Recaps

Li Yan and his companions investigated reports of villagers dreaming of Sanlü Grand Master, then traveled by boat toward Xiling Gorge while weighing the political forces behind the unrest. As they entered the gorge, a violent disturbance struck the river, and Lu San sensed something approaching underwater.

• Cheng San told Li Yan that villagers had dreamed of a Daoist resembling the statue of Sanlü Grand Master and said corrupt officials in Zigui County had driven people to believe the deity would redress their grievances.
• Hundredhousehold Yuan concluded that the demon's actions at Two Stele Bay were meant to stir up unrest connected to the rebellion.
• Li Yan, Wang Dao Xuan, Lu San, Sha LiFei, and Hundredhousehold Yuan boarded a wooden boat and headed for Xiling Gorge, where they discussed the Long Xiang Army and the powerful merchant family shielding Zigui County Magistrate Wu Dehai.
• As the boats entered Xiling Gorge, the boatman warned that the Sea Dragon had turned over, and Wang Dao Xuan's compass showed signs of a spiritual disturbance.
• Rocks broke loose from the cliffs and smashed a merchant ship, while Lu San thrust his hand into the water and warned that something was approaching.

A gigantic sturgeon River Monster attacked the boats in Xiling Gorge, and Li Yan and his companions struggled to reach shore and fight it off. The wounded monster retreated briefly before attacking another boat, leaving the river covered in blood as the survivors fled toward Yichang Ferry.

• Lu San sensed a huge cultivated creature underwater, and the sturgeon River Monster smashed a merchant ship apart.
• Li Yan and County Captain Yuan hauled their boat toward shore while Wang Dao Xuan struck the monster with his consecrated Coin Sword.
• After the boat ran aground, Li Yan restrained the sturgeon with the Soul Hooking Chain and wounded its eye, but its bronze tail chain struck him and the monster escaped into the river.
• Lu San warned that the River Monster had not left, and it smashed another boat outside the gorge entrance.
• A new-style firearm wounded the sturgeon, but it continued attacking boats until the surviving vessels fled toward Yichang Ferry.

Li Yan sheltered with his companions in Three Travelers Cave after the River Monster wrecked their boat, then used the storm to gain insight into the North Emperor Black Water Escape and borrowing momentum. The chapter ended with the River Monster pursuing a ship carrying the Old Beggar and other black-clad men from the Long Xiang Army.

• Li Yan helped the boatmen reach Three Travelers Cave, where Deputy Commander Yuan learned that the Tai Xuan Orthodox Sect had previously suppressed a water monster in Xiling Gorge.
• Li Yan returned Wang Dao Xuan's Coin Sword, and he, Wang Dao Xuan, and Deputy Commander Yuan reasoned that the River Monster had broken free of ancient restraints amid a disturbance in the earth qi.
• Deputy Commander Yuan decided to return to Yichang City after the rain, while Li Yan and his companions planned to continue toward Zigui County once the weather cleared.
• Watching the storm, Li Yan understood how to borrow the momentum of the Five Elements and used the Mystic Water Escape Technique to shroud himself and the cave in mist.
• Li Yan realized that borrowing momentum might also let him use an opponent's force in Transformed Strength, a dangerous approach he considered attempting with help from the Great Luo Dharma Body.
• Across the gorge, the River Monster pursued a ship whose black-clad crew repeatedly poured medicinal powder into the river, while the Old Beggar sat at the bow.

The Old Beggar led the Long Xiang Army through the storm to attack Three Travelers Cave, where Li Yan and the others were sheltering. Li Yan fought off their first assaults, but the ambush continued as crossbow bolts rained toward him.

