Recaps

After Lin Bai and his allies tracked down Ecstasy Young Master and the elder, they discovered the captives were Mo Nan and Li Xuanqiu, holy daughters of the Star Sect and Moon Sect. Surrounded by powerful fighters, the kidnappers faced arrest as Lin Bai accused them of involvement in the imperial capital’s missing women cases.

• The elder scolded Ecstasy Young Master for leaving their stronghold and warned him that Lin Bai far outclassed him.
• The elder recognized Mo Nan and Li Xuanqiu as holy daughters of the Star Sect and Moon Sect and realized their abduction would bring Lin Bai after them.
• Chen Yule and Nie Shang appeared at opposite ends of the alley, and Lin Bai, Meng Qinxian, Yi Heze, and Lu Qingjun arrived to surround the kidnappers.
• The elder offered to release the women and claimed they were visitors attending the Chu Emperor’s Birthday Celebration, but Lin Bai refused to let them go.
• Lin Bai said the Zhao Xing Office needed no reason to arrest them and challenged them to deny involvement in the disappearance of more than one hundred young women.

Lin Bai and the others cornered the elder and Ecstasy Young Master, but the villains used Mo Nan and Li Xuanqiu as bait to escape. Lin Bai freed the two women from an illusion while Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang pursued the fleeing pair.

• The elder recognized Lin Bai, Chen Yule, and Yi Heze as Saints and planned to flee with Ecstasy Young Master to Eternal Joy Street.
• The elder attacked Lin Bai as Ecstasy Young Master hurled Mo Nan and Li Xuanqiu into the air and struck at them to draw the others' attention.
• Chen Yule, Lu Qingjun, and Yi Heze rescued the two women while Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang chased the fleeing elder and Ecstasy Young Master.
• Lin Bai used his Asura Dharma Eyes and his voice to break the illusion trapping Mo Nan and Li Xuanqiu.
• Mo Nan and Li Xuanqiu awoke confused and wondered how they had left the Moon Gazing Platform.

Mo Nan and Li Xuanqiu recovered from the Ecstasy Young Master’s illusion after Lin Bai broke it, and Lin Bai explained that he had deliberately let the pursuers escape to uncover the evil sect behind them. At Eternal Joy Street, Elder Huangnong and the Ecstasy Young Master sought refuge with Elder Ningshuo, who was stunned to learn they had provoked Lin Bai.

• Chen Yule told Mo Nan and Li Xuanqiu that Lin Bai had broken the illusion trapping them, and they thanked Lin Bai for saving them.
• Lin Bai wondered whether the Ecstasy Young Master had used the Asura Dharma Eyes and told the group that Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang were pursuing the fugitives.
• Chen Yule deduced that Lin Bai had deliberately let the fugitives escape, and Lin Bai said he wanted to expose the evil sect behind them.
• Lin Bai led Mo Nan, Li Xuanqiu, Lu Qingjun, Yi Heze, and Chen Yule toward Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang’s location.
• Elder Huangnong and the Ecstasy Young Master fled to an apothecary on Eternal Joy Street and asked Elder Ningshuo for help.
• Elder Huangnong told Elder Ningshuo that Lin Bai’s companions were pursuing them, and Elder Ningshuo reacted in shock when he heard they had provoked Lin Bai.

Ning Shuo learned that Huang Nong and Ecstasy Young Master had provoked Lin Bai and gathered the hidden Nine Underworlds Demon Palace branch on Eternal Joy Street. He ordered the branch members to disguise themselves as Soul Severing Sect martial artists and hold off Lin Bai’s group while Huang Nong and Ecstasy Young Master escaped.

• Ning Shuo scolded Huang Nong and Ecstasy Young Master for provoking Lin Bai, who served Prince Chen and was backed by the Zhao Xing Office.
• Huang Nong told Ning Shuo that Lin Bai was pursuing them with seven other Holy Sons and Holy Daughters, including Chen Yule, Meng Qinxian, and Yi Heze.
• Ning Shuo summoned sixteen hidden Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm martial artists from the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace’s imperial capital branch.
• Ning Shuo explained that Huang Nong and Ecstasy Young Master had come under orders from the Devil Palace’s main headquarters and asked the branch members to help them escape.
• Ning Shuo ordered the branch members to wear Soul Severing Sect masks and fight Lin Bai’s group to buy Huang Nong and Ecstasy Young Master time to flee.

