Recaps

Lin Bai and Chen Yule’s sword-intent clash ended with Chen Yule conceding defeat, while Prince Chen learned the fight stemmed from Chen Yun’s grudge over her husband. Prince Chen met Chen Yun to ask her to leave Lin Bai alone, but she refused and revealed her husband’s life depended on Lin Bai.

• Lin Bai steadied Chen Yule after their sword-intent clash, and Chen Yule conceded the battle while Lin Bai called it a draw.
• Prince Chen arranged new lodgings for the Chen Family and ordered the gathered martial artists to disperse.
• Lin Bai explained to Prince Chen that Chen Yun had provoked the fight, and Prince Chen promised to speak with her before announcing the group would return to the imperial capital in half a month.
• Prince Chen summoned Chen Yun to Listening Heart Garden and asked her not to target Lin Bai.
• Chen Yun refused, saying she would make Lin Bai suffer if her husband died, and Prince Chen asked why she still loved a man who had abandoned her.

Chu Junyou refused Chen Yun’s plea to save her husband, Luo Cong, and warned her not to involve the Chen Family in the matter. Half a month after the Blood God Sect’s defeat, its remnants and corrupted city lords were still being hunted as the crisis in Ke Province began to wind down.

• Chu Junyou recalled how Chen Yun had rejected Emperor Chu’s marriage decree and pleaded for her family’s sake, then told her he would not help save Luo Cong.
• Chu Junyou explained that Luo Cong had guarded the Blood God Sealing Pagoda, built from the bones of at least one hundred thousand martial artists, and promised only to spare him the Zhao Xing Office’s tortures.
• Chen Yun threatened to make Lin Bai die with Luo Cong, but Chu Junyou warned her against seeking help from the Chen Family and revealed that Lin Bai was his only friend.
• Chen Yun left the courtyard after criticizing Chu Junyou’s new princely bearing, and Chu Junyou watched her go with a sigh.
• Over the next half month, the Zhao Xing Office and King Chai Ning’s army hunted the scattered Blood God Sect followers, while Prince Chen delayed dealing with the compromised city lords because of their powerful connections.
• The Blood God Sect’s crisis in Ke Province began to subside, and disciples of the Five Great Families and Seven Sects departed Azure Lotus City for the imperial capital.

Tianshui Sect arrived in the Imperial Capital after its victory in Ke Province and settled into its palace, where Third Elder warned the disciples about the city’s many rules. The next morning, Lin Bai went sightseeing with his companions and asked to visit Divine Armory Pavilion.

• Third Elder led Tianshui Sect from the teleportation array to its newly cleaned palace, where Prince Chen’s servant announced that Emperor Chu would reward the victors in three days.
• Third Elder and Zheng Yuan lectured the disciples deep into the night about Imperial Capital and palace rules, warning them not to provoke anyone.
• The next morning, Qiao Mo, Qin Yao, Yi Gu, and others invited Lin Bai to explore the Imperial Capital, and he agreed.
• Lin Bai asked about Divine Armory Pavilion, and Yi Gu explained that its rankings often sparked rivalries and conflicts between sects.
• Qin Yao supported Lin Bai’s plan, and the group set out to visit Divine Armory Pavilion.

Lin Bai and his companions visited Divine Armory Pavilion and examined the Chu Nation martial artist rankings. Yi Gu interpreted the Dao God Rankings as evidence of political tensions among the imperial clan, the five great families, and Liang Wang, while Lin Bai continued reading the list.

• Lin Bai, Qiao Mo, Qin Yao, and Yi Gu entered Divine Armory Pavilion and viewed its rankings for Chu Nation martial artists.
• Yi Gu explained that the rankings updated when listed martial artists died, and Lin Bai examined the Dao God Rankings.
• Lin Bai noticed that the top ten included the holy sons of all five great families, one holy son from the seven great sects, and three of Liang Wang's children.
• Yi Gu argued that the rankings revealed the five great families' growing threat and Liang Wang's potential challenge to the imperial succession.
• Yi Gu explained that gaining power brought resources and benefits to one's sect, family, or dynasty, and Lin Bai continued studying the rankings.

