Chapter Summaries

The allied forces crushed the Morning Dawn Empire and stormed its last stronghold, U Yue City, but the leaders of the Ten Thousand Scorpion Gate and Wu Tian Mansion escaped before the city fell. As Anke Lai Ni’s empire collapsed, he set fire to himself and the treasures in the City Lord’s Mansion pavilion.

• After the Chuyun Imperial Family surrendered, Qi Lin’s army joined the Snake-People, Gamma, and Chuyun forces to retake Chuyun’s Eastern Border and surround the Morning Dawn Empire’s troops.
• Qi Lin told the narrator she had been assigned to attack a southeastern pass, and he gave her a medicinal pill before she departed.
• Over the next three months, the allied armies defeated the Morning Dawn Empire’s forces, while the Little Fairy Doctor helped commanders escape the poison used to control them.
• Nearly three hundred thousand allied troops besieged U Yue City, and its eastern wall fell on the third day; the Ten Thousand Scorpion Gate and Wu Tian Mansion’s experts were gone, having escaped before the encirclement closed.
• Anke Lai Ni learned that U Yue City had fallen, put on his intended imperial robes, and set fire to a pavilion filled with stolen treasures, wondering whether anyone would remember him.

After the war ended, Xiao Yan prepared to leave for Canaan Academy, and Nalan Yanran gave him a map of the Black-Corner Region. Their farewell turned into a hesitant kiss, leaving their relationship newly uncertain as Xiao Yan set out on his travels.

• After the Cloudrise Empire's Third Prince Anke Lai Ni burned himself alive and the enemy leaders fled, the war ended and the survivors celebrated.
• At the riverbank, Nalan Yanran asked Xiao Yan if he was leaving, and he said he planned to visit his brothers before going to Canaan Academy.
• Xiao Yan declined to wait for his military rewards and said he would give them to his Second Brother.
• Nalan Yanran warned Xiao Yan about the Black-Corner Region and handed him a map with Canaan Academy's location marked on it.
• Yao Lao urged Xiao Yan to kiss Nalan Yanran, and Xiao Yan embraced her and pressed his lips to hers.

Nalan Ye planned a balance of power among the factions in the Gamma and Chuyun Empires and summoned Mu Tie and Anthony to discuss an alliance. He proposed a marriage between the Mu Family and the Mo Lai Ni Family, leaving both men to wonder what he intended amid the stalled U Yue Peace Conference.

• Nalan Ye studied the map and planned to relocate the Mitre and Nalan Families to Chuyun, move the Chuyun Imperial Family into Gamma, and pair the Mu Family with the Chuyun Imperial Family.
• Nalan Ye had guards summon Mu Tie and Anthony after hearing that the U Yue Peace Conference had repeatedly ended in arguments without an agreement.
• Anthony urged Nalan Ye to preside over the conference and pledged that the Mo Lai Ni Family would follow him, surprising Mu Tie.
• Nalan Ye congratulated Mu Tie on Mu Zhan's battlefield accomplishments and suggested finding him a marriage match, but dismissed Mu Tie's suggestion that he marry Nalan Yanran.
• Nalan Ye proposed that the Mu Family consider a marriage alliance with the Mo Lai Ni Family, prompting Mu Tie and Anthony to ponder his intentions.

Ye Er secured support for a plan to divide control of several regions between the Snake-People Tribe and the Nalan Family, while Nalan Jie suggested keeping the Nalan Family nominally within the Gamma Empire. He then met Ya Fei Mitre in U Yue City and asked when she had left the auction house in Wutan City.

• Anthony and Mu Tie thanked Ye Er for the peace terms and left the residence.
• Ye Er explained his plan to Nalan Jie, who proposed that the Nalan Family control four regions while nominally remaining part of the Gamma Empire.
• Ye Er agreed with Nalan Jie's approach and invited Hai Bodong to visit.
• Hai Bodong arrived with Ya Fei Mitre, and Ye Er was surprised to see her.
• Ye Er welcomed Ya Fei and asked when she had come to U Yue City.

