Recaps

Lin Bai learned about the Crimson Alliance and Black Alliance’s vast businesses and the pressure their leaders faced from powerful patrons. He agreed to lead them by merging both groups into a new force, the Sword Alliance, and ordered Chen Feiying and Han Zong to prepare the merger and root out spies.

• Han Zong and Chen Feiying described their alliances’ businesses, reach, and the wealth and information available in Badlands Prefecture.
• Han Zong and Chen Feiying explained that powerful officials could remove them and that most alliance profits went to their patrons, leaving their members with little.
• Lin Bai questioned why he should trust them, then agreed to take charge after hearing their explanation.
• Lin Bai proposed merging the Crimson Alliance and Black Alliance into a new force called the Sword Alliance.
• Lin Bai told Han Zong and Chen Feiying to assemble the senior martial artists, explain the merger, and capture agents working for the Imperial General and the Left Prime Minister’s Residence.

Lin Bai merged the Crimson Alliance and Black Alliance into the Sword Alliance and began recruiting Cold Sword to help him build power in the Badlands Prefecture. Cold Sword pledged loyalty after Lin Bai promised to help him kill the Badlands Prefecture’s Prefectural Assistant within three months.

• Lin Bai made Chen Feiying and Han Zong branch leaders of the Sword Alliance’s Crimson Gate and Black Gate, then asked Chen Feiying to make him a mask and Han Zong to summon Cold Sword.
• Lin Bai told Hong Su he needed support and people for his plans, and she admired the crescent-shaped zither he let her keep.
• Mo Xiansheng delivered Chen Feiying’s rose-carved mask and Falling Pearl Wine to Lin Bai, who then invited the one-armed Cold Sword into his courtyard.
• Cold Sword explained that the Badlands Prefectural Assistant had helped kill his family, and Lin Bai promised he would help Cold Sword take revenge within three months.
• Cold Sword pledged lifelong loyalty to Lin Bai, who ordered him to investigate the hidden agents within the Crimson and Black Alliances and provide a list.

Lin Bai planned to merge the Crimson Alliance and Black Alliance into the Sword Alliance so he could build support and secure cultivation resources in Badlands Prefecture. Hong Su left the Divine Capital, and Cold Sword brought Lin Bai records of the alliances’ spies and senior figures, including news of an elder who wanted to leave.

• Lin Bai told Cold Sword to identify the spies in the Crimson Alliance and Black Alliance and list their senior figures, because he wanted to assess whether the spies could be useful.
• Lin Bai explained to Hong Su that he intended to merge the two alliances into the Sword Alliance and use their resources and people to support his plans.
• Hong Su offered to gather intelligence by playing the qin in the pleasure quarters, but Lin Bai refused and urged her to leave the Divine Capital.
• Three days later, Hong Su said she had finished what she came to do and left alone through Dead Man’s Alley.
• Cold Sword delivered a registry of more than a thousand spies and a list of the alliances’ experts, explaining that he had used the Yaksha organization’s investigative methods.
• Cold Sword told Lin Bai that most Crimson Alliance elders had submitted to Han Zong, while Elder White Crane wanted to leave; Lin Bai agreed to leave White Crane alone for now and asked about the Black Alliance.

Lin Bai ordered the Crimson Alliance and Black Alliance to prepare a martial competition as he worked to strengthen the newly formed Sword Alliance. The news spread through the Badlands Prefecture before Han Zong and Chen Feiying could make arrangements, revealing that Lin Bai had other agents at work.

• Cold Sword explained that powerful Apex Realm martial artists had left the Badlands Prefecture because the Crimson Alliance and Black Alliance offered too few benefits.
• Han Zong and Chen Feiying gave Lin Bai lists of hidden agents and reported their factions’ treasury reserves and expenses.
• Lin Bai ordered the hidden agents monitored and summoned the alliances’ higher-ups to meet at the Drunken Dream Pavilion in five days.
• Lin Bai told Han Zong and Chen Feiying to hold a martial competition open to Apex Realm martial artists, with spirit crystal prizes for the winners.
• Cold Sword agreed to spread the competition announcement, while Han Zong and Chen Feiying privately questioned Lin Bai’s plans.
• News of the Sword Alliance and its competition spread across the Badlands Prefecture, prompting Han Zong to realize Lin Bai had other people serving him.