Lin Bai discovered that killing Ling Hai Ri had put him at the bottom of the Chu Kingdom's Dao God Rankings, drawing hundreds of challengers who tried to provoke him into a fight. As Lin Bai and his companions considered escaping, Ke Ling of the Heaven and Earth Gate arrived and insulted Tianshui Sect, escalating the confrontation.

• Lin Bai saw Bai Yifei ranked ninety-ninth and found his own name at four hundred ninety-ninth on the rankings.
• Martial artists challenged Lin Bai in the Divine Armory Pavilion, hoping to claim his place near the bottom of the list.
• The crowd surrounded Lin Bai and his companions, taunting him and insulting Tianshui Sect when he did not accept a challenge.
• Lin Bai and his companions decided to force their way out, but Ke Ling and his Heaven and Earth Gate disciples blocked them.
• Ke Ling mocked Tianshui Sect and leered at Qiao Mo and Qin Yao, prompting the Tianshui Sect group to glare at him in anger.

At the Divine Armory Pavilion, Lin Bai clashed with Ke Ling of the Heaven and Earth Gate after Ke Ling insulted the Tianshui Sect and threatened Qiao Mo and Qin Yao. Lin Bai killed one of Ke Ling’s lackeys and defeated Ke Ling, then peacefully submitted to the Zhao Xing Office as it took him into custody.

• Ke Ling mocked the Tianshui Sect, and his lackeys tried to seize Qiao Mo and Qin Yao as drinking companions.
• Lin Bai warned Ke Ling and the Heaven and Earth Gate disciples to get out of his way, then killed a lackey with a sword-intent slash.
• Lin Bai broke through Ke Ling’s aura, seized him by the throat, and kicked him into distant buildings.
• The Zhao Xing Office arrived, and Lin Bai admitted to the killing and allowed its officers to shackle him.
• Ke Ling tried to attack Lin Bai again, but a Zhao Xing Office expert stopped him and claimed the office would pass judgment.
• Lin Bai laughed at Ke Ling’s claim that he would have killed him.

After Lin Bai was arrested for killing members of the Heaven and Earth Gate, he discovered that the Demon Flower had revived within him and was feeding on his violent emotions. He resolved to seek a way in the Demon Realm to suppress the Demon Seed while he remained imprisoned in the Zhao Xing Office.

• Qin Yao sent Qiao Mo to find the Third Elder to bail Lin Bai out, then went with Fang Yuanshu to seek Prince Chen.
• Lin Bai was taken to an ordinary cell in the Zhao Xing Office, where the other prisoners learned he had killed someone in the imperial capital.
• Lin Bai realized his recent surge in killing intent felt like the Demon Flower was controlling him.
• In his consciousness space, Lin Bai saw the withered tree revived and a red flower with a human face reflected in his eyes.
• Lin Bai recognized that the Demon Seed had taken root again and grew stronger on his negative emotions, so he considered finding a way to suppress it in the Demon Realm.

Lin Bai was imprisoned for murder and targeted by Warden Liu for refusing to pay a bribe. He resisted the jailer’s beating and attacked him, leaving the conflict inside the Zhao Xing Office unresolved.

• Warden Liu let Zhang Wen and Li Wu leave after receiving favors, then learned Lin Bai had offered nothing.
• Warden Liu ordered a jailer to teach Lin Bai a lesson despite the jailer’s concern that Lin Bai belonged to the Tianshui Sect.
• The jailer took Lin Bai to an execution chamber, where a formation suppressed cultivation but left the jailer’s Zhao Xing Office token working.
• Lin Bai caught the jailer’s scabbard, crushed it with his physical strength, and kicked the jailer into a wall.
• The jailer accused Lin Bai of attacking the Chu Kingdom Dynasty, but Lin Bai rejected the charge and beat him with punches and kicks.

The Minister of Justice and Prince Chen came to the Zhao Xing Office to secure Lin Bai’s release after his arrest. Warden Liu tried to delay them, but he was forced to lead the group into the dungeon to find Lin Bai.