Ning Shuo’s masked group trapped Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang on Eternal Joy Street, where the two Holy Sons fought off sixteen Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm martial artists. Huang Nong and Ecstasy Young Master escaped before Lin Bai and the others arrived, leaving the battle unresolved.

• Ning Shuo organized an ambush on Eternal Joy Street and ordered Huang Nong and Ecstasy Young Master to escape with the barrier tokens.
• Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang found the street suddenly deserted, then faced Ning Shuo and sixteen masked Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm martial artists outside the apothecary.
• Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang fought the attackers but were unable to break through and stop Huang Nong and Ecstasy Young Master from fleeing.
• Lin Bai and the others arrived, and Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang called on them to stop the masked attackers.

Lin Bai and the other Holy Sons and Holy Daughters cornered Ecstasy Young Master, Elder Huangnong, and sixteen Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm martial artists on Eternal Joy Street. After Ning Shuo claimed they belonged to the Soul Severing Sect and refused to go to the Zhao Xing Office, both sides prepared to fight.

• Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang pursued Ecstasy Young Master and Elder Huangnong, while Lin Bai followed their reports to Eternal Joy Street.
• Chen Yule blocked Ecstasy Young Master and Elder Huangnong with a strike from the Dragon Gate Sword, forcing them back to Ning Shuo.
• Lin Bai and seven other Holy Sons and Holy Daughters surrounded the group, and Ning Shuo claimed they were martial artists of the Soul Severing Sect.
• Lin Bai doubted Ning Shuo’s claim, pointed out the group’s conflicting cultivation techniques, and demanded that they go to the Zhao Xing Office for an investigation.
• Ning Shuo rejected Lin Bai’s demand, argued that his group had the advantage in numbers, and ordered them to attack and break through the encirclement.

Mo Nan and Li Xuanqiu confronted the Ecstasy Young Master and Huang Nong while Ning Shuo and the others prepared to hold off their pursuers. Li Xuanqiu revealed the Azure Dragon Dao Gourd and used its dragon soul to wound Huang Nong.

• Ning Shuo told Huang Nong and the Ecstasy Young Master that they would hold off the pursuers while the two escaped, and Huang Nong agreed despite the Ecstasy Young Master's wish to fight.
• Mo Nan and Li Xuanqiu found Huang Nong and the Ecstasy Young Master and demanded to know where their junior sisters were.
• Mo Nan attacked the Ecstasy Young Master, who tried to use his Mystic Eye Technique, but both women avoided it and Mo Nan forced him back with sword strikes.
• Li Xuanqiu blocked Huang Nong from rescuing the Ecstasy Young Master and matched his palm strike, revealing that the Moon Sect could fight despite its reputation.
• Li Xuanqiu summoned the Azure Dragon Dao Gourd, whose Azure Dragon soul broke Huang Nong's defenses and left deep claw marks in his chest.

Mo Nan and Li Xuanqiu fought Ecstasy Young Master and Elder Huangnong while Ning Shuo led sixteen Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm martial artists to attack them. Lin Bai rallied Chen Yule, Yi Heze, Lu Qingjun, Nie Shang, and Meng Qinxian to stop the attackers, and the battle continued with Meng Qinxian and Yi Heze holding off a group of enemies.

• Mo Nan suppressed Ecstasy Young Master, while Li Xuanqiu's Azure Dragon Dao Gourd held Elder Huangnong at bay.
• Ning Shuo ordered his fifteen companions to help Ecstasy Young Master and Elder Huangnong break free, prompting Lin Bai to call on his allies for support.
• Chen Yule, Yi Heze, Lu Qingjun, Nie Shang, and Meng Qinxian agreed to help Lin Bai confront the attackers.
• Meng Qinxian endured a Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm martial artist's divine thunder and knocked him through buildings with one punch.
• Ning Shuo sent five more fighters after Meng Qinxian, and Yi Heze joined him as they fought off six Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm martial artists.

After the fighters divided the remaining Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm opponents, Lin Bai faced Ning Shuo and two others alone. He revealed the Sea God Pearl to block Ning Shuo’s attack, then destroyed one opponent’s body with a single sword strike and charged at the remaining two.

