Chapter Summaries

Hun Ruoruo used the Soul Token’s Soul Chains to capture every Beast Soul in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, forming a powerful reserve of soul energy before wiping away the chains’ traces. Several days later, Yun Yun worried over the Mo Family’s ties to Yun Leng until Elder Frost returned to the Misty Cloud Sect.

• Hun Ruoruo baited the Beast Souls, then used the Soul Chains to capture them without relying on her depleted Dou Qi.
• Hun Ruoruo harvested the Beast Souls throughout the mountain range, compressing them into a dark-purple sphere that she intended to use as a trump card against a Dou Zong.
• Hun Ruoruo unleashed a vast torrent to wash away every trace of the Soul Chains’ aura.
• Yun Yun reviewed documents about the Mo Family and questioned why Yun Leng had helped the family expand its influence.
• Yun Yun put away the Mo Family’s invitation when she sensed Elder Frost’s arrival and greeted her on her return.

Hun Ruoruo warned Yun Yun that the Heavenly Snake Mansion had intervened in the desert, then discovered a powerful Soul Hall Protector’s imprint within the Misty Cloud Sect’s stronghold. The Protector contacted her and invited her to the Back Mountain for a talk.

• Hun Ruoruo told Yun Yun that a powerful force and a beast-controlling expert with Queen Medusa’s blood aura had supported the mysterious Dou Huang, leading Yun Yun to suspect the Heavenly Snake Mansion.
• Yun Yun restrained her anger because the Misty Cloud Sect could not confront the Heavenly Snake Mansion, while Hun Ruoruo judged her indecisive and learned that Nalan Yanran had been sent to the Mo Family.
• Hun Ruoruo mocked Yun Yun for sending Yanran away to uphold appearances, leaving Yun Yun humiliated and briefly furious.
• Hun Ruoruo returned to her Grotto-Heaven, activated her Soul Token, and found that the Misty Cloud Sect’s Soul Imprint had come from someone other than Yun Shan.
• A sinister black-mist figure revealed himself as Protector Wu, called Hun Ruoruo Frost Soul Emissary, and invited her to meet him at the Back Mountain.

Hun Ruoruo met Protector Wu, who offered her a mission to find the Xiao Family Patriarch and hinted that Yun Shan would soon target him. She realized the target was Xiao Yan’s father and left undecided about whether to act against him.

• Hun Ruoruo met Protector Wu on the Misty Cloud Sect’s back mountain and learned he wanted to recruit her into Soul Hall.
• Protector Wu explained that she could complete missions by collecting low-level Soul Light Clusters and revealed her assignment: find the Xiao Family Patriarch.
• Protector Wu warned Hun Ruoruo to keep their meeting secret and said Yun Shan planned to wait until a junior’s sparring match ended before acting.
• After Protector Wu departed, Hun Ruoruo realized the Xiao Family Patriarch was Xiao Yan’s father and weighed her mission against her attachment to Xiao Yan.
• Hun Ruoruo decided to wait before making a move and quietly left the mountaintop.

Hun Ruoruo planned how to defeat Protector Wu and considered securing Old Man Yao’s help. At the Misty Cloud Sect, Nalan Yanran told Yun Leng that two Dou Emperors had slaughtered the Mo Family, forcing him to reconsider demanding justice for Mo Cheng.

• Hun Ruoruo assessed her weapons and allies, deciding she might bargain with Old Man Yao for his help against Protector Wu.
• Hun Ruoruo worried that Old Man Yao might refuse to risk himself against a Soul Hall Strongman.
• Yun Leng asked Nalan Yanran whether the Mo Family had hosted her well at the First Elder’s birthday celebration.
• Nalan Yanran told Yun Leng that Mo Cheng and nearly the entire Mo Family had been killed by two mysterious guests.
• Yun Leng demanded to know the attackers’ strength and threatened to investigate them, but Nalan Yanran revealed that both were Dou Emperors.