The narrator tried to persuade Hai Bodong and Ya Fei to move the Mitre Family to Chuyun Territory, but Ya Fei questioned the business risks. As the Gama Royal Family and Yun Lan Sect arrived together, he privately invited Yun Yun to speak, leaving her visibly conflicted.

• The narrator explained his plans for Chuyun Territory and asked Hai Bodong whether the Mitre Family would relocate there.
• Ya Fei argued that moving would damage the Mitre Family's business, but the narrator insisted that the unsettled territory offered political opportunities and said he could support another power instead.
• The narrator dismissed Hai Bodong and Ya Fei to consider his proposal, then invited Yun Yun to meet with him.
• Yun Yun arrived with Yun Lan Sect elders and members of the Gama Royal Family, whose young prince accused the Nalan Family of plotting rebellion.
• The narrator asked Yun Yun to speak with him alone, and she hesitated before saying that official business need not be kept from the royal family.

Nalan Ye spoke privately with Yun Yun and learned that the Yun Lan Sect barred its young sect masters from romance until they reached Dou Wang, a rule he feared could cause conflict over Nalan Yanran. After escorting Yun Yun out, he announced an alliance meeting for the next morning despite the Gama Royal Family’s objections.

• Nalan Ye invited Yun Yun into the main hall while Nalan Jie cleared the courtyard of the other guests.
• Nalan Ye and Yun Yun drank tea and discussed why she had allowed Nalan Yanran to break off her engagement.
• Yun Yun explained that young sect masters were forbidden from romantic relationships until they reached Dou Wang, so they could focus on cultivation and prepare to protect the sect.
• Nalan Ye worried that the rule could lead Xiao Yan to attack the Yun Lan Sect, but believed Nalan Yanran and Yun Yun had avoided tragic romances.
• Nalan Ye announced an alliance meeting for the next morning in the U Yue City Lord’s Manor, dismissed the imperial family’s objection, and ordered the guests escorted out.

Nalan Ye presided over an alliance conference in U Yue City and used the factions’ war-weariness to oppose the Gamma Royal Family’s demand for another campaign. When Jia Xingtian threatened to fight anyway, powerful allies turned their pressure against him, leaving the hall on the brink of confrontation.

• Nalan Ye welcomed the factions to the alliance conference and dismissed a young Gamma royal who challenged his right to preside.
• Nalan Ye accused Faris of Chuyun of causing the war’s devastation, and Faris offered to abdicate in favor of the Gamma Emperor.
• Prince Gerr rejected Faris’s offer, but Nalan Jie, the Little Fairy Doctor, Yue Mei, Mu Tie, and Hai Bodong opposed launching another war, while Yun Yun remained silent.
• Nalan Ye asked Jia Xingtian to accept that the factions wanted peace, but Jia Xingtian insisted he could still choose to fight.
• Ling Ying blocked Jia Xingtian’s Dou Huang pressure as the Little Fairy Doctor, Yue Mei, Anthony, Zoe, Nalan Jie, and three Snake-People Dou Wangs joined in confronting him.

At the alliance conference, Yun Yun withdrew the Yun Lan Sect, leaving Jia Xingtian isolated as the factions negotiated the postwar settlement. Jia Xingtian eventually conceded to the narrator’s demands, including granting him the Gama Eastern Border.

• The narrator reminded Yun Yun that the Yun Lan Sect had traditionally avoided worldly affairs, and she announced that Yun Shan had ordered the sect to return to its mountain.
• Jia Xingtian questioned Yun Yun’s account, but she left the Council Hall with the Yun Lan Sect’s disciples as scouts reported they were preparing to depart.
• The narrator suspected Yun Shan was withdrawing to preserve the sect’s ability to challenge the alliance’s decisions later, then urged the conference to continue.
• The narrator proposed granting the Snake-People Tribe the former Northern Region and Eastern Border of Chuyun, merging Chuyun with Gama, and creating an autonomous special administrative region under the Lion Heart Marshal.
• When Jia Xingtian refused to surrender the Gama Eastern Border, the narrator cited his services and military strength to pressure the Grand Elder.
• Jia Xingtian sighed and agreed to grant the Gama Eastern Border to the narrator.

