Chapter Summaries

Shen Tian followed Xiao Yan’s trail from the Nalan Empire to Canaan Academy, only to learn that Xiao Yan had secretly left for Central State to rescue Yao Lao. Meanwhile, Wu Hall Master received a cryptic message and concluded that he was searching for Nalan Ye.

• Shen Tian confirmed that Xiao Yan had left the Nalan Empire and traveled to Canaan Academy, where Su Qian told him Xiao Yan had already departed for Central State.
• Su Qian explained that Xiao Yan had secretly left to save Yao Lao and had returned to defend Canaan Academy for three years, earning a statue for killing a Dou Zong in battle.
• Shen Tian left with his disciples and continued toward Central State, hoping to catch up with Xiao Yan.
• Wu Hall Master received a message mentioning Canaan Academy and Wutan City, then decided the person he was looking for was Nalan Ye.

Nalan Ye learned that Xiao Yan had entered Central State, and he used the upcoming Pill Gathering to propose a way to find him. He left Starfall Pavilion to seek Xiao Yan and discuss rescuing Yao Lao, with Wind Venerable promising to help.

• Nalan Ye observed that the Soul Seed in Sima Hu’s soul kept growing until Zi Yan accidentally punched him to death.
• Mu Qingluan told Nalan Ye that Shen Tian had returned from the Nalan Empire, but Xiao Yan was not with him.
• Shen Tian explained that he had searched the Nalan Empire and Canaan Academy, then lost Xiao Yan’s trail after he entered Central State.
• Nalan Ye told Wind Venerable that Xiao Yan would likely attend the Pill Gathering and suggested waiting there to find him.
• Nalan Ye announced he was leaving Starfall Pavilion to find Xiao Yan and discuss rescuing Yao Lao, and Wind Venerable agreed to lend his aid.

Nalan Ye left Starfall Pavilion with his companions and traveled to Heavenly Star City, where he learned that Wu Protector had risen to become Hall Master of the Human Hall. He decided to visit the West Underworld Human Hall in Central State's Western Region.

• Mu Qingluan reluctantly saw Nalan Ye off, while Wind Venerable learned that Nalan Ye had a fiancée and urged him to leave.
• Nalan Ye departed with Little Fairy Doctor, Zi Yan, Qiu Yin, and Qiu Si, leaving Mu Qingluan behind at Starfall Pavilion.
• The group flew to Heavenly Star City, where Nalan Ye sent Little Fairy Doctor and Zi Yan to wait at Golden Sparrow Pavilion while he visited the Magpie Clinic.
• The clinic attendant told Nalan Ye that Wu Protector had sent no news but gave him a letter from Wu Hall Master, revealing that Wu Protector had been promoted to Hall Master of the Human Hall.
• Nalan Ye decided to visit the West Underworld Human Hall in Central State's Western Region.

Nalan Ye and his companions set out from Heavenly Star City on a detour through Central State, and he read the many letters and gifts sent from the Nalan Empire during the journey. He finished with Yun Yun’s brief reply, dissatisfied that she had written so little.

• Nalan Ye proposed traveling through Central State’s Western and Central Regions before reaching the Pill Domain, and the group agreed despite Qiu Yin’s complaints.
• Nalan Ye led the group into a Space Wormhole aboard Mu Qingluan’s Space Ship and assigned Qiu Yin the first steering shift.
• Nalan Ye discovered that Shen Tian had brought him hundreds of letters and a mountain of gifts from influential people in the Nalan Empire.
• Nalan Ye read letters from the Nalan Family and Xiao Meier, learning that the family missed him and that the First Affiliated Academy had graduated its first students.
• Nalan Ye found Xiao Yu’s letter confusing and ended by reading Yun Yun’s brief reply, which thanked him for his gifts and sent tea from Yun Lan Mountain Peak.

Nalan Ye and his companions crossed the desert between Central State’s Southern and Western Regions, where they encountered a merchant camel caravan. After Nalan Ye objected to the camels’ smell, the caravan leader moved his camp downwind, and the group settled in for dinner.

• Little Fairy Doctor admitted she felt lonely because she had no friends, and Nalan Ye reassured her that he was her friend.
• Nalan Ye and Little Fairy Doctor read flattering letters from his fellow townsmen as their group traveled toward Central State’s Western Region.
• Nalan Ye discovered that no Space Wormholes crossed the ten-thousand-li stretch between the regions, so the group set out to fly across it.
• The group reached an expansive desert and stopped behind a dune to camp for the night.
• Zi Yan spotted Heng Wu’s camel caravan, and Nalan Ye told Heng Wu to camp downwind because the camels stank.
• Heng Wu reprimanded Qi Er and moved the caravan downwind, while Little Fairy Doctor masked the odor and joined Nalan Ye’s group for dinner.