Nalan Yanran challenged Yun Leng over his plans to retaliate against the two Dou Emperors and condemned the Mo Family’s soul-harvesting crimes. Yun Leng returned to his grotto, revealed his role as a Soul Emissary, and accepted a new mission to find the Xiao Family Patriarch.

• Ge Ye confirmed that two Dou Emperor experts had destroyed Mo Cheng, but Yun Leng dismissed Nalan Yanran’s warning and left in anger.
• Nalan Yanran rebuked Ge Ye for excusing Yun Leng and questioned whether the Misty Cloud Sect could still call itself righteous after the Mo Family’s atrocities.
• Yun Leng checked his Soul Token and found that fourteen days remained for his mission.
• Yun Leng revealed that he had backed the Mo Family because its supply of souls helped him rise as a High-level Soul Emissary.
• Yun Leng used his Soul Force to change his mission to finding the Patriarch of the Xiao Family, then resolved to leave no trace.

Nalan Yanran tried to learn what the Misty Cloud Sect was hiding about a Soul Light Cluster, but Liu Ling recognized it as forbidden and Hun Ruoruo revealed she knew of the Mo Family. Hun Ruoruo agreed to help in exchange for Nalan Yanran arranging a special Alchemist Tournament prize, leaving the purpose of the prize unclear.

• Nalan Yanran showed Liu Ling the black bottle, and he recognized the contents as a Soul Light Cluster and asked where she had found it.
• Nalan Yanran took the bottle back and left Liu Ling, who resolved to win the Alchemist Tournament to gain her attention.
• Nalan Yanran confronted Hun Ruoruo, demanded to know what the Misty Cloud Sect was hiding, and learned Hun Ruoruo already knew about the Mo Family.
• Hun Ruoruo agreed to help Nalan Yanran in return for adding a plant from her room to the Alchemist Tournament champion's reward.

After recovering from the backlash of his Fire Lotus, Xiao Yan prepared to leave Shimo City with Hai Bodong and head for the Imperial Capital. He planned to restore his soul, return to the Xiao Family, and face the Misty Cloud Sect in a month.

• Xiao Yan reflected on Qing Lin’s abduction, his encounter with Nalan Yanran, and the threat of the Soul Hall, while reaffirming his resolve to settle their Three-Year Pact.
• Hai Bodong comforted Xiao Yan about Qing Lin, and Xiao Yan explained that the Fire Lotus’s power came at a heavy price.
• Xiao Yan revealed that his wounds had healed and said he and Hai Bodong would leave Shimo City the next day.
• Xiao Yan gave powerful combat skills, cultivation methods, and medicinal pills to his brothers to strengthen the Desert Iron Mercenary Group.
• Xiao Yan told Hai Bodong he would go to the Misty Cloud Sect in a month and would defend his Xiao Family at any cost.
• Xiao Yan planned to buy soul-restoring ingredients in the Imperial Capital before returning to the Xiao Family, and treasured the Crystal Card his father had given him for marriage money.

Xiao Yan and Hai Bodong arrived at the Mittel Auction House, where Xiao Yan reunited with Ya Fei and sought ingredients to repair a soul. Ya Fei revealed that Misty Cloud Sect Leader Shuang would offer a soul-repairing treasure as the Alchemist Tournament’s champion prize, leaving Xiao Yan stunned by the possibility that she would judge him.

• Hai Bodong brought Xiao Yan to the Mittel Auction House and hinted that his ties to the Mittel Family could help them obtain medicinal ingredients.
• Xiao Yan recognized Ya Fei outside the auction house, and she welcomed him into a VIP room to catch up.
• Xiao Yan asked Ya Fei whether the Mittel Family could provide ingredients to repair a soul, but she said such treasures were exceptionally rare.
• Ya Fei told Xiao Yan that Misty Cloud Sect Leader Shuang planned to offer a soul-repairing treasure as an additional prize for the Alchemist Tournament champion.
• Xiao Yan sprang up in shock at the name Sect Master Shuang and wondered whether she would serve as his judge.