• The Old Beggar rallied the black-clad men by declaring that they fought to escape the low status imposed on them, then learned from Daoist Wen that the River Monster was tied to an ancient tomb and ordered Liu Mei to investigate its origins.
• The Long Xiang Army landed near Three Travelers Cave and climbed the slope in the darkness, while the River Monster disappeared into the Yangtze.
• The Little White Fox sensed danger, and Li Yan and Lu San woke the others and detected armed men and venomous snakes approaching the cave.
• Lu San used his whistle and Beast Controlling Technique to turn the snakes against the attackers, while Li Yan blocked the Old Beggar's surprise attack and struck the sword-bearing woman with his Soul Hooking Chain.
• The Old Beggar rescued the woman and called on Daoist Cheng, whose three Human Skin Puppets attacked the cave as Wang Dao Xuan sent out the Rampaging Soldiers.
• Black-clad men climbed the plank walkway with crossbows and fired a volley of arrows at Li Yan.

Li Yan summoned Netherworld Ghost Soldiers to destroy the Old Beggar’s force after the attackers drove his group into Three Travelers Cave. The survivors searched the dead, and a letter found on the Old Beggar left Captain Yuan furious.

• Li Yan killed one Human Skin Puppet while the Old Taoist used a gong to restrain the others, and the attackers sent poisonous smoke into Three Travelers Cave.
• Li Yan summoned Netherworld Ghost Soldiers with his warrant tablet, and the darkness swallowed the Old Beggar’s men, including Lin SiLang and the Old Taoist, while the female assassin escaped into the river.
• Li Yan and the others emerged after the Yin Soldiers vanished and found the attackers dead across the walkway.
• Li Yan searched the bodies and found the Old Beggar’s erhu, medicine packets, command token, and a letter, while Sha LiFei and Lu San collected poison tubes.
• Li Yan handed the letter to Captain Yuan, who read it and angrily denounced its author for betraying and harming him.

Li Yan negotiated with Chiliarch Yuan over future access to firearms and destroyed the dangerous Gu inheritance found among their spoils. After leaving Yuan behind, Li Yan and his companions traveled through the mountains toward Zigui County, encountered Coal Essence they could not capture, and reached a walled city at dawn.

• Li Yan persuaded Chiliarch Yuan to take credit for the intelligence and keep watch for a chance to obtain permission to use firearms.
• Lu San claimed the Old Beggar’s Erhu, Sha LiFei took the gong and drum, and Li Yan fed the old scholar’s Gu worms to the Poisonous Bee Swarm.
• Li Yan discovered the Plague God Longevity Method in the ledger and burned it after telling his companions about its horrific practices.
• Before dawn, Li Yan and his companions left by the mountain road while Yuan Kejian urged the boatmen to join him and pursue wealth and rank.
• The travelers passed Shadowplay Gorge and Yellow Ox Gorge, where they spotted Coal Essence but could not catch it.
• After crossing the mountains through the night, Li Yan and his companions saw a walled earthen city below them at dawn.

Li Yan and his companions arrived in Zigui County, where a river demon and several other strange occurrences had stirred fear and unrest. After learning that the county magistrate’s son had been targeted by a powerful evil entity, Li Yan recognized the name Midnight Sedan Chair and Ghost Bride.

• Li Yan and his companions watched a Spirit Medium Dance and learned that a river demon had been troubling boats near Zigui County.
• Li Yan decided the group would investigate discreetly and change their identities before going to the village.
• At the city gate, Sha LiFei learned that Young Master Wu was possessed, while Constable Captain Head Luo watched the group with suspicion.
• Li Yan and Sha LiFei questioned an information shopkeeper, who described unrest involving the ChaoShan Society, the river monster, and other strange events.
• The shopkeeper warned that Young Master Wu had been targeted by a powerful evil entity and mentioned the Midnight Sedan Chair and the Ghost Bride, prompting Li Yan to react in shock.

Li Yan learned that the Ghost Bride was the Red Woman, the woman who had killed his father, and split his group to investigate the trouble at Two Stele Bay. He drew attention to himself at the county office while Wang Dao Xuan and Lu San used Chinese Alligators to cross the river, leaving the investigation poised to begin.