Nalan Ye and Little Fairy Doctor investigated Heng Qi’s kidnapping and found him alive in an underground den with several red-haired women. The rescue left Heng Qi weeping after he revealed what had happened to him.

• Nalan Ye and Little Fairy Doctor woke to news that Heng Qi had been taken during an attack on the caravan.
• Qiu Yin spotted beastlike tracks, and Heng Wu decided not to pursue the kidnappers until dawn.
• Little Fairy Doctor persuaded Nalan Ye’s group to follow the trail, and Nalan Ye sensed human auras inside an underground den.
• The group entered the den, silenced its occupants with Sedative Powder, and found several naked women and Heng Qi.
• Nalan Ye woke Heng Qi, who broke down crying and said he had been violated.

Nalan Ye crossed the desert and reached Fallen Bird City, where he secretly traveled to the Hall of Souls’ West Underworld Human Hall to meet Wu Protector. In the Fallen Bird Mountain Range, Old Crow appeared and revealed that he had been waiting for Nalan Ye.

• Nalan Ye and his companions fled the desert after Heng Qi was captured by the red-haired women, then crossed it safely and continued west.
• Nalan Ye’s group arrived in Fallen Bird City, where he arranged for everyone to rest before secretly leaving the next morning.
• Nalan Ye disguised himself in a black cloak and flew to the Fallen Bird Mountain Range, following Wu Hall Master’s letter.
• Nalan Ye entered the poisonous miasma, struggled to find the West Underworld Human Hall, and noticed an unusual number of gray insects.
• Old Crow emerged from the miasma and greeted Nalan Ye, saying he had been waiting for him.

Nalan Ye reunited with Hall Master Wu at the West Underworld Human Hall, where they discussed their past and how Nalan Ye reached the Dou Zong realm. Their conversation was interrupted when several powerful figures entered the hall to meet the guest.

• Nalan Ye and Hall Master Wu laughed over their reunion and confirmed that Wu Protector had killed Yun Shan.
• Hall Master Wu led Nalan Ye into the West Underworld Human Hall and explained that gray insects in the miasma watched for intruders.
• Hall Master Wu questioned Nalan Ye about his rapid cultivation and wondered whether Canaan Academy’s Heavenly Flame Training Gas Tower held a secret.
• Nalan Ye claimed that the Snake-People Queen’s remnant soul had helped him reach Dou Zong after he tampered with it and absorbed her energy.
• Several powerful figures barged into the palace and asked Hall Master Wu to introduce his distinguished guest.

A cloaked visitor was caught in the power struggle between Wu Hall Master and Deputy Hall Master Kang Sha at the West Underworld Human Hall. When Wu Hall Master nearly revealed the visitor's identity, the visitor loudly sang to interrupt him, leaving everyone suspicious.

• Kang Sha barged into Wu Hall Master's palace with three Protectors and accused the cloaked visitor of threatening the hall master.
• Wu Hall Master defended his guest, but Kang Sha and his three supporters outnumbered Wu Hall Master and his lone supporter.
• Kang Sha challenged Wu Hall Master for bringing an outsider into the hall and exposing its location.
• Wu Hall Master began to identify the cloaked visitor as his disciple, Na, but the visitor suddenly sang, “Na is the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau!”
• Kang Sha and the three Protectors stared at the visitor in suspicion, and Kang Sha secretly circulated his Dou Qi.

Magpie Protector concealed his identity while Wu Hall Master confronted Kang Sha in the West Underworld Human Hall. After Li Qing challenged him, Magpie Protector agreed to a Pill Battle and set the contest around refining a Seventh-Rank Python Fetus Pill.

• Magpie Protector claimed to be Wu Hall Master's disciple and provoked Kang Sha by asking whether he was searching for the culprit who had defiled his daughter.
• Kang Sha signaled his disciple Li Qing to challenge Magpie Protector, but Magpie Protector rejected the martial duel by calling Li Qing a bully.
• Li Qing proposed a Pill Battle, and Magpie Protector eagerly accepted despite Wu Hall Master's warning about Li Qing's alchemy skills.
• Magpie Protector proposed that they each refine a Seventh-Rank Python Fetus Pill with one set of ingredients, with success and pill quality determining the winner.
• Li Qing agreed to Magpie Protector's Pill Battle rules.

The narrator and Li Qing began a Pill Battle to refine Python Fetus Pills, and the narrator traded his spare snake-beast core for Kang Sha’s superior tiger core. As the contest started, the narrator revealed a Silver White Flame that unsettled Li Qing and left Kang Sha wondering how a lightning-attributed cultivator could wield a Heavenly Flame.