• Warden Liu ordered the jailers to beat Lin Bai, then learned that the Minister of Justice had arrived and feared Lin Bai might be dead.
• The Minister told Warden Liu that Lin Bai was a Three Wonders Disciple of the Tianshui Sect and ordered him released after the Third Elder paid the ransom.
• Prince Chen arrived and confirmed that he had come for Lin Bai, then insisted on going to the dungeon himself.
• Warden Liu tried to make excuses and pretend to search for Lin Bai, but Prince Chen and the Minister pressured him to hurry.
• Warden Liu finally admitted he had found Lin Bai and led Prince Chen, the Minister, and the Third Elder deeper into the dungeon.

Prince Chen and the Minister of Justice found Lin Bai beating a prison guard in the Zhao Xing Office’s interrogation room, then punished Warden Liu for abusing his authority. As Prince Chen escorted Lin Bai back to his residence, the Minister of Justice wondered whether Prince Chen could withstand the Third Prince amid the coming turmoil in the imperial capital.

• Warden Liu led Prince Chen and the Minister of Justice to the interrogation cells, where they heard a prisoner screaming.
• Prince Chen opened Lin Bai’s cell and discovered that Lin Bai had beaten the prison guard after being targeted for refusing to bribe Warden Liu.
• Prince Chen condemned the Zhao Xing Office’s misconduct, and the Minister of Justice ordered Warden Liu sent to Purgatory.
• The Third Elder reprimanded Lin Bai for breaking the imperial capital’s laws, while Prince Chen and the Minister of Justice helped him leave the Zhao Xing Office.
• Prince Chen escorted Lin Bai and the Third Elder to their residence, and the Minister of Justice wondered whether Prince Chen could match the Third Prince.

The Third Prince learned that Lin Bai had been arrested and rescued by Prince Chen, then investigated Lin Bai’s origins and considered whether he was a dangerous martial artist who had fought his way from the lower realm. He planned a banquet for the Saints and outstanding disciples of the Five Great Families and Seven Sects, with the Sun Moon Pavilion attending.

• The Third Prince learned that Lin Bai had killed a Heaven and Earth Gate disciple and that Prince Chen had taken him from the Zhao Xing Office; startled by Lin Bai’s connection to Prince Chen, he accidentally killed a servant with an arrow.
• The Third Prince heard how Lin Bai had helped Prince Chen in Ke Province and ordered an investigation into Lin Bai’s past.
• The servant reported that Lin Bai came from the Barren Ancient Continent and had reached the Demon Realm, and the Third Prince weighed whether Lin Bai had arrived by chance or through his own strength.
• The Third Prince ordered preparations for a banquet the next day, inviting the Saints and outstanding disciples of the Five Great Families and Seven Sects and asking the Sun Moon Pavilion to accompany him.
• Dozens of envoys left the Third Prince’s Estate and delivered invitations across the Imperial Capital.

After returning to the residence, Lin Bai confronted Bai Yifei and nearly fought him, while the Third Elder stopped them. Zheng Yuan then warned the Third Elder that Lin Bai had grown far more powerful and violent, possibly because something had gone wrong with his cultivation.

• Lin Bai returned safely to the residence, where Qiao Mo, Qin Yao, and Yi Gu welcomed him back.
• Bai Yifei mocked Lin Bai, who drew the Demon Sword and summoned four flying swords before the Third Elder calmed him down.
• Lin Bai challenged Bai Yifei to fight, then shouted "Get lost" and forced him backward before returning to his room.
• Bai Yifei vowed to kill Lin Bai, and the Third Elder discussed their worsening feud with Zheng Yuan.
• Zheng Yuan judged Lin Bai to be at Holy Son level and said his newfound violence might signal a cultivation problem or invading heart demon.

Lin Bai suppressed the Devil Flower’s growing influence and declined an invitation to the Third Prince’s gathering of young talents, claiming he needed to recover from a cultivation problem. He remained at his residence while the other Tianshui Sect disciples prepared to attend the banquet.