• Chen Yule, Lu Qingjun, and Nie Shang each selected opponents, leaving Lin Bai to face Ning Shuo and two other martial artists.
• Ning Shuo and his companions surrounded Lin Bai and attacked, but the Sea God Pearl blocked Ning Shuo’s palm strike.
• Lin Bai forced the two flanking martial artists back and revealed that the Sea God Pearl was a Grand Yi Divine Weapon.
• Lin Bai’s Azure Lotus Sword Intent cleaved through the low-grade martial artist’s defenses and destroyed his body, forcing his soul to flee.
• Lin Bai charged at Ning Shuo and the remaining mid-grade martial artist.

Lin Bai and the Saints overwhelmed Ning Shuo’s forces in the battle at Eternal Joy Street. Ning Shuo opened the barrier and summoned help, but the Saints began capturing their opponents as the survivors fled.

• Meng Qinxian and Yi Heze fought off three opponents apiece, while Lin Bai and the other Saints gained the advantage over Ning Shuo’s group.
• Ning Shuo crushed a distress bead, summoning martial artists across the Imperial Capital to Eternal Joy Street.
• Ning Shuo opened the barrier and ordered the others to scatter, but Lin Bai told his allies to capture as many enemies as they could.
• Meng Qinxian captured a divine soul with a spirit talisman, and Yi Heze, Lu Qingjun, Chen Yule, Nie Shang, and the others began suppressing their opponents.
• Ning Shuo fled first, while Huang Nong urged Ecstasy Young Master to escape; Ecstasy Young Master cursed Mo Nan before fleeing.

Lin Bai pursued Ning Shuo until Zhao Xiantu intervened, letting Ning Shuo escape and accusing Lin Bai of causing trouble in the imperial capital. After the survivors and their pursuers reported being blocked by numerous Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm martial artists, Lin Bai and Zhu Mo suspected a powerful force was behind the attack.

• Lin Bai wounded Ning Shuo during a chase, but Zhao Xiantu stopped Lin Bai with a palm strike and Ning Shuo escaped.
• Zhao Xiantu accused Lin Bai of running rampant and tried to take him to the Zhao Xing Office; Lin Bai questioned his motives and said the attackers had borrowed the Soul Severing Sect's name.
• Commander Zhu Mo arrived and spoke with Lin Bai, who told him to investigate suspicious martial artists near Eternal Joy Street and handed over the captured attackers' souls.
• Meng Qinxian, Chen Yule, Lu Qingjun, and the others reported that groups of Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm martial artists had blocked them from catching the fleeing attackers.
• Lin Bai and Zhu Mo concluded that the attackers' reinforcements revealed a powerful force behind the incident.

After Lin Bai and his allies captured four Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm martial artists, the Zhao Xing Office interrogated them and found the Underground Palace where the missing women were held. The Starmoon Twin Sects’ disciples returned unharmed, and Lin Bai assured the sects that the Zhao Xing Office would pursue the villains.

• Meng Qinxian and the others handed Zhu Mo the Command Talismans containing four captured martial artists’ souls for interrogation.
• By dawn, Zhu Mo had learned the location of the stronghold and found more than twenty missing young women, including the Starmoon Twin Sects’ disciples.
• Zhu Mo returned the rescued disciples to their guesthouses, where their sect elders confirmed that they had not been harmed.
• Mo Nan and Li Xuanqiu thanked Lin Bai and the others for their help at a gathering in the Tianshui Sect’s palace.
• Lin Bai reassured the women that His Highness Prince Chen and the Zhao Xing Office would bring the villains to justice.

Zhu Mo informed the Chu Emperor that Nine Underworlds Demon Palace remnants had been active in the imperial capital and that Zhao Xiantu had intervened to stop Lin Bai. The Chu Emperor ordered further interrogation and questioned whether Zhao Xiantu’s actions implicated the Zhao family or the Third Prince’s faction.

• Zhu Mo reported that unknown Taiyi Dao Fruit Realm martial artists had abducted young women and that Lin Bai’s investigation uncovered a larger group operating in the imperial capital.
• Zhu Mo told the Chu Emperor that captured martial artists were connected to the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace, whose branches had repeatedly been eliminated across the Kingdom of Chu.
• The Chu Emperor ordered Zhu Mo to make the captives reveal what the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace was planning in the capital.
• Zhu Mo revealed that Zhao Xiantu had stopped Lin Bai after rushing from Bright Moon Pavilion to Eternal Joy Street.
• The Chu Emperor asked Zhu Mo whether Zhao Xiantu had acted to undermine Prince Chen or whether the Zhao family had hidden ties to the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace.