• The narrator offered Li Qing a Seventh-Order Snake Magical Beast core in exchange for something valuable.
• Li Qing proposed a B Wood Fox core, but Kang Sha replaced it with a superior Ten Thousand Lightning Tiger core, which the narrator accepted.
• The hall’s Dou Zong gathered the ingredients, and Li Qing and the narrator prepared to refine one Python Fetus Pill each.
• Li Qing displayed his Sunken Mountain Cauldron, while the narrator introduced his Little Fairy Doctor Cauldron.
• Li Qing started refining, and the narrator began with a Silver White Flame that disrupted Li Qing’s Soul Fire and prompted Kang Sha to suspect it was a Heavenly Flame.

The narrator used the Human World Kindling Flame and memories of Little Fairy Doctor’s instruction to refine the Python Fetus Pill ingredients. After three days, both the narrator and Li Qing successfully refined their seventh-tier magic cores, leaving the Pill Battle unresolved.

• The narrator recalled Little Fairy Doctor’s guidance and refined Seven Mile Grass into medicinal essence using the Human World Kindling Flame.
• Over three days, the narrator refined the remaining ingredients and noticed Human Dao Aura helped ease conflicts between medicinal essences.
• Kang Sha pointed out that Li Qing had begun refining his magic core two hours earlier, while Wu Hall Master warned that rushing could make it explode.
• The narrator slowly burned away the seventh-tier magic core’s crystalline shell, suppressed its violent energy, and refined it into pure, tamed energy.
• The narrator celebrated the successful refinement and saw that Li Qing had succeeded as well.

The narrator and Li Qing raced to refine a seventh-rank Python Fetus Pill, and Li Qing finished first and began its pill tribulation. As Wu Hall Master accepted the apparent loss, the narrator insisted the outcome was not necessarily settled.

• The narrator used his Dao Domain to fuse the medicinal essences while Li Qing began fusing his pill first.
• Li Qing successfully refined a seventh-rank Python Fetus Pill, and a three-colored pill tribulation formed above the valley.
• Wu Hall Master worried that the tribulation would reveal the West Underworld Human Hall’s location, while Kang Sha celebrated Li Qing’s victory.
• Wu Hall Master told the narrator that losing to Li Qing was no disgrace and said he had gained the Hall Master’s notice through the Tou She Ancient God Jade.
• The narrator asked Wu Hall Master whether he wanted to suppress Kang Sha, then said the contest might not be over because his pill fusion was still underway.

Magpie Protector completed a Python Fetus Pill whose tribulation seemed to show a fourth color, challenging Li Qing’s claim that he had already won the Pill Battle. As Wu Hall Master argued with Kang Sha and Li Qing, Magpie Protector noticed that human aura was flowing into the pill and realized something unusual was happening.

• Li Qing returned from enduring his pill tribulation and claimed victory because Magpie Protector had not finished refining his pill.
• Magpie Protector reminded Li Qing that pill quality would decide the Pill Battle if both sides succeeded, then said he could refine a Seven Grade Four-Colored Pill.
• Magpie Protector completed his Python Fetus Pill, and a tribulation cloud formed above the hall.
• Li Qing insisted the cloud showed only a Three-Colored Pill Tribulation, but Wu Hall Master spotted a faint trace of red and argued that it counted as a fourth color.
• Magpie Protector saw nearly imperceptible human aura flowing from the air into the pill and realized something was wrong.

Magpie Protector used Human Aura to raise his Python Fetus Pill from a Three-Colored to a Four-Colored Pill, then had Wu Hall Master disperse its Pill Tribulation. After Kang Sha disputed the result, Magpie Protector argued that the Pill Battle had already ended when the tribulation descended, making his higher-quality pill the winner.

• Magpie Protector directed Human Aura from the West Underworld Human Hall and his Rings of Holding into the Python Fetus Pill, increasing its quality.
• The pill’s tribulation became Four-Colored, and Wu Hall Master destroyed it before it could harm Magpie Protector or the pill.
• Li Qing accused Magpie Protector of cheating, while Kang Sha argued that Wu Hall Master’s intervention invalidated the result.
• Wu Hall Master insisted that Magpie Protector had won because his pill was a Seven Grade Four-Colored Pill, while Li Qing’s was only a Seven Grade Three-Colored Pill.
• Magpie Protector countered that the Pill Battle ended when the tribulation descended, before Wu Hall Master intervened, and declared himself the winner.