• Li Yan learned from the shopkeeper that the Ghost Bride had been sighted across E Prefecture and had attacked Magistrate Wu's son, then recognized her as the Red Woman who had killed his father.
• Li Yan, Sha LiFei, and Wang Dao Xuan discussed the tangled trouble in Zigui County and agreed to split up, with Li Yan and Sha LiFei drawing attention while Wang Dao Xuan and Lu San investigated Two Stele Bay.
• Li Yan and Sha LiFei went with Daoist Feng to meet Magistrate Wu, and Li Yan asked him to summon Danyang Academy instructors for questioning.
• Magistrate Wu agreed to summon the instructors, and Li Yan suspected he wanted to use the inquiry to strike at the academy.
• Wang Dao Xuan and Lu San left the city and, as a riverside ritual blocked their crossing, Lu San summoned Chinese Alligators to carry them across.

Wang Dao Xuan and Lu San crossed the river on Chinese Alligators and investigated the River Monster’s origins while the Danyang Academy confronted Magistrate Wu over inquiries into Two Stele Bay. Bai RuoXu met a surviving swordswoman who reported the Red Woman’s presence, and the chapter ended with Li Yan challenging Headmaster Song at the county office.

• Lu San learned from the Chinese Alligators that the River Monster had first appeared near Zigui County, and Wang Dao Xuan suspected a nearby tomb and asked Lu San to search the forest for a ritual altar.
• Lu San fed the starving Chinese Alligators a wild boar, while Wang Dao Xuan explained that someone had likely arranged a nearby altar to control the Kodama.
• Headmaster Song MingShu led Danyang Academy’s students to the county office after bailiffs came to question them about Two Stele Bay.
• Bai RuoXu found the escaped swordswoman, learned that the Red Woman had cursed the magistrate’s son, and told her to investigate the Red Woman and prioritize the matter at Shennongjia.
• Headmaster Song challenged Daoist Feng and Li Yan at the county office, and Li Yan accused him of making a fuss because he felt guilty.

Li Yan exposed the scholars’ demonic contamination and forced Headmaster Song and Magistrate Wu Dehai to reveal their accusations against each other before Judicial Commissioner Zhou Kai arrived to take charge. The investigation traced the academy’s illness to the Red Pill, and instructor Yuan Feng accused Wu Dehai of arranging its distribution and involving his son.

• Li Yan showed the academy scholars that staring at the court’s plaque made them vomit because they had been tainted by demonic aura.
• Headmaster Song admitted suspecting that the Two Stele Bay incident was linked to the Southwest Rebellion, then accused Wu Dehai of corruption and ties to the Tusi.
• Wu Dehai ordered the arrest of Headmaster Song as angry commoners gathered outside, but Judicial Commissioner Zhou Kai arrived and secured the county court.
• Zhou Kai questioned Li Yan and the academy leaders, who revealed that several scholars had taken a memory-enhancing medicine called the Red Pill.
• Headmaster Song confronted instructor Yuan Feng about supplying the pills, and Yuan Feng accused Wu Dehai and said the Red Pill was connected to Wu Dehai’s son.

Yuan Feng revealed that Wu ShiQing helped him refine and sell demonic Red Pills, prompting Zhou Kai to arrest the corrupt officials and ChaoShan Society members. After Li Yan uncovered a warning plot and the group raided the Wu residence, they returned to find the prisoners and academy scholars murdered and disemboweled; Zhou Kai identified the Great Song Ghost Sect as responsible.

• Yuan Feng confessed that Wu ShiQing had helped him refine Red Pills using an ancient method, and Li Yan confirmed that the pills carried demonic aura.
• Li Yan intercepted a carrier pigeon warning and exposed a ChaoShan Society plot; Zhou Kai's soldiers suppressed the attempted escape and Zhou Kai ordered troops mobilized.
• Song MingShu organized the academy scholars to help secure the city and enlist the Raft Sect's aid while Zhou Kai, Li Yan, and Sha LiFei went to the Wu residence.
• Zhou Kai's party found Wu ShiQing dying with his liver mangled, and Zhou Kai hurried back to protect the people at the county office.
• Li Yan and the others found the captured yamen runner, the scholars, and Song MingShu beheaded and disemboweled; Zhou Kai identified the Great Song Ghost Sect as the killer.