After the U Yue Peace Conference, Yue Mei outlined how the Snake-People Tribe would govern the human regions, and Qi Lin prepared to relocate the Mei Snake Tribe. The Snake-People withdrew from occupied cities as the group returned to Gama City, where the narrator prepared for the Emperor’s proclamation and vowed to avenge Qing Lin.

• The narrator told Yue Mei to return her army to Tagor, and she proposed moving the Mei Snake and Mo Snake Tribes into the Cloudrise regions while supporting human factions to govern them.
• Qi Lin thanked the narrator for helping her reach the Dou Wang realm and said she would go to Tagor to relocate the Mei Snake Tribe.
• The Snake-People began withdrawing from cities in the Gama Eastern Region and handing them over to Nalan Jie’s forces, while Nalan Su was designated the Chuyun Protectorate’s first Grand Protector.
• The narrator, Little Fairy Doctor, Ling Ying, and others traveled to Gama City, where the narrator grieved over Qing Lin’s death and vowed to avenge her.
• The narrator anticipated the Gamma Emperor’s court assembly the next morning, where Mo Lin would announce the peace conference’s terms.

The Gama and Chuyun United Empire established the Left Department of Supervision, placing Nalan Ye at its head and granting the Nalan Family extensive power. Nalan Ye recruited Little Fairy Doctor as an Offering and introduced Heaven Reaching Tokens as a way for powerful factions to bring major complaints to the new department.

• Mo Lin announced that the Snake-People Tribe would receive two Chuyun regions, the Nalan Family would inherit the Chuyun Protectorate and Gamma's Eastern Border, and Nalan Ye would lead the Left Department of Supervision.
• Officials and nobles realized that the Left Department could oversee both the Gamma Empire and the Chuyun Protectorate, while Mo Lin silently clenched his hands.
• Nalan Ye persuaded Little Fairy Doctor to become an Offering, and she agreed to support the Left Department when needed.
• Nalan Ye, Ling Ying, and Little Fairy Doctor entered the palace, where Nalan Ye addressed the gathered factions as Left Supervisor.
• Nalan Ye distributed Heaven Reaching Tokens, explaining that holders could use each token once to file a complaint about injustice or unlawful conduct with the Left Department in U Yue City.

Yun Shan met with Wu Protector, who revealed that the Hall of Souls intended to recruit Nalan Ye and had lost interest in the Yun Lan Sect. Yun Shan abandoned plans to attack the Supervisory Left Division and summoned Nalan Yanran to assess her cultivation.

• Yun Shan told Wu Protector that he had obeyed instructions not to interfere in affairs below the mountain.
• Yun Shan asked whether Nalan Ye belonged to the Hall of Souls, and Wu Protector said he would soon join them.
• Wu Protector mocked Yun Shan’s failures and praised Nalan Ye’s ability to unite the realm’s factions.
• Wu Protector vanished, leaving Yun Shan furious that the Hall of Souls had abandoned the Yun Lan Sect.
• Yun Shan decided against attacking the Supervisory Left Division and sent an attendant to summon Nalan Yanran for a cultivation assessment.

After mourning Qing Lin, Nalan Ye arranged for the Poison Sect and other Poison Masters to relocate to southern Chuyun, then chose Pill King Gu He as the Supervisory Left Division’s first target. The Mo Lai Ni Family’s Zoe publicly accused Gu He in U Yue City, setting the division’s first case in motion.

• Nalan Ye visited Qing Lin’s grave and vowed to avenge her by killing the two Dou Zongs responsible.
• Little Fairy Doctor left to oversee the Poison Sect’s relocation, and Nalan Ye proposed moving it and the territory’s other Poison Masters to southern Chuyun.
• Nalan Ye decided the Supervisory Left Division would make its name by investigating Gu He for hoarding goods and inflating pill prices.
• Nalan Ye ordered the Mo Lai Ni Family to accuse Gu He, using the case to draw the family closer under his protection.
• Zoe arrived in U Yue City and publicly accused Gu He, demanding that the Left Supervisor apprehend him.