Xiao Yan spoke with Ya Fei about his resolve to face the Misty Cloud Sect and registered for the Alchemist Tournament, hoping to find ingredients that could restore a soul. After he and Hai Bodong left, Ya Fei discovered that Xiao Yan had left behind a Tier 4 pill and realized how much his abilities had grown.

• Ya Fei warned Xiao Yan about the Misty Cloud Sect's power, but he said he needed to keep the Three-Year Pact and find an answer for himself.
• Xiao Yan decided to enter the Alchemist Tournament to seek medicinal ingredients that could restore a soul, and Ya Fei registered him through the Mittel Family.
• Ya Fei gave Xiao Yan an Ice Silkworm Mask to conceal his identity, while Hai Bodong selected ingredients for the Spirit Revival Purple Pill.
• Xiao Yan and Hai Bodong left the VIP Room, and Ya Fei found an exquisite jade box containing a freshly refined Tier 4 pill.
• Ya Fei put the pill away and suspected that Xiao Yan might overturn the Misty Cloud Sect's dominance.

After leaving the Mittel Auction House, Xiao Yan learned that Ruoruo was the Misty Cloud Sect’s Sect Master and resolved to help her if she had committed terrible deeds. He returned to Wutan City, where Xiao Qing told him that his father had disappeared and strangers were stealing from the Xiao Family.

• Hai Bodong explained that he recognized Ruoruo as the Sect Master because she had given him an Imperial Pill in a bottle engraved with the character “Shuang.”
• Xiao Yan worried that Ruoruo might have ordered the use of Soul Light Clusters and vowed to help set her right, even if others condemned him.
• Xiao Yan and Hai Bodong returned to Wutan City, and Xiao Yan arrived at the Xiao Family residence after two years away.
• Xiao Qing recognized Xiao Yan and told him that people had been stealing from the clan and that his father, Clan Chief Xiao, had disappeared.
• Xiao Yan’s eyes flashed with Black Flame as he asked Xiao Qing to repeat what she had said.

Xiao Yan returned to the Xiao Family and learned that Xiao Zhan was missing, then hurried to confront the attackers threatening his family. He entered the Guest Reception Hall just as the Xiao Family was about to be overwhelmed, announcing that he had arrived.

• Xiao Qing told Xiao Yan that Clan Chief Xiao was missing, and Xiao Yan nearly lost control before Hai Bodong helped him regain his composure.
• Xiao Yan comforted Xiao Qing and asked her to lead him inside, while Hai Bodong reassured him that the Misty Cloud Sect was unlikely to be behind the attack.
• In the Guest Reception Hall, Jia Lie Bu blamed the Xiao Family for his son’s death and ordered his men to kill the First Elder, the other elders, and the family members they were protecting.
• Xiao Yan kicked open the hall doors and entered, drawing everyone’s attention as he said he was late.

Xiao Yan returned to defend the Xiao Family and took command as its Young Clan Leader. When Jia Lie Bu attacked him and refused to answer where Xiao Zhan was, Xiao Yan endured the assault and killed him brutally, leaving the other enemies terrified.

• Xiao Yan returned to the Xiao Family, dismissed the First Elder's pleas to flee, and declared that the clan had no cowards who ran away.
• The Xiao Family members accepted Xiao Yan as their Young Clan Leader and said they would follow his lead.
• Jia Lie Bu accused Xiao Yan of causing his son's death and attacked him with a Dou Skill when Xiao Yan asked where Xiao Zhan was.
• Xiao Yan emerged unharmed from Jia Lie Bu's attacks, crushed his Dou Qi cyclone with repeated punches, and crushed his skull.
• Ao Bapa and the others collapsed in terror after Xiao Yan threw Jia Lie Bu's body into a portrait.

Xiao Yan defeated Jia Lie Bu and killed a Rank 3 Alchemist while demanding answers about his father’s disappearance. Ao Bapa and the Three Elders revealed that a mysterious Black Robe Person had attacked the Xiao Family, and Hai Bodong said he might recognize the person’s cultivation technique.