Lin Bai held a tournament at the Drunken Dream Pavilion to attract Apex Realm martial artists and asserted control over the Sword Alliance. He announced that he would break away from the Imperial General and the Right Prime Minister’s Residence, leaving the alliance’s members time to decide whether to stay.

• The Drunken Dream Pavilion tournament drew Apex Realm martial artists from across Badlands Prefecture with large spirit-crystal rewards.
• Lin Bai arrived at the pavilion, announced registration for the tournament, and killed a challenger with his flying sword after the man questioned the rewards.
• Lin Bai introduced himself to the Crimson Gate and Black Gate leaders as the Sword Alliance’s leader and said he would free the alliance from the Imperial General and the Right Prime Minister’s Residence.
• Lin Bai declared that the Sword Alliance would decide Badlands Prefecture’s future and gave its members until the tournament ended to decide whether to leave.

Lin Bai held a martial competition at the Drunken Dream Pavilion to select skilled fighters, and he took a particular interest in Liu Dao, a lone saber cultivator. The first match began with Liu Dao facing Gu Tong, whose attacks Liu Dao evaded before drawing his saber and revealing a chilling killing intent.

• Cold Sword brought Lin Bai a list of hundreds of registered Apex Realm contestants, and Lin Bai ordered the competition to begin.
• Han Zong announced the rules and called Liu Dao and Gu Tong to fight in the first match.
• Gu Tong attacked Liu Dao with powerful punches while Liu Dao repeatedly dodged.
• Cold Sword explained Liu Dao's reputation as a formidable bounty-hunting saber cultivator and Gu Tong's role as the master of a small gang.
• Liu Dao drew his saber, chilling the arena, and Lin Bai recognized that the frost came from Liu Dao's killing intent rather than the weapon.

Liu Dao defeated Gu Tong with one saber strike and received a Night Raven Feather from Lin Bai. Ye Liang later defeated Yi Ersan by outlasting him, and Lin Bai awarded feathers to both men before the next match began.

• Liu Dao defeated Gu Tong with a single strike, and Gu Tong left Drunken Dream Pavilion in humiliation.
• Lin Bai judged Liu Dao worthy and gave him a Night Raven Feather.
• While Ye Liang and Yi Ersan fought, Cold Sword told Lin Bai about Ye Liang's expulsion from Yasha and Yi Ersan's reputation as a thief and gambler.
• After more than an hour of fighting, Yi Ersan ran out of spiritual energy and conceded to Ye Liang.
• Lin Bai awarded a Night Raven Feather to Ye Liang for his swordsmanship and gave one to Yi Ersan despite his loss.
• Han Zong announced that skilled contestants could receive feathers even if they lost, then called Hua Meiren and Si Ce to the arena.

Lin Bai watched the martial contests continue, awarding Night Raven Feathers to several unusual fighters as the top twenty were decided. He announced that the top twenty could come to the private pavilion to receive their prizes.

• Hua Meiren and Si Ce fought thousands of moves without either gaining the upper hand, so Lin Bai awarded them both Night Raven Feathers.
• Lin Bai awarded Daoist Tianxin a Night Raven Feather after he defeated his opponent, then gave one to the Drunken Monk after the monk won with a single punch.
• Lin Bai watched the remaining matches until the contests ended at midnight and the top twenty were determined, with Liu Dao first, Ye Liang second, and the Drunken Monk third.
• Lin Bai announced that the Sword Alliance would award the prizes and invited the top twenty martial artists to the private pavilion.

After distributing the martial contest rewards, Lin Bai recruited the top warriors into the Sword Alliance and promised to meet their demands. The chapter ended with eleven people, including Cold Sword, agreeing to serve him as he prepared to make the Sword Alliance independent of powerful imperial interests.

