandson.
• Nalan Ye offered the assembled seniors twice Gu He’s benefits if they would stand aside, prompting Yan Shi to laugh and mock him to Nalan Jie.

Yezi tried to turn Gu He’s allies against him by arguing that their favors bound them, provoking Yan Shi and Ba Gu Li to attack. Yun Yun intervened just before Ba Gu Li’s dagger reached Yezi’s neck, leaving the courtyard confrontation unresolved.

• Yezi offered Gu He’s companions freedom and challenged Yan Shi’s claim that he had come only to repay a favor, arguing that Gu He’s alchemy services made them indebted to him.
• Yan Shi erupted in anger and attacked Nalan Jie, while Ba Gu Li charged at Yezi with a dagger.
• Nalan Tie and Nalan Dong rushed to protect Yezi, but they could not reach him before Ba Gu Li closed in.
• Yun Yun appeared and used azure Dou Qi to halt Ba Gu Li and drive him back, then ordered everyone to stop.

Nalan Ye argued that Nalan Dong’s chance to become a Sixth-Rank Alchemist would give the Gamma Empire an alternative to Gu He and end Gu He’s monopoly on Sixth-Rank Pills. Gu He realized the prospect threatened his support, leaving his attempt to obtain the Azure Lotus Core Flame in jeopardy.

• Yun Yun stopped the confrontation, and Nalan Jie agreed to discuss the matter rather than worsen relations.
• Gu He described the effort and risks involved in alchemy, but Nalan Ye asked Nalan Dong whether advancing as an alchemist was truly so difficult.
• Nalan Ye announced that the powerful fighters would have the freedom to choose between Gu He and Nalan Dong, who promised not to use favors to pressure customers.
• Feng Li, Yan Shi, and the six Dou Lings reconsidered their support as they saw that Nalan Dong could break Gu He's monopoly on Sixth-Rank Pills.
• Gu He recognized that he might lose the fighters' support and feared he could no longer obtain the Azure Lotus Core Flame.

Gu He tried to persuade the experts to help him obtain the Exotic Flame, but they refused to take it by force from the Nalan Family. He left with Ba Gu Li, and the courtyard settled into uneasy calm.

• Gu He appealed to his old friendships, while Feng Li said he would help search for the Exotic Flame but would not help rob the Nalan Family.
• Yan Shi also refused to seize the flame, and Ba Gu Li accused Feng Li and Yan Shi of breaking their word.
• Nalan Ye challenged Ba Gu Li for threatening the Nalan Family, then called him a thief when he rebuked Feng Li and Yan Shi.
• Gu He ordered Ba Gu Li to leave with him, and the two departed the courtyard.
• Yun Yun returned to her guest room, while Hai Bodong, Feng Li, Nalan Jie, Yan Shi, and the others resumed talking and the city guards withdrew.