Emperor Chu ordered Zhu Mo to investigate Zhao Xiantu’s actions and whether the Zhao Family was tied to the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace. After Zhu Mo left, Emperor Chu confided in Xiao Cangsheng that the demon palace’s remnants had likely come for the Demon Suppression Cave.

• Emperor Chu questioned Zhu Mo about whether Zhao Xiantu had been summoned to target Lin Bai or support the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace.
• Zhu Mo advised investigating who informed Zhao Xiantu and whether the Zhao Family was involved.
• Emperor Chu ordered Zhu Mo to investigate Zhao Xiantu and the demon palace’s plans, authorizing him to use the Zhao Xing Office’s Inferno experts if needed.
• Xiao Cangsheng appeared in the Golden Hall and drank with Emperor Chu, who complained about the troubles gathering in the imperial capital.
• Xiao Cangsheng suggested the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace had come for the Demon Suppression Cave, and Emperor Chu agreed.

The Chu Emperor discussed the threat posed by Nine Underworlds Demon Palace with Xiao Cangsheng and revealed his choice for the next emperor, while voicing suspicions about the prince’s ties to the cult. After a peaceful month in the capital, Lin Bai learned that Qiao Mo and Qin Yao had asked Old Man Wuchuan to reforge their weapons, and his expression stiffened at the name.

• Xiao Cangsheng assured the Chu Emperor that he would keep a closer watch on Demon Suppression Cave.
• The Chu Emperor privately told Xiao Cangsheng which prince he intended to choose, and Xiao Cangsheng warned that the prince might not be a wise choice.
• The Chu Emperor explained that the prince had hidden strength and loyal followers, but he also suspected a connection between the prince and Nine Underworlds Demon Palace.
• The Chu Emperor said Lin Bai might already have uncovered evidence and could investigate the prince without being directed by Zhao Xing Office.
• Lin Bai spent a month exploring the imperial capital with Chen Yule and their companions.
• Qiao Mo and Qin Yao told Lin Bai that Old Man Wuchuan had reforged their weapons, and Lin Bai stiffened when he heard the name.

Lin Bai learned that Old Man Wuchuan had returned to the Imperial Capital and went to the Celestial Mystery Pavilion to seek answers about the God-Devil Calamity Poison and the princes’ deaths. Old Man Wuchuan’s chief disciple, Meng Ye, welcomed Lin Bai and led him to meet his master.

• Qiao Mo and Qin Yao told Lin Bai that Old Man Wuchuan had returned to the Imperial Capital and resumed his post as chief artificer of the Celestial Mystery Pavilion.
• Lin Bai decided to visit Old Man Wuchuan, hoping to learn what he knew about the princes’ deaths and the God-Devil Calamity Poison.
• The next morning, Lin Bai traveled with Qiao Mo and Qin Yao to the Celestial Mystery Pavilion, claiming he wanted a weapon refined.
• A messenger invited Lin Bai and his companions to the rear courtyard after notifying Old Man Wuchuan.
• Meng Ye greeted Lin Bai, recognized him as the Tianshui Sect’s Saint Child, and led him to his waiting master.

Lin Bai entered Old Man Wuchuan’s Yellow Gourd Grotto-Heaven Treasure and confronted the master in his volcanic workshop. Old Man Wuchuan revealed his hostility over Ren Xin’s death, then lowered his weapon after Lin Bai suggested he had returned to the imperial capital expecting their meeting.

• Meng Ye opened the Yellow Gourd and invited Lin Bai inside, while Qiao Mo and Qin Yao waited outside.
• Lin Bai was drawn into the Grotto-Heaven Treasure and found a world of ninety-nine volcanoes, where Old Man Wuchuan forged weapons.
• Old Man Wuchuan emerged from his workshop carrying a Grand Yi Divine Weapon hammer and greeted Lin Bai with hostility.
• Lin Bai asked whether Old Man Wuchuan knew Ren Xin, and Old Man Wuchuan accused him of killing Ren Xin before raising his hammer.
• Lin Bai suggested Old Man Wuchuan had returned to the imperial capital to wait for him, and Old Man Wuchuan sighed and dropped his hammer.