Gu He watched his disciple Liu Ling attempt his first Three-Rank Pill, but the refinement was interrupted when Ling Ying arrived to question Gu He over alleged price gouging. Ling Ying defeated and arrested Gu He, leaving Liu Ling to seek help from the Alchemist Guild, Yun Lan Sect, and royal family.

• Gu He advised Liu Ling as he began refining a Qinghe Pill, and Liu Ling reached the final pill-fusion step after processing the ingredients.
• Ling Ying arrived on behalf of the Supervisory Left Division and announced that Zoe of the Mo Lai Ni Family had accused Gu He of hoarding goods and maliciously raising pill prices.
• Ling Ying's sudden pressure distracted Liu Ling, causing the cauldron to explode before the pill was finished.
• Gu He confronted Ling Ying, fought him, and was defeated, bound, and carried away toward U Yue City.
• Liu Ling cursed Nalan Ye and decided to ask the Alchemist Guild, Yun Lan Sect, and royal family to help free Gu He.

Liu Ling asked Fa Ma to rescue Gu He after Nalan Ye seized him, but Fa Ma and Jia Xingtian hesitated as the Alchemist Guild and imperial family weighed their response. Yun Shan also insisted on waiting, leaving Jia Xingtian suspicious of what the Yun Lan Sect leader was expecting.

• Liu Ling appealed to Fa Ma for help, and Fa Ma agreed to consider the matter with Dai Tuo but warned that the Alchemist Guild lacked the strength to confront the empire's major powers.
• Fa Ma met Jia Xingtian and urged him to punish Nalan Ye, while Jia Xingtian declined to commit and said he would wait for the Yun Lan Sect's stance.
• Yun Shan's reply said the sect would wait for the Supervisory Left Division's ruling before seeking justice for Gu He, prompting Jia Xingtian to suspect that Yun Shan had died or was hiding a secret.
• Jia Xingtian traveled to Yun Lan Mountain, confirmed Yun Shan was alive, and questioned why he would let the Supervisory Left Division grow stronger.
• Yun Shan continued to insist that they wait, and Jia Xingtian agreed to wait while remaining suspicious of what Yun Shan was expecting.

Nalan Ye refused demands to release Gu He while weighing the threat posed by Yun Shan and the War Hall of Souls. After resolving to prepare for a confrontation, he went to visit Gu He, whom he intended to bring under his control.

• Nalan Ye left the burned pavilion where An Ke had died and ordered that its ruins remain untouched.
• Nalan Ye refused to meet Dai Tuo and told him that Gu He's case would proceed through the Supervisory Left Division.
• Nalan Ye learned that Fa Ma, Jia Xingtian, and Yun Shan had all avoided acting against him, and he suspected Yun Shan was working with the War Hall of Souls.
• Nalan Ye panicked at the prospect of the War Hall of Souls attacking, then regained his confidence and decided to defend his territory.
• Nalan Ye concluded that he needed Gu He's support and went to see whether Gu He had settled into U Yue City.

The Left Supervisor pressured Gu He to join the Supervisory Left Division exclusively, first threatening to imprison him and then offering him a chance to claim Han Feng’s Sea Heart Flame. Gu He agreed to join so he could pursue the Different Fire.

• The Left Supervisor asked Gu He to leave the Gama Alchemist Guild, Yun Lan Sect, and Gama Royal Family and serve only the Supervisory Left Division, but Gu He refused.
• The Left Supervisor threatened to confine Gu He in the deepest level of a planned nine-level prison if he would not join.
• The Left Supervisor praised Gu He’s defiance and offered to help him obtain a Different Fire in exchange for joining.
• The Left Supervisor identified Han Feng’s Sea Heart Flame as the target and claimed the Supervisory Left Division could gather the strength to kill him.
• Gu He weighed the danger against the prospect of gaining the Sea Heart Flame and agreed to join the Supervisory Left Division.