• Lin Bai struggled to restrain the Devil Flower’s urge to drive him to kill Bai Yifei, then gradually calmed himself.
• Qiao Mo waited outside Lin Bai’s room because she worried about his unusual mood, and they went together to Third Elder’s meeting.
• Third Elder announced that the Third Prince had invited the Five Great Families and Seven Sects’ young talents to a banquet and named the Tianshui Sect members who would attend.
• Bai Yifei declared that no Tianshui Sect disciple would refuse, but Lin Bai said he would not go because his cultivation needed time to recover.
• Qiao Mo and the others visited Lin Bai, who reassured them that he had only used his cultivation as an excuse to avoid the banquet.

Tianshui Sect attended the Third Prince’s banquet for the first time in ten thousand years, where Bai Yifei disparaged Lin Bai’s absence and the Third Prince proposed a martial competition. The chapter ended before the competition began, with the Third Prince promising generous rewards regardless of the outcome.

• Bai Yifei, Qin Yao, and the Tianshui Sect disciples arrived at the Third Prince’s Estate and took their place in the banquet’s pavilion.
• Chen Yule asked where Lin Bai was, and Bai Yifei claimed Lin Bai thought nobody present was worthy of sitting with him.
• Qiao Mo explained that Lin Bai was recuperating in seclusion, while Chen Yule dismissed Bai Yifei as no threat to Lin Bai.
• The Third Prince arrived, welcomed the assembled Holy Daughters and Sons, and hosted them with food and wine.
• After several rounds of wine, the Third Prince proposed a friendly martial competition and promised generous rewards to the participants.

At the Third Prince’s banquet, he introduced the Thirteen Sword Servants and offered a Dragon Vein Pill as the prize in a martial contest against them. Li Huaqing challenged one of the servants, then objected when the weakest, the Thirteenth Sword Servant, stepped forward.

• The Third Prince presented the Thirteen Sword Servants, renowned sword cultivators and loyal retainers of his Sun Moon Pavilion.
• The Third Prince offered a Dragon Vein Pill to any disciple who defeated one of the servants and imposed a ten-cup wine penalty on anyone who lost.
• Li Huaqing of the Li Family accepted the contest, hoping to win the pill, and the Third Prince sent the Thirteenth Sword Servant to face him.
• Li Huaqing protested that the Thirteenth Sword Servant was the weakest and accused the Third Prince of looking down on him.

At the Third Prince’s banquet tournament, Sword Slave Thirteen defeated Li Huaqing, while the Thirteen Sword Servants generally bested disciples from the Five Great Families and Seven Sects. Bai Yifei won a deliberately arranged match, and the Third Prince asked whether Lin Bai had come.

• Li Huaqing fought Sword Slave Thirteen evenly at first, but she defeated him with a single sword strike and stopped her blade at his throat.
• Chen Yun and Chen Yule recognized Sword Slave Thirteen’s swordplay as Cloud Heaven Swordplay and speculated that the Cloud Heaven Sword Sect had sent Gao Yue to serve the Third Prince years earlier.
• The Thirteen Sword Servants fought disciples from the Five Great Families and Seven Sects, who lost most of their matches.
• Bai Yifei narrowly defeated an opponent after the Third Prince arranged for the Tianshui Sect disciple to yield, and the Third Prince praised him.
• The Third Prince asked Bai Yifei whether Lin Bai had come to the tournament.

At the Third Prince’s banquet, Ke Ling exploited Lin Bai’s absence to provoke the Tianshui Sect and demand that its female disciples dance. The Third Prince secretly sent a servant to tell Lin Bai, while Lin Bai and Yi Gu discussed their homes at the Tianshui Sect residence.

• The Third Prince questioned the Tianshui Sect about Lin Bai’s absence, and Qiao Mo and Qin Yao said he was recovering in seclusion.
• Ke Ling accused the Tianshui Sect of making excuses and cited Bai Yifei’s earlier remark, angering the Third Prince.
• Ke Ling proposed that the Tianshui Sect’s female disciples perform a dance, and the Third Prince agreed while pretending to rest.
• The Third Prince privately ordered a servant to tell Lin Bai that Ke Ling was forcing the Tianshui Sect’s female disciples to dance.
• Lin Bai told Yi Gu that his family and friends were in the Dao Ruins World, and Yi Gu said he had been there before.