Lin Bai learned why Old Man Wuchuan had returned to the imperial capital and how the Chu Emperor had handled the princes’ deaths. Old Man Wuchuan’s account led Lin Bai to suspect that Prince Chen’s banishment had concealed a plan to protect him.

• Old Man Wuchuan said an imperial decree had forced him to return to the capital, and explained that the Chu Emperor cared more about the imperial clan’s inheritance than bringing the dead’s killers to justice.
• Old Man Wuchuan revealed that he had withheld what he knew because he expected the Chu Emperor not to investigate and feared the consequences of reporting it.
• Old Man Wuchuan explained that after the princes’ deaths, the Chu Emperor sent Prince Chen away, removed the Seventh Prince from the palace, and sent Chu Xi to the Tianshui Sect.
• Lin Bai suspected that Prince Chen’s banishment was a protective measure tied to a secret arrangement with the Chu Emperor.
• Old Man Wuchuan said he had known Prince Chen when he was the Seventh Prince, one of the six outstanding princes.

Old Man Wuchuan recounted Prince Chen’s childhood, his lack of interest in the throne, and what drove him to join the succession struggle. He confirmed that the First Prince and Second Prince had been killed by the God-Devil Calamity Poison, as Ren Xin had told Lin Bai.

• Old Man Wuchuan described Prince Chen as an exceptionally talented child who wanted a sword that could sever everything and a shield that could withstand every attack.
• Old Man Wuchuan explained that the First Prince and Second Prince had seemed like the likely successors because they had powerful backing, while Prince Chen showed little interest in the throne.
• After the First Prince and Second Prince died, their followers urged Prince Chen to compete for the throne, but he refused.
• Old Man Wuchuan said Prince Chen entered the succession struggle after the Twelfth Prince died in prison amid a royal scandal.
• Lin Bai told Old Man Wuchuan that Ren Xin had identified the God-Devil Calamity Poison as the cause of the First Prince and Second Prince’s deaths, and Old Man Wuchuan confirmed it.

Lin Bai learned from Old Man Wuchuan how he and Ren Xin discovered signs that the First Prince had died from the God-Devil Calamity Poison. Old Man Wuchuan began describing what they found when sealing the Second Prince’s coffin, leaving Lin Bai’s guess unanswered.

• Lin Bai explained what he had learned about the God-Devil Calamity Poison, and Old Man Wuchuan confirmed that the First Prince and Second Prince had died from it.
• Old Man Wuchuan recalled that he had inspected the First Prince’s residence and found its formations intact, proving the prince had died in a sealed secret chamber.
• While building the First Prince’s mausoleum with Ren Xin, Old Man Wuchuan saw black smoke rise from the corpse as its flesh rotted away, leaving a black skeleton.
• Old Man Wuchuan and Ren Xin kept their suspicions secret because they lacked proof and Ye Danyang had found no toxins in the First Prince’s body.
• After the Second Prince died in the same baffling manner, Old Man Wuchuan and Ren Xin built his mausoleum, and Lin Bai guessed that his body had also become a black skeleton.

Old Man Wuchuan told Lin Bai how he and Ren Xin traced the First and Second Princes’ deaths to the Southern Border Insect Valley’s God-Devil Calamity, which left their flesh as ash and their bones black. He also revealed Ye Danyang’s scandalous past, leaving Lin Bai uncertain whether the chief alchemist had discovered the poison and warning him that investigating the deaths could cost him his life.

• Old Man Wuchuan explained that he and Ren Xin found matching Black Bones on the First and Second Princes and identified the God-Devil Calamity as the poison that killed them.
• Old Man Wuchuan said he and Ren Xin confirmed the poison’s source in the Southern Border Insect Valley, where it was also known as Black Demon Asphyxiation.
• Lin Bai asked whether Ye Danyang had discovered the poison and concealed the truth, but Old Man Wuchuan said he did not know.
• Old Man Wuchuan recounted how Ye Danyang was expelled from the Danxia Sect after rumors linked him to his deceased master’s wife, then became the Celestial Mystery Pavilion’s chief alchemist.
• Old Man Wuchuan admitted he could not tell whether Ye Danyang had noticed the poison and warned Lin Bai to prepare to die if he pursued the investigation.