The Left Supervisor recruited Gu He and worried about the Hall of Souls, but a mysterious black-robed visitor from the Hall of Souls infiltrated his study. The visitor did not attack, leaving the Left Supervisor to ask what orders he had.

• The Left Supervisor persuaded Gu He to join him and told him to keep the alliance secret from Yun Shan.
• The Left Supervisor went to his study and worried about the Hall of Souls and Yun Shan’s plans.
• A black mist gathered in the study and formed a black-robed figure who identified himself as a member of the Hall of Souls.
• The Left Supervisor feared the visitor would kill him, but realized the man had not attacked and asked what orders he had.

Nalan Ye negotiated with Wu Protector of the Hall of Souls for medicinal ingredients to improve his aptitude in exchange for retrieving the Tou She Ancient God Jade from the Xiao Family. Wu Protector agreed to provide the ingredients first, leaving Nalan Ye with an image of the jade and a dangerous bargain.

• Wu Protector asked Nalan Ye to retrieve the Tou She Ancient God Jade held by the Xiao Family of Wutan City.
• Nalan Ye learned that the eight pieces of jade could open Tou She Ancient Emperor’s estate and sought medicinal ingredients to improve his aptitude as payment.
• Wu Protector offered to raise Nalan Ye’s cultivation but refused his request for a Lightning Attribute Heaven Rank Cultivation Method.
• Nalan Ye persuaded Wu Protector to provide the aptitude-improving ingredients before he retrieved the jade, with the risk of death if he failed.
• Wu Protector departed to gather the ingredients and left Nalan Ye a Jade Slip showing the Tou She Ancient God Jade fragment.

After Wu Protector’s visit, the narrator decided to give him the Tou She Ancient God Jade and sent Yun Shan an ambiguous letter to test whether he had ties to the Hall of Souls. Yun Shan arrived in U Yue City and agreed to seal the Yun Lan Sect and withdraw from worldly affairs, leaving the narrator’s alliance with the Hall of Souls in place.

• The narrator weighed whether to give Wu Protector the Tou She Ancient God Jade, then chose to hand it over to establish ties with the Hall of Souls.
• The narrator realized he could no longer foresee the future and sent Yun Shan a vague letter meant to reveal whether Yun Shan understood Wu Protector’s intentions.
• The narrator cultivated through the day while protesters continued to curse outside the City Lord’s Mansion.
• Yun Shan arrived with Ling Ying, and the narrator confirmed that he had already met Wu Protector and agreed to his arrangement.
• Yun Shan abandoned plans to oppose the narrator and said he would seal the mountain and stop interfering in worldly affairs.

Nalan Ye offered Yun Shan a Lightning Attribute Po Zong Pill and promised a Wind Attribute one if Yun Shan accepted his terms, prompting Yun Shan to leave with the offer in mind. Two days later, the Yun Lan Sect arrived at U Yue City, where Elder Yun Heng announced that they had come to the Supervisory Left Division to receive orders.

• Nalan Ye showed Yun Shan a Seventh-Rank Po Zong Pill, and Ling Ying identified it.
• Nalan Ye explained that the pill had Lightning Attribute and offered Yun Shan a Wind Attribute Po Zong Pill if he agreed to his unstated terms.
• Yun Shan returned the pill and left, unable to resist the prospect of a breakthrough and three hundred more years of life.
• Six Flying Magical Beasts carrying Yun Lan Sect disciples arrived in U Yue City, and the gathered crowd expected the sect to force Nalan Ye to release Gu He.
• Dai Tuo wondered why the Yun Lan Sect had arrived without consulting Fa Ma or involving the Gama Royal Family.
• Elder Yun Heng announced that he had brought fifty-two disciples under the Sect Leader's orders to receive orders at the Supervisory Left Division.