Recaps

Meng Zhao uncovered Kou Huaizhen’s martial legacy in the valley, defeated the Yu Family youth, and gained new arts that strengthened his cultivation and could heal Madam Hong. After an assassination attempt exposed an infiltrator among his personal guards, Meng Zhao ordered a purge of the Divine Might Army and sealed the camp.

• Meng Zhao entered the hidden valley, studied the Puppet Guards’ three hundred and sixty-five forms, and watched the Masked Man fail against the Stone Giants.
• Meng Zhao fought the Masked Man, who revealed a mask that awakened Di Ku’s presence, and killed the Yu Family youth after overcoming Di Ku’s fist intent.
• Meng Zhao mastered Puppet Mastery and the Stone Giants’ momentum, broke their formation, and acquired a powerful soul-nourishing art.
• Meng Zhao entered Kou Huaizhen’s Stone House, learned of his transcendence, and found the outline of the Northern Prison Profound Underworld Truth Supreme Method, which he merged into his own scripture.
• Meng Zhao gave Hong Tianzheng a secret martial art to treat Madam Hong’s illness and told him to help keep the Divine Might Army under control.
• A disguised Death Sword Guard tried to assassinate Meng Zhao, but Meng Zhao survived the attack and killed him with the Azure Dragon Battle Armor and Evil Calamity.
• Meng Zhao ordered Hong Tianzheng to summon the senior officers and seal the camp, then announced a purge after Si Peng accused Commander Bai of activating hidden agents.

Meng Zhao secured the Divine Might Army, exposed and eliminated Mo Li’s conspiracy, and left Cao Zhan in charge as he traveled toward Lingwu City. Dragon City’s attempt to infiltrate Meng Family Village failed, while Zhou Wangqiao approached the Meng Family Grandmaster to ask for help and offer his service to Meng Zhao.

• Meng Zhao ordered a purge of Commander Bai’s collaborators, placed Cao Zhan in charge of the Divine Might Army, and gave him detailed instructions for managing its officers and allies.
• Mo Li secretly conspired with Commander Bai’s envoy, but Hong Tianzheng’s forces stopped the planned attacks, and Cao Zhan ordered Evil Calamity to kill Mo Li.
• The Divine Might Army’s leaders interrogated and released Commander Bai’s envoy with a message that Meng Zhao had spared him by choice.
• Dragon City rejected plans to seize the Yangwu Army and agreed to target Ding Zhanyun to lure Meng Zhao into an assassination trap.
• A hidden Meng Family expert caught Dragon City infiltrating the village and struck him with the Red Flag Order, but Dragon City escaped using Green Dragon and a concealed black iron object.
• After hearing about the guardian’s power, Dragon City abandoned his ambition to rule the Northern Lands and decided to wait and see whether the Pudu Cult could defeat Meng Zhao.
• Zhou Wangqiao concluded that Meng Zhao was his best prospect for opposing the Pudu Cult and his former Eldest Senior Brother, then approached the Meng Family Grandmaster to request help and offer his service.

Meng Zhao strengthened his martial foundation, drew Zhou Wangqiao into his service, and plotted to divert Beitang Shu’s attention from Liang Prefecture. Meanwhile, Zhao Hun approached Meng Yuanqiao to reclaim his identity, but the Meng Family Grandmaster chose the impostor Meng Zhao as the family’s true heir and restrained him.

• The Pudu Cult devastated Wu Hai County, while Wu Jian plotted to loot the city and escape with his followers before the Imperial Court could respond.
• Meng Zhao returned to Meng Family Village, secured troops from Beitang He, and completed the True Dragon Profound Dao as he prepared to advance toward the Grandmaster realm.
• Meng Zhao accepted Zhou Wangqiao into his service after learning that the Pudu Cult Master was Zhou’s senior brother, and persuaded Zhou to share his demonic art and stage an attack on Beitang Shu.
• Meng Zhao gave Zhou Wangqiao a Boulder Breaker Bow and bloodwater for his recovery, then used the Heaven-Illuminating Divine Mirror to fuse martial arts into a Demonic Thought and complete his foundation for advancing to Grandmaster.
• Zhao Hun learned from Dragon City that Meng Zhao had taken control of the Divine Might Army and that Meng Yuanqiao likely protected him, then decided to use Elder Cheng’s iron token to contact the Meng Family Grandmaster.
• Zhao Hun told Meng Yuanqiao that he was the real Meng Zhao and that the other man had stolen his identity, but Meng Yuanqiao said the impostor had become the Meng Family’s true heir through his bonds and achievements.
• Zhao Hun declared he would take back everything himself, but Meng Yuanqiao restrained him, saying he could not let him go while he remained a threat.

Meng Zhao settled his family identity and faced escalating attacks from the Demonic Path while negotiating with Beitang He to turn the crisis into an opportunity to expand the Meng Family. The arc ended with Meng Zhao asking Gu Sinan and Yun Fei to suspend their activities while Beitang He prepared to use both Meng Zhao and the Demonic Path for his own purposes.

• Meng Yuanqiao brought Zhao Hun to Meng Zhao, who confirmed his grandmaster breakthrough, asserted his place in the Meng Family, and killed Zhao Hun after Meng Yuanqiao left the decision to him.
• Meng Zhao warned Meng Yuanqiao that the Plainclothes Alliance might be tied to the Imperial Court and urged the Meng Family to lie low as northern unrest loomed.
• After Meng Jizu’s campaign against the Demonic Path drew retaliation, Beitang He warned Meng Zhao that Hell Path might hire Wu Huaien, an Ancient Heartless Path Grandmaster, to assassinate him.
• Meng Zhao asked Zhou Wangqiao to guard the women in his household and gave him revisions to the Demon Luo Incarnation Blood Soul True Scripture to conceal his cultivation and connection to Beitang Shu’s assassination.
• Attacks on Meng Zhao’s ships, businesses, and workers escalated, and Beitang He offered to help him punish eleven local factions in exchange for thirty percent of the gains.
• Meng Zhao recognized Beitang He’s ties to the Demonic Path and demanded that his attackers surrender, compensate him, and stop their schemes, while Beitang He agreed to negotiate and contain unrest.
• Beitang He told Peach Blossom Scholar that the imperial envoy would be Chief Eunuch Gu and warned the Demonic Path not to approach him, then resolved to use both the Demonic Path and Meng Zhao for now.
• Meng Zhao met Gu Sinan and Yun Fei in secret and asked them to halt their activities after Beitang He accepted his terms, including a share of the profits from absorbing eleven factions.