Li Yan and Zhou Kai uncovered signs that the Ghost Sect had infiltrated Gui Prefecture City and began investigating its sacrifices and the Red Pill. Wang Dao Xuan and Lu San tracked a Ghost Sect procession carrying away a charred Kodama, while the search in the city found that ChaoShan Society had helped abduct people for human sacrifices.

• ChaoShan Society members set fires and fought in Gui Prefecture City after soldiers sealed the gates, but the unrest was subdued within an hour.
• Daoist Feng explained the Ghost Sect’s history to Li Yan and warned that its return threatened the region.
• Li Yan and Zhou Kai linked the Red Pill and the Academy victims to the Ghost Sect, then ordered arrests and interrogations to protect the surviving scholars.
• Wang Dao Xuan and Lu San found Ghost Sect members removing a charred Kodama and sent Lu San’s falcon to follow their coffin without alerting them.
• Zhou Kai and Li Yan learned that ChaoShan Society had abducted women and children for the Ghost Sect, and a soldier interrupted them with news of a new discovery.

Li Yan, Sha LiFei, and Daoist Feng investigated the Ghost Sect’s suspected involvement in Zigui County while Prefect Zhou Kai uncovered threats surrounding the county. At Old Official Temple, Li Yan’s tally token heated up and white mist appeared as the group entered the ruined hall.

• Zhou Kai learned that Liu DanQiu had disappeared and discovered that Lu Yuan had forced the Advisor to falsify a reply about the academy’s presiding priest.
• Zhou Kai ordered Li Yan to investigate Gratitude and Filial Piety Temple and Old Official Temple, suspecting the Thousand-Household Office had been infiltrated by the Ghost Sect.
• Zhou Kai studied a map and feared that Zigui County’s position between rebel forces could make it a strategic target.
• Li Yan, Sha LiFei, and Daoist Feng used a secret passage to leave the city and headed first to Old Official Temple.
• The temple’s caretaker told them that mysterious weeping had been heard in the main hall at night.
• Li Yan entered the main hall, where his tally token grew hot and white mist rose around the group.

Li Yan discovered that Huang MoShen had been bound to a Water God Longevity Method and suspected the Ghost Sect was secretly surviving through evil techniques. Investigating Gratitude and Filial Piety Temple, he found murdered monks and signs of a Ghost Cult excavation, then rushed in with Sha LiFei while Daoist Feng hid nearby.

• Li Yan received visions of Huang MoShen’s imprisonment, a coffin beneath the river, and an elderly scholar being drawn into the water, then recognized signs of the Water God Longevity Method.
• Li Yan suspected Danyang Academy Sacrificial Official Liu DanQiu was possessed by the demon and feared Zhao Changsheng was awakening surviving Ghost Sect members across the Divine Land.
• Li Yan, Daoist Feng, and Sha LiFei investigated Gratitude and Filial Piety Temple after noticing its gates were shut and its monks refused visitors.
• Li Yan sent a paper spirit into the temple and discovered headless monks with their livers removed, armed fake monks, and a man climbing out of a well after digging for an ancient tomb.
• Li Yan asked Daoist Feng to alert Prefect Zhou, but Daoist Feng feared the Ghost Cult’s informants and hid in the woods while Li Yan and Sha LiFei charged toward the temple.

Li Yan and Sha LiFei attacked the Ghost Cult bandits at the temple, defeated them, and learned that they were digging for a jade cong in a Chu Tomb. A curse killed the surviving captives before they could reveal more, and Li Yan entered the tomb chamber with the jade cong as the chapter ended.

• Li Yan and Sha LiFei infiltrated the temple, killed the kitchen guards, captured a man climbing from the well, and prepared to ambush the bandits below.
• A swarm of centipedes poured from the well, but Sha LiFei shot the scar-faced Guo Peng as he emerged, and Li Yan knocked him unconscious.
• Li Yan used Thunder Fire Pills to blind and smoke out the tomb diggers, then killed the insect-controlling occultist Ba Lang and subdued Guo Peng.
• Li Yan forced Guo Peng to reveal that he was an Attendant Altar of the Ghost Cult and that the cult sought a jade cong from a Chu Tomb for its leader, Lu Yuan.
• A curse killed Guo Peng and the other captives, leaving black claw marks on their hearts, so Li Yan and Sha LiFei prepared to leave the temple.
• Li Yan recovered the blood-colored jade cong from Ba Lang's pouch, entered the underground tomb, cleared the smoke, and saw an ancient burial chamber.