• Xiao Yan easily killed Jia Lie Bu, stunning the Xiao Family and terrifying Ao Bapa and the others with the possibility that he had become a Dou Ling.
• Ao Bapa and the robed Rank 3 Alchemist pleaded for their lives, but Xiao Yan burned the Alchemist to ash after learning he had been the disciple’s master and finding that he knew nothing about Xiao Yan’s father.
• Xiao Yan demanded to know where his father was, and Ao Bapa said a mysterious black-robed person had told them the Xiao Family Patriarch was missing.
• Xiao Yan asked the Three Elders for leads, and the First Elder said a mysterious Black Robe Person had severely injured them with a single palm strike.
• Hai Bodong removed his barrier around Xiao Qing, approached Xiao Yan, and said he might recognize the cultivation technique’s fluctuations.

After Xiao Yan secured the Xiao Family and found evidence that the Misty Cloud Sect’s Azure Firmament Sword Skill had been used in his father’s abduction, he learned Yun Leng might be responsible. He resolved to confront Ruoruo face-to-face, kill Yun Leng, rescue his father, and make the Xiao Family strong enough never to be bullied again.

• Under Xiao Yan’s lead, the Xiao Family eliminated the Jia Lie and Ouba Families, while the First Elder gave Xiao Yan a jade slip indicating that Xiao Zhan was still alive.
• Xiao Yan and Hai Bodong examined the Back Mountain battlefield and discovered traces of a powerful sword technique in a shattered ancient tree.
• Hai Bodong identified the technique as the Misty Cloud Sect’s Azure Firmament Sword Skill, and Xiao Yan feared that Ruoruo’s rise as Sect Master was connected to Xiao Zhan’s disappearance.
• Hai Bodong named Yun Leng as a possible attacker, and Xiao Yan decided to seek answers from Ruoruo and personally settle the grudge against Yun Leng.
• Xiao Yan invoked the prospect of becoming Alchemist Tournament champion and declared that he would ascend the Misty Cloud Sect, rescue Xiao Zhan, and end the Xiao Family’s vulnerability.

At Jia Nan Academy, Xun'er worried that An Ruoruo was still accompanying Xiao Yan and ordered Ling Ying to keep watching without letting Xiao Yan find out. Meanwhile, Hun Ruoruo detected Ling Ying near the Imperial Capital and prepared to make her move.

• Xun'er learned from Ling Ying that Xiao Yan had reached the Jia Ma Imperial Capital with an elderly Dou Emperor, and she wondered whether An Ruoruo had left him.
• Xun'er complained that An Ruoruo had continued helping Xiao Yan and ordered Ling Ying to keep watching her secretly.
• Ling Ying left for the Imperial Capital, worrying that An Ruoruo would discover his surveillance.
• Hun Ruoruo sensed Ling Ying outside the Imperial Capital, declared that the last piece had arrived, and moved a black chess piece bearing a miniature Black Ruler forward.

Hun Ruoruo and Nalan Yanran attended the Alchemist Tournament, where Liu Ling delivered Gu He's payment and tried to learn which competitor Hun Ruoruo favored. Hun Ruoruo began to name someone called Yan, but Liu Ling guessed Shuang Yan, leaving her stunned.

• Hun Ruoruo and Nalan Yanran discussed the Alchemist Tournament and traveled to the Imperial Family Square viewing platform.
• Liu Ling approached Nalan Yanran, then went to greet Hun Ruoruo after learning she was there.
• Liu Ling delivered Gu He's payment to Hun Ruoruo, who accepted the Storage Ring with Dou Qi.
• Liu Ling asked which competitor Hun Ruoruo was watching, and she began to say that his name was Yan.
• Liu Ling guessed Shuang Yan, and Hun Ruoruo was startled by the name.

Hun Ruoruo attended the Alchemist Tournament to watch Xiao Yan, who was disguised as Shuang Yan, while Liu Ling vowed to win the championship and secure her favor. Nalan Yanran noticed Hun Ruoruo’s reaction to Xiao Yan and questioned their relationship, but Hun Ruoruo denied that her attention meant she cared about him.