• Lin Bai distributed spirit crystals to the top twenty warriors and invited them to join the Sword Alliance or leave.
• Several warriors returned their Night Raven Feathers and left, but Lin Bai urged Liu Dao to stay and revealed his plan to free the Sword Alliance from the Prefectural Assistant, the Imperial General, and the Right Prime Minister's Residence.
• Lin Bai named Liu Dao, Ye Liang, Drunken Monk, Daoist Tianxin, Hua Meiren, Si Ce, Yi Ersan, Di Zhou, Ren You, and Su Zhi as the warriors he wanted to recruit.
• The warriors stated their demands, including cultivation resources for Si Ce and wine for Drunken Monk, and Lin Bai agreed to provide for them in return for their service and loyalty.
• Lin Bai gave Cold Sword his Night Raven Feather, and the eleven warriors pledged to serve him.

Lin Bai secured the allegiance of nearly all the Crimson Gate and Black Gate martial artists and persuaded White Crane to join the Sword Alliance. The chapter ended with White Crane accepting a Night Raven Feather and becoming one of Lin Bai’s trusted confidants.

• Almost all the gathered martial artists pledged allegiance to Lin Bai, while White Crane asked permission to leave.
• Lin Bai asked White Crane to stay and help him manage the Sword Alliance and win the martial artists’ trust.
• White Crane warned that the Imperial General and the Right Prime Minister’s Residence would interfere with the alliance, but Lin Bai declared his intention to resist them.
• Cold Sword and Ye Liang urged White Crane to stay, and Lin Bai promised him everything within the Sword Alliance in return for his help.
• White Crane accepted the Night Raven Feather, becoming the twelfth person Lin Bai counted among his trusted confidants.

Lin Bai reorganized the Sword Alliance by establishing six halls and assigning twelve martial artists bearing Night Raven Feathers to lead them, while White Crane began winning the alliance’s support. As reforms spread, Chen Feiying and Han Zong plotted to secretly remove the treasuries’ valuables before handing them over.

• Lin Bai appointed White Crane to lead the Sword Hall and named leaders for the Punishment, Benevolence, Martial, Pigeon, and Assassination Halls.
• Lin Bai ordered Yi Ersan and Si Ce to monitor the Crimson Gate and Black Gate treasuries while White Crane worked to secure support for the six halls.
• White Crane carried out sweeping reforms, and the new halls won support from many lower-level martial artists despite resistance from some alliance leaders.
• Han Zong and Chen Feiying discussed how the reforms had strengthened Lin Bai’s control and worried about surrendering their treasuries.
• Han Zong proposed secretly removing the treasuries’ rare valuables and giving White Crane empty treasuries, and Chen Feiying agreed it was a good plan.

As the Six Halls steadily took control of the Sword Alliance, Han Zong and Chen Feiying began moving resources from their treasure vaults rather than surrendering them. Lin Bai authorized Si Ce to use their attempt to seize the vaults as grounds to kill them and eliminate the Black Gate and Crimson Gate.

• The Six Halls recruited Sword Alliance disciples with training and generous stipends, weakening Han Zong and Chen Feiying's influence.
• Yi Ersan and Si Ce reported that Chen Feiying was eyeing the Black Alliance vault and Han Zong had begun moving resources from the Crimson Alliance vault.
• Lin Bai agreed with Si Ce's plan to catch Han Zong and Chen Feiying moving the vaults and entrusted the matter to him, the Six Halls, and the Twelve Crows.
• Si Ce told White Crane that Han Zong and Chen Feiying had to die so the Sword Alliance could eliminate its branches, and White Crane agreed to summon the Twelve Crows.

After the Night Emperor’s forces seized control of the Sword Alliance, Chen Feiying tried to secretly empty the Black Alliance’s treasure vault. Yi Ersan and the other hall leaders stopped him, and Liu Dao severed Chen Feiying’s sword hand before the group was ordered arrested.

• Chen Feiying and Han Zong began moving the Black Alliance and Crimson Alliance treasure vaults after Si Ce devised a plan.
• Chen Feiying opened the Black Alliance’s vault and had his trusted men load its resources into Storage Bags.
• Yi Ersan, Liu Dao, Cold Sword, Su Zhi, and their forces surrounded Chen Feiying as he left the vault.
• Yi Ersan revealed that the Night Emperor had sent them and demanded that Chen Feiying surrender the Storage Bags and return to the Punishment Hall.
• Chen Feiying drew his sword, and Liu Dao severed his right hand before Yi Ersan ordered his men seized.