Li Yan and Old Daoist Feng uncovered a mural depicting the Zhou court’s attack on Chu’s Phoenix Vein and learned that the Ghost Cult sought Blood Jade Congs to overturn the Great Xuan. As the group tried to flee, Red Woman ambushed them, and Li Yan was shot but secretly survived; more of Zhao Changsheng’s people emerged.

• Li Yan found murals in the tomb, and Old Daoist Feng interpreted them as evidence that Duke Zhou used nine Blood Jade Congs to suppress Chu’s Phoenix Vein.
• Li Yan concluded that the Ghost Cult planned to use the Blood Jade Congs to bring down the Great Xuan, and the three decided to leave Zigui and report the threat.
• Li Yan sensed an ambush in the mountain fog as four eerie palanquin bearers carried the Ghost Bride toward them.
• A new-style firearm shot Li Yan through the chest, but he healed with the Great Luo Dharma Body while Sha LiFei used the Blood Jade Cong to halt Red Woman.
• Red Woman tried to bewitch Sha LiFei, but he resisted with the Six Ding Six Jia Talisman and fired at her before she revealed her demonic face.
• Li Yan secretly signaled Sha LiFei that he was alive, and more attackers emerged from the forest, including a man carrying a Divine Firearm who greeted Sha LiFei.

Li Yan and his companions survived Red Woman and Bai RuoXu’s ambush by summoning Netherworld Ghost Soldiers, then searched the battlefield and uncovered a letter linking the Ghost Cult to a plan to resurrect the Heavenly Saint Duke. The letter revealed that Zhao Changsheng would be involved, leaving Li Yan aware that Ezhou’s demonic forces were connected.

• Bai RuoXu and Red Woman used Gu poison to immobilize Sha LiFei and Daoist Feng, but Li Yan sprang his ambush and wounded Red Woman with the Severing Dust Blade.
• Red Woman escaped the blade and Yin Thunderbolts, but her injuries triggered her bloodthirsty frenzy, allowing Li Yan and his companions to retreat into the forest.
• Li Yan summoned the Netherworld Ghost Soldiers, who dragged Red Woman into the darkness and killed her, Bai RuoXu, and the other Ghost Cult followers.
• Sha LiFei recovered Bai RuoXu’s Divine Firearm, while Li Yan identified Red Woman’s Yin Corpse Longevity Method and the group burned her body and the zombie sedan bearers.
• Li Yan and his companions searched the site and found a secret letter instructing Bai RuoXu to deliver a message to Zhao Changsheng about the Heavenly Saint Sect’s plan to resurrect the Heavenly Saint Duke.

Li Yan destroyed the ghost sect’s hidden body beneath the river, while Imperial Court reinforcements arrived in Zigui County. After leaving by boat, he and Sha LiFei rescued Lu San and Wang Dao Xuan from an attack by troops from Tusi City, and the group realized war was approaching.

• Zigui County’s frightened residents learned that the waterway was open and Imperial Court reinforcements had arrived, while Liu Mei decided to leave the city.
• Prefect Zhou Kai welcomed the reinforcements, and Li Yan asked him to help uncover the ghost sect’s hidden body beneath the river.
• Li Yan used the soul-hooking decree to destroy the swollen corpse in the Stone Coffin, killing the evil thing possessing Liu DanQiu and causing the Yellow Demon God Temple’s statue to split.
• The Bamboo Mountain Sect’s elders pledged to summon southern lineages as officials discussed the growing turmoil across the southwest.
• Li Yan and Sha LiFei followed a hawk to find Lu San and Wang Dao Xuan fleeing Tusi City troops, then used mist and a Fire Caltrop to escape back to the riverbank.
• Wang Dao Xuan warned that troops from Tusi City had assembled, and the group prepared to flee by boat as war loomed.