• Liu Ling told Hun Ruoruo that Shuang Yan possessed a Heavenly Flame but was not a high-ranked alchemist, then boasted that he could refine Rank 4 pills and would win the tournament.
• Hun Ruoruo encouraged Liu Ling’s confidence while privately reflecting on Xiao Yan’s habit of causing trouble and concealing his identity.
• Liu Ling vowed to defeat Shuang Yan and prove that the Pill King’s disciple was the Jia Ma Empire’s greatest talent.
• Hun Ruoruo spotted the disguised Xiao Yan in the crowd, recognized him through his Ice Silkworm Mask, and moved away when he looked toward the platform.
• Nalan Yanran asked Hun Ruoruo whether Shuang Yan was why she had come to watch, then questioned their relationship after noticing Hun Ruoruo’s smile.
• Hun Ruoruo said that paying attention to Xiao Yan did not necessarily mean she cared about him and privately resolved that she was there to catch a ghost.

Hun Ruoruo watched Ling Ying spying on her and warned him not to interfere in the Misty Cloud Sect conflict as the Alchemist Tournament began. Xiao Yan, distracted by Nalan Yanran’s absence, stunned the crowd by flying down with manifested Dou Qi wings and demanding the tournament start.

• Nalan Yanran left Hun Ruoruo to handle the social courtesies at the viewing platform.
• Hun Ruoruo spotted Ling Ying secretly approaching the Imperial Capital and warned him not to interfere in the Misty Cloud Sect conflict.
• Fama announced the start of the seventh Alchemist Tournament and sent Liu Ling, the Little Princess, and Xiao Yan to their places.
• Liu Ling used Soul Force to descend from the platform and drew cheers from the crowd.
• Xiao Yan flew down on purple Dou Qi wings, then impatiently asked for the tournament to begin.

Xiao Yan used his rare treasures to attract the Alchemist Guild’s attention, then scanned the tournament contestants for someone with unusually strong Soul Force. He identified a suspicious gray-robed youth and swiftly refined a batch of Bone-Regenerating Pills, leaving the crowd amazed at their number.

• Xiao Yan revealed his Flying Dou Technique, then resolved to seek out the woman who was avoiding him.
• Liu Ling called Xiao Yan a nouveau riche as both contestants began refining the Bone-Regenerating Pill.
• Fama and Jia Xing Tian recognized Xiao Yan’s treasures as a chance to gain support against the Misty Cloud Sect.
• Hun Ruoruo considered sparing Xiao Yan the pain of losing his father and urged him to do his best.
• Xiao Yan scanned the contestants’ Soul Force and identified a gloomy gray-robed youth as his target.
• Xiao Yan rapidly formed his pills, sending a large number of patterned Bone-Regenerating Pills bursting from the Quenching Flame Cauldron.

Xiao Yan dominated the first two rounds of the Alchemist Tournament, then learned the gray-robed youth was from the Chu Yun Empire and suspected him of being Yan Li. After leaving the guild, Xiao Yan connected the tournament and the soul-nourishing treasure to the Misty Cloud Sect and feared Ruoruo was involved in his father's capture.

• Xiao Yan refined a batch of pills bearing Pill Patterns, overwhelming Liu Ling, who left after realizing he had been defeated.
• Xiao Yan took first place in the second round, while the gray-robed youth placed second and Liu Ling fell to fourth.
• Xiao Yan asked Fama about the gray-robed contestant, and Fama confirmed the youth came from the Chu Yun Empire.
• Xiao Yan recognized the Chu Yun Empire's seal and suspected the gray-robed youth was Yan Li, whose powerful soul might covet the soul-nourishing treasure.
• Xiao Yan examined a black bottle matching the one Nalan Yanran had obtained and connected the Mo Family's soul-hunting and his father's capture to the Misty Cloud Sect.
• Xiao Yan recalled Ruoruo and pleaded that she had nothing to do with his father's capture.