Han Zong and Chen Feiying were captured while attempting to move the Crimson Alliance and Black Alliance treasure vaults, and Lin Bai ordered a joint trial before visiting them in the dungeon. Chen Feiying accused Lin Bai of planning to destroy both alliances regardless, leaving the confrontation unresolved.

• Han Zong tried to move the Crimson Alliance treasury, but Si Ce and the other hall masters confronted him, and he surrendered after learning the Black Alliance's vault was also under attack.
• Si Ce returned Han Zong and the captured allies to the Sword Alliance, where Yi Ersan arrived with Chen Feiying and the others; Lin Bai ordered a joint trial for the next day.
• Lin Bai put on the Rose Mask and visited Han Zong and Chen Feiying in the Punishment Hall dungeon.
• Han Zong begged Lin Bai for another chance, while Chen Feiying argued that Lin Bai intended to eliminate both alliances and their leaders to unify the Sword Alliance.
• Lin Bai asked Chen Feiying to state any final wishes.

Lin Bai authorized a joint trial that sentenced Han Zong, Chen Feiying, and their followers to death for stealing alliance treasuries. Just as Ye Liang and Cold Sword moved to execute the two gate masters, Lin Bai intervened and knocked their swords aside, leaving their fate unresolved.

• Lin Bai rejected White Crane’s plea for leniency and ordered the Sword Hall to preside over the trial with the Punishment Hall and Benevolence Hall assisting.
• White Crane announced that Han Zong, Chen Feiying, and more than two hundred martial artists had been sentenced to death for stealing alliance wealth.
• Ye Liang and Cold Sword led the Assassination Hall in executing the prisoners while Lin Bai watched in silence.
• Chen Feiying accepted his death, while Han Zong begged Cold Sword to plead for his life.
• Lin Bai opened his eyes and used two flying swords to knock aside Ye Liang and Cold Sword’s blades before they could kill Han Zong and Chen Feiying.

Lin Bai spared Han Zong and Chen Feiying publicly, ordering their cultivation crippled and their exile from Divine Capital, while White Crane and Hua Meiren explained how his apparent mercy asserted his authority and left their deaths to others. The Hall Masters recognized that the two former leaders had to die to extinguish loyalty to their old factions, and Hua Meiren departed resolved to follow Lin Bai.

• Lin Bai halted the execution of Han Zong and Chen Feiying, ordered their cultivation destroyed, and left the Punishment Hall.
• Cold Sword and Ye Liang crippled Han Zong and Chen Feiying, then had them escorted out of Divine Capital.
• Hua Meiren explained that Lin Bai’s order gave Si Ce the choice to kill the exiles secretly or let them live, while White Crane said the public denial demonstrated Lin Bai’s authority.
• White Crane and Hua Meiren agreed that Han Zong and Chen Feiying had to die to end veteran disciples’ attachment to the Crimson Gate and Black Gate.
• Hua Meiren told White Crane she wanted to follow Lin Bai and make a name for herself, then left the Punishment Hall.

Lin Bai punished Si Ce for killing Han Zong and Chen Feiying, then learned that he could enter the Dragon Court and Phoenix Pavilion as Shui Qiudie’s servant. He agreed to join the Iron Sword Marquis Estate and planned to leave with Dan Xiaonan the next morning.

• Si Ce brought Lin Bai the heads of Han Zong and Chen Feiying, explaining that he had killed them to protect the Sword Alliance.
• Lin Bai stopped Si Ce from taking his own life and ordered him to accept punishment from Daoist Tianxin and Di Zhou.
• Dan Xiaonan explained that Lin Bai could enter the Dragon Court and Phoenix Pavilion as a servant accompanying a noble scion.
• Dan Xiaonan arranged for Lin Bai to serve Shui Qiudie of the Iron Sword Marquis Estate, and Lin Bai accepted despite their past conflict.
• Lin Bai said he could not leave that day, and Dan Xiaonan agreed to pick him up at dawn the next morning.