Yi Gu told Lin Bai that reaching Dao Ruins World required crossing three war-torn worlds and that the Chu Kingdom controlled a route into the first. Lin Bai resolved to seek a way to travel there, but the chapter ended when a servant from the Third Prince's Estate arrived with an urgent report.

• Yi Gu explained that Dao Ruins World had once challenged the Devil Realm and Spirit Realm and that Tianquan, Yuheng, and Yaoguang Great Worlds had become battlefields along the route there.
• Yi Gu said he had reached Dao Ruins World more than nine hundred years earlier while accompanying an elder on a peace mission.
• Yi Gu told Lin Bai that the Chu Kingdom controlled a Void Ancient Road to Tianquan Great World, but passage was difficult and Dao Ruins World would regard travelers from the Devil Realm as enemies.
• Lin Bai decided to seek ties with the Chu Kingdom and find a way to reach Tianquan Great World, while Yi Gu refused to explain the deeper interests behind the three battlefields.
• A maid reported that a servant from the Third Prince's Estate had arrived with an important matter.

The Third Prince sent a servant to tell Lin Bai that Ke Ling had humiliated the Tianshui Sect’s female disciples, prompting Lin Bai to go to the banquet. Lin Bai arrived to find the sect cowed and the Third Prince pretending to sleep, while the assembled guests recognized that the gathering had been arranged for him.

• The Third Prince’s servant told Lin Bai that Ke Ling had forced Qiao Mo, Qin Yao, Ye Guyu, and other Tianshui Sect disciples to dance, and asked him to come up with a solution.
• The Third Elder and Elder Zheng Yuan condemned the Heaven and Earth Gate and criticized Bai Yifei for staying silent when Ke Ling challenged him.
• Lin Bai realized the Third Prince wanted him at the estate, agreed to go despite his injuries, and rode there with the servant.
• Lin Bai entered the banquet pavilion, where Ke Ling was still mocking the Tianshui Sect’s female disciples and its members were afraid to respond.
• Qiao Mo, Qin Yao, Fang Yuanshu, and the others welcomed Lin Bai, while the other guests concluded that the banquet had been arranged specifically to bring him there.

Lin Bai confronted Heaven and Earth Gate at the Third Prince’s banquet and struck one of its disciples with invisible Sword Qi. He then turned his attack on Holy Son Ke Ling, leaving the assembled sects to reckon with Lin Bai’s strength.

• The Third Prince secretly watched as Lin Bai arrived, hoping to see how he would handle Heaven and Earth Gate’s provocation.
• Lin Bai taunted Heaven and Earth Gate, and a disciple challenged him over the death of Senior Brother Chen.
• Lin Bai sent invisible Sword Qi at the disciple, whose life-saving ring shattered as the attack knocked him into the lake.
• Di Wuyan noticed Lin Bai’s Sword Qi, while Yi Song and the other sect leaders realized they had not sensed the attack until it landed.
• Ke Ling accused Lin Bai of ambushing his junior brother, and Lin Bai admitted it before sending the wine from his cup at Ke Ling like a surging river.

Lin Bai confronted Ke Ling at the Third Prince’s banquet after the Heaven and Earth Gate disciples mistreated Qiao Mo, Qin Yao, and Ye Guyu. The Third Prince stopped their fight, and the banquet resumed with Lin Bai asking Chen Yule about the Dragon Blood Wine he owed.

• Lin Bai’s wine, infused with sword intent, forced Ke Ling to use two attacks to stop it, and the two prepared to fight until the Third Prince woke and intervened.
• Lin Bai mocked the Heaven and Earth Gate disciples as dogs, while the Third Prince ordered everyone to stop quarreling and resume the banquet.
• Lin Bai checked on Qiao Mo, Qin Yao, and Ye Guyu, who told him the Heaven and Earth Gate had forced them to dance and humiliated them.
• Lin Bai asked Chen Yule for the Dragon Blood Wine he owed, and Chen Yule said he was gathering the hundred jars from the Immortal Abode Restaurant and his family’s cellars.
• Yi Song joked that he would expose Chen Yule as a debtor, and Huang Qingyun teased Yi Song for being vicious.

