Chapter Summaries

Hun Ruoruo returned to her empty courtyard, worried that Xiao Yan would be angry with her for leaving without a word. They unexpectedly reunited, and after she agreed not to leave that way again, she told him that Master had ordered him to punish her for breaking the sect rules.

• Hun Ruoruo hesitated before entering her ruined, empty courtyard and imagined how Xiao Yan might react to her return.
• Finding the house bare and Xiao Yan absent, Hun Ruoruo hurried out to look for him.
• Hun Ruoruo collided with Xiao Yan on the path, and they recognized each other while caught in an embrace.
• Xiao Yan asked Hun Ruoruo not to leave without saying goodbye again and showed her the cyan Crystal Card marked with “eighteen.”
• Hun Ruoruo agreed, then told Xiao Yan that Master had ordered him to punish her for breaking the sect rules.

Xiao Yan confronted Hun Ruoruo about faking amnesia and reminded her of the times she had deceived and abandoned him. Hun Ruoruo agreed to accept punishment under the sect rules, but Xiao Yan struck her palm, leaving their reconciliation unresolved amid their bickering.

• Xiao Yan exposed the flaw in Hun Ruoruo’s disguise and accused her of repeatedly deceiving him.
• Xiao Yan listed how Hun Ruoruo had left him in Wutan City, the Monster Beast Mountain Range, and the desert, then asked what he meant to her.
• Hun Ruoruo avoided answering directly and told Xiao Yan to punish her as Master had ordered.
• Hun Ruoruo secretly prepared to retaliate, but Xiao Yan pinned her arms and repeatedly struck her palm according to the sect rules.

Xiao Yan repaired his courtyard gate, then agreed to take Zi Yan to the Demon Hall after she asked him for filling medicinal pills. Zi Yan joined him as his self-appointed protector and wondered whether Ruoruo was his wife, leaving Xiao Yan flustered.

• Xiao Yan repaired the burned-out courtyard lock while Zi Yan complained about the noise and mistook his soot-covered face for a ghost.
• Zi Yan recognized the scent of the Myriad Beasts Spirit Flame and nearly bit Xiao Yan's Lion Soul, which she found more delicious than medicinal ingredients.
• Zi Yan asked Xiao Yan to refine pills that would keep her full, and he said he needed to visit the Demon Hall first.
• Zi Yan insisted on accompanying Xiao Yan and boasted that she could defeat Liu Qing and Lin Xiuya with one punch.
• Zi Yan asked why Ruoruo was not coming and whether she was Xiao Yan's wife, making Xiao Yan panic and quietly scold her.

Xiao Yan returned to the Demon Hall with Zi Yan and gave Hu Jia pills and Heavenly Fire Energy for her work managing the faction. After learning that someone from the Xiao Family had summoned Xiao Yu to the Outer Academy, he went to investigate, leaving Zi Yan in Hu Jia’s care.

• Xiao Yan brought Zi Yan to the Demon Hall, where she eagerly inspected the pills for sale.
• Hu Jia teased Xiao Yan about Zi Yan’s purple hair and complained that he had been absent for two months.
• Xiao Yan gave Hu Jia pills and three hundred Heavenly Fire Energy in recognition of her work.
• Hu Jia told Xiao Yan that Xiao Yu had been called to the Outer Academy because someone from the Xiao Family had arrived.
• Xiao Yan left to find Xiao Yu and asked Hu Jia to look after Zi Yan, then revealed that Zi Yan was the Inner Academy’s Brute Force King.

Xiao Yan arrived at the pavilion and found his injured second brother, Xiao Li, being cared for by Hun Ruoruo. After Xiao Li jokingly called her Xiao Yan’s sister-in-law, Xiao Yan asked what had happened in the Jia Ma Empire.

• Xiao Yan reached the pavilion and noticed Xiao Ning and Xiao Mei acting worried and evasive.
• Xiao Ning led Xiao Yan and the others to a guest room, where Xiao Yan found Xiao Li severely injured.
• Xiao Yan discovered that Hun Ruoruo had already treated Xiao Li and was looking after him.
• Xiao Li called Hun Ruoruo his sister-in-law, making both her and Xiao Yan blush.
• Xiao Yan asked Xiao Li what had happened in the Jia Ma Empire.

Xiao Li told Xiao Yan and Hun Ruoruo that the Snake People Tribe had driven him from the desert and was blockading the Jia Ma Empire’s borders, though it had not formally gone to war. The couple agreed to handle the matter while Xiao Li stayed at Jia Nan Academy, and his question about when their father could hold his eldest grandson left them embarrassed.