After securing the Sword Alliance’s immediate plans, Lin Bai left Badlands Prefecture with Dan Xiaonan for the Iron Sword Marquis Estate in Wan Xing Estate. He was brought before Shui Qiudie, who planned to punish him for offending her, while Lin Bai remained unafraid.

• Lin Bai told the Sword Alliance’s leaders to consolidate their control of Badlands Prefecture and stall negotiations with the Imperial General, the Right Prime Minister’s Residence, and the Prefectural Assistant.
• At dawn, Dan Xiaonan escorted Lin Bai from Badlands Prefecture to Wan Xing Estate, explaining that she had secured him a place in the Dragon Court and Phoenix Pavilion by presenting him as Shui Qiudie’s servant.
• Dan Xiaonan admitted she hoped Shui Qiudie would torment Lin Bai as payback for an old grudge.
• Lin Bai and Dan Xiaonan entered the Iron Sword Marquis Estate, where Shui Qiudie eagerly awaited Lin Bai and promised to teach him the consequences of offending her.
• Dan Xiaonan left Lin Bai with Shui Qiudie, but Lin Bai calmly faced the young princess without fear.

Shui Qiudie tested Lin Bai's strength before allowing him to accompany her to Dragon Court Phoenix Pavilion. Lin Bai defeated her martial artists twice, leaving Shui Qiudie furious and the men afraid of him.

• Shui Qiudie told more than twenty Iron Sword Army commandants to beat Lin Bai and ordered them to leave him with one breath.
• Lin Bai used Mooncleave Seeking Heaven to send the commandants flying, then asked Shui Qiudie whether he had passed the test.
• Shui Qiudie dismissed the defeat as a warm-up and ordered the men to attack Lin Bai again with their weapons.
• Lin Bai defeated all the commandants in a rapid series of sword strikes, and Shui Qiudie berated them as useless good-for-nothings.

Shui Qiudie assigned Lin Bai an impossible cleaning and water-boiling task to humiliate him, but he used the Sword Alliance to arrange the supplies she demanded. Lin Bai left the work in motion and planned to play along with her until sunset.

• Shui Qiudie made Lin Bai sweep her bloodstained courtyard without spiritual power and ordered him to prepare a pool of Tianquan Mountain spring water heated with Thousand-Blaze Ironwood for more than five hundred servants.
• Lin Bai finished cleaning after several hours, and Lin Yuan explained that the spring water was far away and the ironwood was nearly impossible to burn.
• Lin Bai contacted White Crane and asked for ten thousand jin of spring water and enough Thousand-Blaze Ironwood to heat it before sunset.
• White Crane sent several hundred fast Sword Alliance cultivators carrying a huge cauldron toward Tianquan Mountain to fetch the water and heat it on the way back.
• Lin Bai arranged to collect the supplies outside the Iron Sword Marquis Estate and resolved to play along with Shui Qiudie.

Lin Bai outmaneuvered Shui Qiudie by delivering and heating spring water from Tianquan Mountain, then became known throughout the Iron Sword Marquis Estate for handling her impossible demands. The Iron Sword Marquis learned that Lin Bai was an assumed name and that Lin Bai had come to the Divine Capital seeking his brother Mu Lang's remains.

• Lin Bai arranged for Sword Alliance martial artists to bring spring water from Tianquan Mountain, then carried the cauldron into the Iron Sword Marquis Estate and heated it with Thousand-Blaze Ironwood.
• Shui Qiudie accused Lin Bai of using ordinary water, but Lin Yuan confirmed that it was genuine spring water from Tianquan Mountain, forcing her to concede the contest.
• Over the following days, Lin Bai completed Shui Qiudie's difficult tasks, and stories of his feats spread among the estate's servants.
• The Iron Sword Marquis asked Wei Yang to investigate Lin Bai, and Wei Yang reported that Lin Bai's true name was Mu Ye, that he sought his elder brother Mu Lang's remains, and that Dan Xiaonan had recommended him for service to Shui Qiudie.

Lin Bai met the Iron Sword Marquis after Shui Qiudie complained that he had bullied her, but her father saw through her story and recognized Lin Bai’s abilities. He offered to make Lin Bai Shui Qiudie’s guard so he could enter Dragon Court and Phoenix Pavilion, and Lin Bai asked whether that would spare him from sweeping.