Li Yan and his companions reached Yichang amid a major imperial military buildup, then learned that their discoveries at Chu King Lake had helped avert a Ghost Cult plot. Yu Lingzi explained the God Ascender path and warned that the surviving Ghost Cult elder Tongtian San Niang might still be active in Ezhou.

• Wang Dao Xuan recounted how he and Lu San found Ghost Cult members sacrificing children near Chu King Lake, while Li Yan described the Nine-Headed Bird feng shui formation.
• Li Yan and his companions passed the imperial navy’s inspection, reached Yichang, and found the city under strict wartime security.
• Yu Lingzi thanked Li Yan’s group, said Mount Wudang’s Three Great Mysterious Realms were open to them, and confirmed that the Blood Jade Cong had been sent there for safekeeping.
• Li Yan asked Yu Lingzi to send a letter to Luo MingZi and shared Wang Dao Xuan’s intelligence about the Ghost Cult digging near Chu King Lake.
• Yu Lingzi explained that God Ascenders included figures such as Da Ting Shi and warned Li Yan about the dangers of pursuing godhood or defying the limits of life and death.
• Yu Lingzi identified the river demon Luo Xing as a disciple of Tongtian San Niang and warned Li Yan to flee if he encountered her, since ghost soldiers might not defeat her.

Li Yan assessed the need for a Yang Thunder technique and a skilled Xuan Gate craftsman before attending the Yan family's full-moon celebration. He learned that unrest was spreading through Ezhou, was invited to seek a craftsman at a newly discovered Western Zhou Ancient Mine, and named Yan Wuyue's son “Pacify the Nation.”

• Li Yan concluded that he needed a Yang Thunder technique and a powerful Xuan Gate craftsman to strengthen himself and his weapons.
• Yan Wuyue invited Li Yan and his companions to celebrate his son's full moon, and told them that attacks and strange incidents had spread through Ezhou and Miao territory.
• At the Yan residence, Yu Lingzi told Li Yan that Xuan Gate craftsmen had gathered near a Western Zhou Ancient Mine in Wuchang Prefecture, and Li Yan planned to go there after investigating the Purple Canopy Mountain Cave.
• The original Qianhu told Li Yan that he would lead troops into Miao territory and promised to help with Li Yan's matter if he survived.
• Yan Bonian asked Li Yan to name the Yan family's newborn son, and Li Yan named him “Pacify the Nation.”

Li Yan and his companions waited out a storm at the Old Mountain God Temple and killed a demon house lizard that had been luring travelers to their deaths. After explaining the danger to the caravan, Wang Dao Xuan said they were heading to Dangyang to handle another matter, and the caravan leader raised the troubling rumor that Lord Guan was causing trouble.

• Li Yan's group stopped the caravan from entering the temple until lightning struck and killed the demon hiding inside.
• The caravan members found the charred body of a giant house lizard, and Lu San summoned mountain rats to strip it to its bones.
• Wang Dao Xuan explained that the house lizard had become a demon and used heavenly thunder to kill its victims, then told the caravan they had been sent by the City God Temple to investigate disappearances.
• The caravan leader asked whether the group was going to Dangyang because of trouble caused by Lord Guan, and Li Yan challenged him over the claim.

Li Yan and his companions reached Dangyang, where rumors of a murderous Headless Knight and lightning strikes at Guan Mausoleum had alarmed the Guan Clan. After Guan Peide brought them to Guan Family Village, Li Yan noticed something strange during a roof-beam ceremony: blood began seeping from the beam.