• Xiao Yan asked why Xiao Li had been injured, and Xiao Li explained that the Snake People Tribe had hunted him after the Desert Iron Mercenary Group became a target.
• Xiao Li said the Snake People Tribe had surrounded the border after the Jia Ma Empire’s forces unified, forcing him to flee toward Jia Nan Academy.
• Xiao Li revealed that a peak Dou Huang expert from the Snake People Tribe had negotiated with Elder Hai and the others, but he did not know the outcome.
• Hun Ruoruo told Xiao Li that she and Xiao Yan would handle the situation, and Xiao Yan invited him to stay at Jia Nan Academy while he recovered.
• Xiao Li asked when their father would get to hold his eldest grandson, making Hun Ruoruo blush and Xiao Yan avert his gaze.

Xiao Yan and Hun Ruoruo returned to their courtyard after visiting Xiao Li, whose injuries had nearly ruined his cultivation. Back home, Hun Ruoruo wrestled with her feelings for Xiao Yan, while their awkward conversation was interrupted by Little Snake demanding their attention.

• Xiao Li praised Hun Ruoruo for treating his injuries and reflected that Xiao Yan's father would be glad to see how far Xiao Yan had come.
• Hun Ruoruo and Xiao Yan hurried back to the Inner Academy, then argued playfully about Xiao Li's concern over Xiao Yan's marriage and family.
• Hun Ruoruo questioned whether she could accept becoming Xiao Yan's partner, while worrying that defining their relationship might make him withdraw from her.
• Xiao Yan tried to break the awkward silence by offering to cook, but Little Snake spoke from his pocket and asked whether they had forgotten about her.

Queen Medusa confronted Hun Ruoruo and revealed that the Snake People Tribe faced a crisis tied to her two souls sharing one body. She gave Hun Ruoruo three months to resolve the problem, leaving Xiao Yan and Hun Ruoruo with the burden of helping her and her people.

• Medusa left Xiao Yan’s pocket, confronted Hun Ruoruo, and warned that exposing her identity could implicate them all.
• Medusa teased Hun Ruoruo about her relationship with Xiao Yan, and Hun Ruoruo denied that he was her man before steering the conversation toward Medusa’s terms.
• Medusa explained that her two souls sharing one body threatened her strength and revealed that a Snake People elder who had left the Sacred Hall had only three months to live.
• Medusa gave Hun Ruoruo three months to find a solution, promising that the Snake People Tribe would stop its conflicts with the Jia Ma Empire if she succeeded.
• Medusa transformed back into the seven-colored Little Snake, and Xiao Yan asked Hun Ruoruo in disbelief whether Medusa had asked them for help.

Han Feng refined a peak Tier 6 Po Zong Pill and planned to use it to reach the Dou Zong realm, while a Soul Hall Protector sought to exploit Han Feng’s ambitions to control the Black Corner Region. The Protector ordered Emissary Li to watch for Protector Shuang and welcome her if she made contact.

• Han Feng emerged from seclusion after refining a Po Zong Pill and declared that he would use it to reach the Dou Zong realm and reshape the Black Corner Region.
• Emissary Li reported Han Feng’s breakthrough to a Soul Hall Protector, who welcomed the prospect of Han Feng stirring up trouble around Jia Nan Academy.
• Emissary Li told the Protector that Protector Shuang had previously asked about Han Feng and might contact him now that he had emerged.
• The Protector ordered Emissary Li to remain in the Black Corner Region, sense Protector Shuang’s fluctuations with the Soul Token, and receive her with the highest courtesy.

Hun Ruoruo secured permission to enter the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower and learned that the Strong Ranking Tournament was approaching. Meanwhile, Xun'er grieved over her distance from Xiao Yan and questioned who she was apart from her clan, duties, and feelings for him.

• Elder Huo praised Xiao Yan's rapid progress toward becoming a Tier 6 Alchemist while Hun Ruoruo teased him.
• Elder Huo gave Hun Ruoruo a contract signed by First Elder Su Qian granting her access to the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower.
• Hun Ruoruo asked about training on the tower's lowest level, and Elder Huo told her to go and revealed that the Strong Ranking Tournament was coming.
• Xun'er returned to Xiao Yan's empty room and lamented that he had not noticed its broken door or returned since the day before.
• Xun'er told Ling Ying that she had lived for others and asked whether she was dull and monotonous.

Xun'er remembered how Xiao Yan had cared for her as a child and realized that her affection for him had become more important to her than her clan’s mission. Ling Ying warned that the Ancient Clan would soon force her to return, leaving Xun'er to face the conflict between staying with Xiao Yan and placing the clan first.