• Shui Qiudie complained to the Iron Sword Marquis that Lin Bai had bullied her, but he pointed out that she had been making things difficult for Lin Bai and he had completed every task.
• The Iron Sword Marquis told Shui Qiudie to prepare for Dragon Court and Phoenix Pavilion and spend time with her mother, then sent Butler Wei Yang to summon Lin Bai.
• Butler Wei Yang told the Iron Sword Marquis that Lin Bai had defeated more than twenty Iron Sword Army commanders with one sword strike.
• The Iron Sword Marquis questioned Lin Bai about whether his real name was Mu Ye and whether he was a Hanging Sword Bureau undercover agent; Lin Bai denied being an agent and explained his prepared cover story.
• The Iron Sword Marquis offered to promote Lin Bai from Shui Qiudie’s servant to her guard, and Lin Bai asked whether he would no longer have to sweep the floor.

Lin Bai accepted Iron Sword Marquis’s offer to become Shui Qiudie’s guard, ending his servant duties but binding his life to hers. Two days later, he escorted her to Dragon Court in the Divine Capital, where her cultivation was entrusted to its elders.

• Iron Sword Marquis appointed Lin Bai as Shui Qiudie’s guard and gave him a token, warning that the guards would die if she came to harm.
• Shui Qiudie tried to make Lin Bai resume sweeping, but he showed her the token and explained his new position; she protested to her father and mother.
• After two days, Iron Sword Marquis selected nine additional guards and sent Lin Bai, Shui Qiudie, and a hundred servants to Dragon Court and Phoenix Pavilion.
• Iron Sword Marquis’s party traveled along Dragon Phoenix Avenue to Dragon Court, where elders welcomed them.
• Iron Sword Marquis entrusted Shui Qiudie’s cultivation to the elders, and she departed in the carriage while her father called after her with advice.

Lin Bai settled into his quarters on Fragrant Mountain and considered how to qualify for the Dragon Court Pavilion’s year-end martial competition so he could reach the Heavenly Surveillance Bureau. While exploring the Dragon Court with Lu Yin, he learned it held vast archives that might contain the missing volumes of his Five Elements Divine Lightning Manual, but their conversation was interrupted by news that the Grand Princess had arrived.

• Shui Qiudie arrived at Fragrant Mountain, where the Dragon Court elders showed her the main hall and arranged residences for her guards.
• Lin Bai settled into his courtyard and planned how to enter the Dragon Court Pavilion’s martial competition to earn a visit to the Heavenly Surveillance Bureau.
• Lin Bai explored Fragrant Mountain while Shui Qiudie stayed inside the main hall.
• Lin Bai met Lu Yin at a cliff, and they discussed the Dragon Court Pavilion’s extensive collection of cultivation manuals and ancient texts.
• Lin Bai wondered whether the Pavilion might contain the missing Fire and Gold Divine Lightning volumes before an enraged voice summoned him and Lu Yin to meet the Grand Princess.

Shui Yunmeng warned Shui Qiudie to behave at the Dragon Court and told her to report to the Dust Courtyard. Shui Qiudie began her training under the stern Instructor Murong, whose intimidating presence left the Little Princess frightened.

• Duan Long summoned Lin Bai and Lu Yin to meet Shui Yunmeng, and Lu Yin explained that the Grand Princess was Shui Qiudie's elder sister and a seventh-level Apex Realm martial artist.
• Shui Yunmeng told Shui Qiudie to cultivate properly and report to the Dust Courtyard, then warned the ten guards that they would be held responsible if the Little Princess caused trouble.
• Lu Yin explained that the Dragon Court and Phoenix Pavilion divided their cultivation regions into the Dust Courtyard, Star Tower, Moon Palace, and Sun Hall according to martial artists' cultivation levels.
• The next day, a Dragon Court envoy led Shui Qiudie and her guards from Fragrant Mountain to the Dust Courtyard, where he completed her registration.
• The envoy assigned Shui Qiudie to Instructor Murong, whose sharp glance made the Little Princess tremble with fear.