• The caravan leader told Li Yan and his companions that a Headless Knight had been killing people in Dangyang and that lightning had repeatedly struck Guan Mausoleum.
• Li Yan decided to enter Dangyang to gather information, and Guan Peide invited him to the Guan Clan manor to discuss the Headless Knight.
• Guan Peide explained that investigators had found no cause, while a Rice Diviner Woman had fallen unconscious after attempting to communicate with spirits.
• Li Yan and his companions visited Guan Family Village, where they saw descendants of the Guan Clan practicing Tang Hand Fist.
• Li Yan stopped to inspect a roof-beam ceremony at the home of an outsider surnamed Wu, and fresh blood began seeping from the wooden beam.

Li Yan and Wang Dao Xuan investigated a supernatural disturbance in Guan Family Village after Wu Lao Si’s grave timber caused a bloody beam, and they uncovered signs of a larger demonic plot. The group planned to summon the soul of the Black-Clothed Old Woman, who might know what had happened, and Li Yan vowed to retrieve it by force if necessary.

• Wu Lao Si admitted that a mysterious voice had led him and Liu Quezi to a hidden temple, where they removed flags before finding dead people and taking their silver and timber.
• Wang Dao Xuan identified the beam as a Grave Blood Beam and instructed the villagers to burn it with Peach Charms, scatter its ashes around the village, and remain indoors overnight.
• Guan Peide ordered Wu Lao Si to report to the county office and accept punishment, then hosted Li Yan and his companions at a banquet.
• Li Yan and Wang Dao Xuan concluded that Wu Lao Si had encountered a powerful Mountain Immortal and that the temple, the dead travelers, Guan Ling’s lightning strikes, and the Headless Knight might be connected.
• Li Yan proposed questioning the Black-Clothed Old Woman, and Wang Dao Xuan determined that she had lost her soul and would need a chicken for a summoning ritual that night.

Wang Dao Xuan prepared a rooster-led ritual to guide the Old Woman's missing soul back, while Li Yan and the others guarded the courtyard. Wu Lao Si fled the village with stolen silver and was seized by a sinister force, and the ritual ended with a tiger-like shadow appearing in the courtyard.

• Wang Dao Xuan set up a bagua formation and explained that a rooster would guide the Old Woman's soul back into a Chuling Paper Figure.
• Guan Peide brought Wang Dao Xuan a rooster, and Wang Dao Xuan instructed Li Yan to guard the ritual against interference.
• At Zi Hour, Wang Dao Xuan began the soul-summoning ritual, and the rooster entered the formation as Li Yan burned joss paper.
• Wu Lao Si ignored warnings, abandoned his wife and child, and fled the village with stolen silver before a bloody, icy presence forced him into the forest.
• As the rooster carried the Chuling Paper Figure toward the Old Woman, Li Yan drew the Severing Dust Blade and confronted a black shadow that growled from a courtyard corner.

Wang Dao Xuan and Li Yan rescued Guo Wangshi from a Tiger Demon’s attack and learned that rival forces might be trying to activate a formation tied to Purple Canopy Mountain. After the group planned to investigate Dangyang’s sacred sites, they found Wu Lao Si and other men hanged in the woods, exposing the Heaven Saint Sect’s involvement and suggesting an Old Ghost was also lurking nearby.

• A Tiger Demon’s Netherworld Spirit Travel nearly stopped Wang Dao Xuan’s paper figure, but he restored Guo Wangshi’s soul and she recovered.
• Guo Wangshi explained that the Tiger Demon commanded mausoleum-guarding Chang Gui, while evil cultivators from Jingchu might be pursuing a plan involving Purple Canopy Mountain’s Inverted Well and its great formation.
• Li Yan, Wang Dao Xuan, and their companions decided to investigate the mausoleum, Yuquan Temple, and Purple Canopy Mountain, then reported the rescue to Lord Guan.
• Lord Guan’s Elder revealed that Wu Lao Si had fled into the mountains with the silver, and Wang Dao Xuan identified his footprints as signs that the Blood Ghost had lured and possessed him.
• Li Yan’s group followed Lu San’s eagle hawk into the woods and found Wu Lao Si and more than ten black-clad men hanged from trees.
• Li Yan found a Qiongqi emblem on one corpse, leading Lord Guan to identify the Heaven Saint Sect, while the group suspected an Old Ghost from the tomb was also involved.