• As a child, Xun'er agreed to live in the Xiao Family so Gu Yuan could avoid taking the Ancient Jade from the Xiao Family himself.
• Xiao Yan secretly nourished Xun'er's meridians while she pretended to sleep, and his kindness changed how she viewed him and the people around her.
• Xun'er grew devoted to Xiao Yan and recognized that An Ruoruo had tried to teach her to value herself.
• Ling Ying told Xun'er that the Ancient Clan expected her to find part of the key and warned that people would be sent to bring her back.
• Xun'er dismissed the clan's dissatisfaction but repeated that she must put the Ancient Clan's interests first as she left the room.

Xiao Yan settled into a quiet routine before the Strong Ranking Tournament, then agreed to accompany Hun Ruoruo to investigate the Falling Heart Flame in the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower. After Elder Liu escorted them to a quiet area, Hun Ruoruo said they were going underground.

• Xiao Yan spent half a month cultivating, helping Xiao Li, and sharing a familiar daily routine with Hun Ruoruo.
• Hun Ruoruo teased Xiao Yan about his failed attempts to withstand her soul projection and revealed that Xiao Li's advice on courting girls was useless.
• Hun Ruoruo told Xiao Yan the elders had approved her visit to the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower, and he agreed to go because of the Falling Heart Flame.
• Hun Ruoruo made Xiao Yan change out of his flamboyant outfit before they headed to the tower.
• Xiao Yan obtained special entry from Elder Liu, who escorted him and Hun Ruoruo to a sparsely populated area inside the tower.
• Hun Ruoruo suppressed the heart flames and said she wanted to go underground rather than descend to the ninth floor.

Xiao Yan and Hun Ruoruo discovered the hidden underground dwelling of the Falling Heart Flame beneath the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower. They learned that the flame could erupt within two or three months and had already condensed a spirit body.

• Hun Ruoruo found a hidden door in the ninth level of the tower, and she led Xiao Yan through it into the underground chamber.
• Xiao Yan saw the many Magic Cores stored there, including a Seventh-order Demonic Core, but Hun Ruoruo warned him that taking them would trigger an eruption.
• Hun Ruoruo estimated that the Falling Heart Flame would erupt in two or three months.
• Xiao Yan used Black Flame to see the violent flames and spirit body concealed beneath the apparently calm scarlet expanse.

After the Falling Heart Flame disturbance, Su Qian visited Xiao Yan and revealed that he knew Xiao Yan’s Heavenly Flame had caused it. He warned Xiao Yan to keep the secret and asked him to help the academy if the flame erupted again, leaving Xiao Yan to weigh his plans against his gratitude to Jia Nan Academy as the Strong Ranking Tournament approached.

• Xiao Yan and Hun Ruoruo slipped away after the Inner Academy evacuated students from the tower, and Su Qian soon came to Xiao Yan’s courtyard.
• Su Qian teased Xiao Yan about staying with Ruoruo, then told him he could overlook the arrangement as long as the other elders did not catch him.
• Su Qian deduced that Xiao Yan’s Heavenly Flame had caused the disturbance and urged him not to reveal the Falling Heart Flame to outsiders.
• Su Qian warned that the academy might need Xiao Yan’s help if the Falling Heart Flame erupted again, and reminded him that the Strong Ranking Tournament was only days away.
• Su Qian asked Xiao Yan to take care of Zi Yan and praised his pure heart; after Su Qian left, Xiao Yan reflected on his debt to the academy and vowed to show his challengers true arrogance at the tournament.

The freshman leaders discussed Jia Nan Academy’s Teaching Visit, which let students’ elders visit and allowed factions to recruit promising graduates. Xiao Yan learned how the arrangement worked and why his father would be welcomed, but Wu Hao’s question about why Xun’er and Hun Ruoruo had no visiting elders left the hall in awkward silence.

• Hu Jia explained that the Teaching Visit let students invite family elders after identity checks and a privacy contract.
• Xiao Yan worried that his father’s modest strength would invite disdain, and Hu Jia explained that powerful factions would instead seek to recruit someone with his talent.
• Hu Jia revealed that her grandfather had come and that Wu Hao’s adoptive father was Elder Wu of the Enforcement Hall.
• Hun Ruoruo invited Wu Hao to call her Ruoruo after Hu Jia teased him about his past.
• Wu Hao asked Xun’er and Hun Ruoruo why no elders had come to visit them, and both women froze as the hall fell silent.

Xiao Zhan and Hai Bodong arrived at Jia Nan Academy to visit the injured Xiao Li, only to learn that the academy’s parent-visit rules allowed just one visitor per student. As they prepared to leave, an enforcement officer reacted in shock when Xiao Zhan named the student they had come to see.