At the Third Prince’s banquet, Lin Bai received Dragon Blood Wine after Chen Yule explained his debt and the Third Prince recognized Lin Bai as an equal among Chu’s young talents. As the wine stirred his understanding of the Azure Lotus Swordplay, Lin Bai’s sword heart advanced to the pinnacle of its third revolution.

• Chen Yule told the banquet guests that he had promised Lin Bai five hundred jars of Dragon Blood Wine after their spar in Fengling City, though he had only gathered one hundred.
• The Third Prince explained the wine’s limited supply and gave Lin Bai more than three hundred jars from his residence, addressing him as “Brother Lin.”
• Lin Bai accepted the gift, drank several bowls, and reminded Chen Yule that he still expected the promised five hundred jars.
• Lin Bai drank several jars of Dragon Blood Wine and sensed new insight into the Azure Lotus Swordplay while caught between drunkenness and sobriety.
• Lin Bai’s sword heart reached the pinnacle of the third revolution as a faint, sharp sword intent spread from him.

At the Third Prince’s banquet, several powerful guests sensed Lin Bai’s unusual sword intent, while the Third Prince judged that none of his Thirteen Sword Servants could defeat him. Lin Bai feigned drunkenness to leave safely, then told Qiao Mo and Qin Yao he would not betray Prince Chen to satisfy the Third Prince.

• Chen Yule, the Third Prince, Di Wuyan, and several Holy Sons sensed the sword intent radiating from Lin Bai.
• The Third Prince stopped the Thirteen Sword Servants from testing Lin Bai and declared that none of them was his match.
• As dawn approached, the Third Prince ended the banquet and told Qiao Mo and Qin Yao to help the apparently drunk Lin Bai return to rest.
• After leaving the estate, Lin Bai revealed that he had pretended to be drunk so he could leave without facing pressure from the Third Prince.
• Lin Bai explained that he would not betray Prince Chen, who had treated him sincerely, and wanted to avoid needless conflict with the imperial clan.

After returning from the Third Prince’s banquet, Lin Bai was praised by Third Elder and Zheng Yuan for protecting Tianshui Sect, while Bai Yifei’s complaints were ignored. Lin Bai prepared to attend the imperial palace’s title ceremony, discovering that his Azure Gourd could store the Dragon Blood Wine as the sect traveled to the palace.

• Bai Yifei accused Lin Bai of disrespecting the Third Prince and humiliating Tianshui Sect, but Third Elder and Zheng Yuan ignored his complaints.
• Third Elder told Lin Bai to rest before attending the noon ceremony at the imperial palace’s Tiger Gate Training Grounds to receive his title.
• Zheng Yuan confronted Bai Yifei about his cowardly conduct at the banquet, leaving Bai Yifei to realize his standing in the sect had fallen.
• Lin Bai tried to dispel the Dragon Blood Wine’s potency, then used the Azure Gourd to store more than three hundred jars of wine.
• Lin Bai joined the Tianshui Sect disciples, and they traveled by carriage to the imperial palace under Third Elder’s leadership.

At the Tiger Gate Training Grounds, Lin Bai and the other martial artists waited for the Chu Emperor’s rewards for their role in destroying the Blood God Sect. Lin Bai received the title of High Minister, leaving Bai Yifei bitter and resentful.

• The Third Elder explained that Prince Chen was reporting on the Blood God Sect campaign and that most attendees would receive only the title of Chu Scholar and a small reward.
• A purple-robed eunuch arrived with the imperial edict and announced titles and gold for the Five Great Families, Seven Sects, and Zhao Xing Office martial artists.
• Bai Yifei received the title of Chu Scholar and one hundred gold, then offered thanks to the Chu Emperor.
• Lin Bai received the title of High Minister and ten thousand gold, surprising the gathered martial artists and prompting the Third Elder to tell him to offer thanks.
• Bai Yifei reacted to Lin Bai’s higher title with shock, bitterness, and anger.