After the Pill Battle, Nalan Ye discussed Wu Hall Master’s offer to become his disciple and asked about his aspirations. Nalan Ye declared that he intended to become a Dou Emperor, leaving Wu Hall Master convinced he was crazy.

• The Pill Battle ended after two pill tribulations appeared and dispersed, and Kang Sha refused to admit defeat.
• Nalan Ye rejected Wu Hall Master’s praise of his talent as a reason to become his disciple and asked what Wu Hall Master aspired to achieve.
• Wu Hall Master said he wanted to reach the Venerable realm, possibly become a Dou Sheng, and rise higher within the Hall of Souls.
• Nalan Ye declared that his aspiration was to become the first Dou Emperor since the Tou She Ancient God.
• Wu Hall Master called Nalan Ye crazy and insisted that becoming a Dou Emperor was impossible.
• Nalan Ye argued that no one could know the future without trying and insisted that he could become an Emperor.

Nalan Ye asked Wu Hall Master where Yao Chen was imprisoned so Xiao Yan could plan to rescue his teacher. Wu Hall Master revealed that Yao Chen was held at the Hall of Dead Souls, but he refused to provide further details.

• Nalan Ye declared that he aimed to become a Dou Di, and Wu Hall Master admitted he had once shared that ambition before settling for becoming a Venerable.
• Nalan Ye told Wu Hall Master that Xiao Yan had asked him to find Yao Chen, explaining their family ties through Nalan Yanran and Xiao Meier.
• Wu Hall Master initially refused to disclose Yao Chen's location, but Nalan Ye persuaded him by recounting Heng Qi's capture by a group of women.
• Wu Hall Master revealed that Yao Chen was imprisoned in the Hall of Dead Souls, an Earth Grade Branch Hall in the Mountain Range of Dead Souls, guarded by a Venerable and three Great Protectors.
• Nalan Ye asked Wu Hall Master for the branch hall's map, defenses, sentries, and passcodes, but Wu Hall Master claimed he no longer knew those details.

Nalan Ye learned that Yao Lao was imprisoned in a Hall of Souls branch hall and returned to Fallen Bird City after five days away. He told Little Fairy Doctor where Yao Lao was held but concealed how he had obtained the information, leaving her disappointed.

• Wu Hall Master saw Nalan Ye off, warned him to be careful, and privately considered befriending him and using him to deal with Kang Sha.
• Nalan Ye left the Fallen Bird Mountain Range, pleased to have learned Yao Lao's location, and flew back toward Fallen Bird City.
• Little Fairy Doctor waited anxiously in Nalan Ye's room, worried because he had been gone for five days without a message.
• Nalan Ye returned to the inn and found Little Fairy Doctor alone, while Zi Yan, Qiu Yin, and Qiu Si were nowhere to be seen.
• Nalan Ye told Little Fairy Doctor that Yao Lao was imprisoned in a Hall of Souls branch hall in northern Central State, but she realized he had hidden how he learned this.

Nalan Ye told Little Fairy Doctor that he had connections with the Hall of Souls, explaining that a friend there had provided information about Yao Lao. Little Fairy Doctor accepted his secret and reassured him, and they grew intimate in their inn room.

• Nalan Ye suggested going to Ye City to look for Xiao Yan and asked Little Fairy Doctor what they would do after rescuing Yao Lao.
• Little Fairy Doctor revealed that she was hurt because Nalan Ye had been hiding things from her.
• Nalan Ye confessed that he had connections with the Hall of Souls and said a friend there had told him where Yao Lao was being held.
• Little Fairy Doctor accepted that the Hall of Souls' crimes did not make Nalan Ye guilty and promised to keep his secret.
• Nalan Ye and Little Fairy Doctor became intimate in their room after he sealed it with a Soul Barrier.

Zi Yan returned to the inn and interrupted Nalan Ye and Little Fairy Doctor after they had concealed her aura behind a Soul Barrier. After she left, Nalan Ye swallowed a Python Fetus Pill to strengthen his body, and ancient, scale-like runes appeared on his skin as he absorbed it.

• Zi Yan explored Fallen Bird City's Night Market with Qiu Yin and Qiu Si, then returned to the inn after sensing Nalan Ye inside.
• Nalan Ye tried to stop Zi Yan from entering his room, but she broke through the door and found him and Little Fairy Doctor sitting at the table.
• Nalan Ye claimed he and Little Fairy Doctor had been discussing something secret, and Zi Yan drank from his cup before leaving.
• Nalan Ye took out a Seven Grade Four-Colored Python Fetus Pill and swallowed it to improve his physical defenses.
• Nalan Ye guided the pill's scorching medicinal force through his muscles, expelling impurities as ancient, snake-scale-like runes appeared on his skin.