Lin Bai questioned Old Man Wuchuan about the First Prince and Second Prince’s deaths and learned why the Third Prince was suspected of orchestrating them. Old Man Wuchuan revealed that the deaths were likely tied to a poison thief named Xia Jingzhi, giving Lin Bai a new lead.

• Old Man Wuchuan warned Lin Bai that investigating the princes’ murders could provoke a deadly response.
• Old Man Wuchuan argued that the Third Prince was the likeliest culprit, noting that he alone remained safe while other princes were killed, demoted, or exiled.
• Old Man Wuchuan suspected that a hidden expert had helped the once-ordinary Third Prince rise to power and that Chu Emperor recalled Prince Chen because he distrusted the forces behind the Third Prince.
• Old Man Wuchuan revealed that the First Prince and Second Prince had died from God-Devil Calamity Poison, which only Southern Border Insect Valley Core Disciples could access.
• Old Man Wuchuan told Lin Bai that a Southern Border Insect Valley traitor had stolen records containing the poison’s cultivation method and named the fugitive Xia Jingzhi.

Lin Bai learned more about the God-Devil Calamity Poison and suspected Xia Jingzhi was behind its creation before being summoned to investigate a Holy Son’s murder. At the Zhao Xing Office, Prince Chen revealed that Zuo Feiyu of the Guiyi Sect had been killed inside the Bright Moon Pavilion.

• Old Man Wuchuan told Lin Bai that Xia Jingzhi might be hiding in the Third Prince’s Sun Moon Pavilion and planned to leave the Imperial City after the new emperor ascended.
• Lin Bai left the Celestial Mystery Pavilion with Qiao Mo and Qin Yao, reflecting that the poison’s creator might be the martial artist who betrayed the Southern Border Insect Valley.
• The Second Elder told Lin Bai that Prince Chen had repeatedly summoned him because a Holy Son had died in the Imperial City.
• Lin Bai hurried to the Zhao Xing Office, where Prince Chen and Imperial City officials had gathered to discuss the murder.
• Prince Chen told Lin Bai that Zuo Feiyu, the Guiyi Sect’s Holy Son, had been killed by a single sword strike in the Bright Moon Pavilion, and Courtesan Lanyue had found his body and a palace maid’s corpse.

After Zuo Feiyu, the Guiyi Sect's Holy Son, was murdered at the Weaving Cloud Palace, Prince Chen ordered Zhu Mo and Lin Bai to solve the case within half a month. Lin Bai went to examine the body, where the furious Grand Yi Elder Ning Hong confronted the Zhao Xing Office over the death.

• Prince Chen told Lin Bai that Zuo Feiyu had been found dead alongside a maidservant at the Weaving Cloud Palace, while the other guests who stayed there were unharmed.
• Prince Chen assigned Zhu Mo to lead the investigation with Lin Bai's assistance and ordered the Zhao Xing Office to catch the murderer within half a month.
• Zhu Mo told Lin Bai that Guiyi Sect's master and hundreds of experts were rushing toward the Imperial Capital, and that the Chu imperial family's reputation was at stake.
• Zhu Mo led Lin Bai, Qiao Mo, and Qin Yao to the Zhao Xing Office's rear hall to see Zuo Feiyu's body.
• Ning Hong, the Guiyi Sect's Grand Yi Elder, angrily rejected Zhu Mo's condolences and condemned Chu for failing to protect Zuo Feiyu.

Lin Bai examined Zuo Feiyu’s body and concluded he had been killed by a single sword thrust, but found no evidence identifying the killer. Elder Ning blamed Lu Qingjun of Seven Absolutes City, leaving Lin Bai worried that the accusation would draw Lu into the case.

• Lin Bai examined Zuo Feiyu’s corpse and confirmed that one sword had pierced his heart, while Zhu Mo said the body showed no poison and contained a high concentration of Dragon Blood Wine.
• Lin Bai reasoned that Zuo Feiyu’s killer was either someone he trusted or a swordsman too fast for him to react to.
• Ning Hong accused Lu Qingjun of killing Zuo Feiyu with Seven Absolutes City’s Divine Light Swordplay and demanded that the Zhao Xing Office arrest him.
• Lin Bai and Zhu Mo refused to arrest Lu Qingjun without evidence, angering Ning Hong, who accused them of protecting Seven Absolutes City.
• Lin Bai left the Zhao Xing Office for the Moon Palace, worrying that Lu Qingjun had been dragged into trouble.