• Xiao Zhan and Hai Bodong joined the crowded line of parents arriving at Jia Nan Academy, and Hai Bodong reassured Xiao Zhan that the region was safe enough for them to stay.
• Xiao Zhan passed the checkpoint’s killing-intent screening and was told to proceed to the Outer Academy entrance for student verification.
• An enforcement officer stopped Xiao Zhan and Hai Bodong because each student was permitted only one parent visitor.
• Xiao Zhan decided to leave with Hai Bodong rather than cause trouble, saying they could visit Xiao Li another time.
• The enforcement officer suddenly asked in disbelief whom Xiao Zhan and Hai Bodong had come to see.

Xiao Yan learned that Xiao Zhan had arrived at Jia Nan Academy to watch his match, and Hun Ruoruo offered to bring him to the arena. Before she left, Xiao Yan privately told Hun Ruoruo that she looked beautiful, leaving her deeply flustered.

• An enforcement officer recognized Xiao Zhan and Hai Bodong as guardians of Jia Ma Empire students and welcomed them while processing Hai Bodong's entry.
• Bystanders realized Xiao Yan was the Strong Ranking's newly promoted Third, and Xiao Zhan heard them praise his son's reputation.
• At Central Square, Xiao Yan told Hun Ruoruo he felt envious of students whose families had come to watch them.
• Xiao Ning told Xiao Yan and Hun Ruoruo that Xiao Zhan had arrived with Hai Bodong after visiting Xiao Li.
• Hun Ruoruo offered to fetch Xiao Zhan and Xiao Ning for Xiao Yan, who could not leave the contestant area before his match.
• Xiao Yan stopped Hun Ruoruo, held her hand, and whispered that she looked beautiful today, making her blush.

Hun Ruoruo reunited with Xiao Zhan and his companions at the Central Plaza, then shared a tender conversation with Xiao Zhan that stirred her longing for family. As the competition began, Xiao Yan prepared for his match, unaware that his father had confided his embarrassing secrets to Ruoruo.

• Hun Ruoruo ran into Xiao Zhan, Elder Hai, and Xiao Li after leaving Xiao Yan, then brought them to the spectator stands.
• Xiao Li and Hai Bodong left Ruoruo alone with Xiao Zhan, who thanked her for saving him from Soul Hall and called her his daughter if she wished.
• Hun Ruoruo used Soul Sea Spirit Crossing to remove the lingering fear in Xiao Zhan's soul and promised to keep his private words from Xiao Yan.
• Xiao Zhan comforted Hun Ruoruo by offering to be one of her parents, leaving her shy and deeply moved.
• Xiao Yan warmed up in the contestants' area as the competition began, unaware that Xiao Zhan had shared his secrets with Ruoruo.

Xiao Yan watched Xun'er and Wu Hao compete in the Strong Ranking Tournament before joining the Top Ten and discussing cultivation with Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing. He kept his challenge target secret when Liu Qing asked whom he planned to challenge.

• Xiao Yan skipped the Elimination Tournament as the Strong Ranking's third-ranked student and cheered on Xun'er and Wu Hao.
• Xiao Yan sat among the Top Ten and exchanged greetings with Lin Xiuya, Liu Qing, Lin Yan, and Zi Yan.
• Xiao Yan suggested that Lin Xiuya draw Heaven and Earth Force into his body to gain insight into breaking through to Dou Wang.
• Liu Qing urged Lin Xiuya to trust Xiao Yan's cultivation advice and said he would challenge Xiao Yan if Xiao Yan did not choose someone else.
• Xiao Yan refused to reveal his challenge target and struck Liu Qing's outstretched arm with his fist.

Hun Ruoruo watched the tournament with Xiao Zhan and Xiao Li as Xun'er defeated Bai Cheng and advanced to the final round. When Xiao Yan entered the arena to choose an opponent, he surprised everyone by challenging Zi Yan instead of Lin Xiuya.

• Hun Ruoruo commentated on the matches for Xiao Zhan and Xiao Li, and the three enjoyed the tournament together.
• Xun'er advanced after defeating a Six-star Dou Ling, while Wu Hao lost to a Strong Ranking expert but earned cheers for his potential.
• Bai Cheng drew Xun'er as his opponent, and she overwhelmed him with golden flames and knocked him out of the arena.
• Xiao Zhan watched Xun'er's victory and said he wanted to see how much Xiao Yan had grown.
• As the final round began, Xiao Yan stepped forward to choose an opponent, then asked Zi Yan for a spar, leaving Lin Xiuya and the spectators stunned.