Chapter Summaries

Tang Huo'er successfully fused with the Nine Dragon Thunder Gang Fire after Shen Wen suppressed its rampage, and Blazing Flame Valley celebrated her recovery. As Shen Wen prepared to return to the Pill Pagoda, Tang Zhen asked him to stay two more days to examine a gift of thanks.

• Tang Huo'er completed her fusion with the Nine Dragon Thunder Gang Fire and, overwhelmed with relief, threw herself into Shen Wen's arms.
• Tang Huo'er showed Tang Zhen that the Heavenly Flame had become obedient, and he congratulated her before leading her out of the restricted area.
• News of Tang Huo'er's success and Shen Wen's intervention spread through Blazing Flame Valley, earning him the disciples' gratitude and admiration.
• Shen Wen stayed at Blazing Heart Villa for two days to guide Tang Huo'er as she stabilized her cultivation and strengthened her foundation.
• Tang Zhen visited Shen Wen and asked him to delay his return to the Pill Pagoda so he could examine a gift of thanks.

Tang Zhen brought Shen Wen to Blazing Flame Valley’s Battle Technique Pavilion to study the ancestral insights behind the Heavenly Fire Three Profound Changes. Shen Wen absorbed the Heritage Crystal’s fragments and used the Future Non-Birth Scripture to organize them, gaining a new understanding of the art.

• Tang Zhen offered Shen Wen access to Blazing Flame Valley’s inherited insights in gratitude for helping Huo'er fuse with a Heavenly Flame, and Shen Wen accepted.
• The next day, Tang Zhen and Tang Huo'er accompanied Shen Wen to the Battle Technique Pavilion, where its guardian elders let him enter the inheritance chamber.
• Shen Wen touched the Heritage Crystal and infused it with his Soul Power, causing it to erupt in a radiant crimson light that astonished Tang Zhen, Tang Huo'er, and the elders.
• Shen Wen received fragments of the predecessors’ experiences and insights, then used the Future Non-Birth Scripture to sort and refine them.
• After the light faded, Shen Wen withdrew his hand and murmured that he understood.

Shen Wen studied the deeper principles of the Heavenly Fire Three Profound Changes and considered adapting them to unlock more of his Ancestral Symbols’ power. As he traveled from Blazing Flame Valley to Pill City, Tang Huo'er joined him under the pretext of managing business, then learned that he was already married to Cao Ying.

• Shen Wen realized the Heavenly Fire Three Profound Changes used unlocking and resonance to draw out a flame’s deeper power, and wondered whether he could apply those principles to his Ancestral Symbols.
• Shen Wen thanked Tang Zhen and Tang Huo'er for letting him study the inheritance, then departed Blazing Flame Valley with a Crimson Jade token.
• Tang Huo'er boarded Shen Wen’s flying boat and said she would manage Blazing Flame Valley’s business dealings in Sacred Pill City.
• Shen Wen told Tang Huo'er to discuss business with his wife, Cao Ying, and Tang Huo'er reacted with shock upon learning he was already married.

After returning from Blazing Flame Valley, Shen Wen reunited with Cai Lin and told her about the trip, while leaving out Tang Huo'er's feelings. Cai Lin predicted Tang Huo'er might eventually accept Shen Wen's existing marriage, and Shen Wen went to study the Heavenly Fire Three Profound Changes.

• Tang Huo'er avoided Shen Wen for the rest of the journey and, on arriving at Sacred Pill City, politely bid him farewell before disappearing into the crowd.
• Shen Wen returned to the estate and found Cai Lin there; she told him Xiao Yi Xian had entered seclusion while Zi Yan, Qing Lin, and Xiong Tao had gone to the Snake People Mountain Range.
• Shen Wen recounted his Blazing Flame Valley trip to Cai Lin, including refining the Eighth Rank Fire Bodhi Pill and suppressing the rampaging Nine Dragon Thunder Gang Fire, but omitted Tang Huo'er's feelings.
• Cai Lin observed that Tang Huo'er might accept Shen Wen's existing wives once she overcame her embarrassment, and teased Shen Wen about the women he had drawn to him.
• Shen Wen left to study the Heavenly Fire Three Profound Changes in the quiet room.

Shen Wen tested the Heavenly Fire Three Profound Changes and began using the Flame Ancestral Talisman to deduce whether its principles could unlock an Ancestral Symbol’s power. Meanwhile, Zi Yan defeated a Netherworld Python so Qing Lin could control it, but something interrupted Qing Lin’s attempt at the final moment.

• Shen Wen found that the Heavenly Fire Three Profound Changes increased his strength by roughly ten percent and began deducing how its resonance principle might work with the Flame Ancestral Talisman.
• Shen Tian led Zi Yan, Qing Lin, and Xiong Tao to a hidden valley where a Five-Star Dou Huang Netherworld Python lived.
• Zi Yan fought the Netherworld Python and gained the upper hand through her Ancient Void Dragon strength.
• Shen Tian told Zi Yan to finish the fight, and her final strike left the Netherworld Python unable to resist.
• Qing Lin used her Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils to imprint her control on the Python, but a sudden disturbance occurred as the process neared completion.

Elder Yao Wu of the Nine Netherworld Dark Python Clan attacked Qing Lin after discovering her Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils. Shen Tian was gravely wounded defending her, and Yao Wu closed in to seize or kill her.

• Yao Wu emerged from the shadows and revealed that he had been tracking Qing Lin because her eye technique threatened his clan.
• Yao Wu dismissed Shen Tian’s warning that Qing Lin was under Venerable Shen Wen’s protection and attacked the group.
• Shen Tian used Ice Venerate Strength to block Yao Wu’s strike and urged Xiong Tao to take Qing Lin and Zi Yan to Pill City for help.
• Yao Wu shattered Shen Tian’s ice wall, broke both his arms, and hurled him into a mountain wall.
• Yao Wu brushed aside Xiong Tao’s staff and reached for Qing Lin’s eyes as Shen Tian sent a desperate plea for the Venerable.

Shen Wen rushed to the Snake People Mountain Range after sensing Qing Lin’s danger and stopped Demon Crow from taking her. He severed Demon Crow’s hand and trapped the python in frozen space, leaving the fight unresolved.

• Shen Wen sensed Shen Tian’s anguished call and used spatial powers to travel from Shen Manor to the valley.
• Shen Wen appeared between Qing Lin and Demon Crow, then severed Demon Crow’s wrist with a single slash.
• Demon Crow transformed into his Nine Netherworld Dark Python true form and threatened Shen Wen with his clan’s power.
• Shen Wen revealed he had already considered seeking out the Nine Netherworld Dark Python clan for its inheritance ruins.
• Demon Crow unleashed his bloodline secret art and attacked with poisonous breath, but Shen Wen froze his body and attack in place with spatial power.

Shen Wen subdued and converted Demon Crow, then learned that Sky Snake Mansion had revealed Qing Lin’s Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils to the Nine Netherworld Dark Python clan. He decided he would have to return to the Northwest to deal with Sky Snake Mansion.

• Shen Wen stopped Demon Crow’s attack with Space Power and helped Xiong Tao and Shen Tian recover.
• Zi Yan and Qing Lin clung to Shen Wen, and he told them he would investigate how the Nine Netherworld Dark Python clan learned about Qing Lin’s pupils.
• Shen Wen used the Great Pudu Technique to convert Demon Crow and make him completely obedient.
• Demon Crow revealed that people within Sky Snake Mansion had reported Qing Lin’s whereabouts to the Nine Netherworld Dark Python clan.
• Shen Wen grew cold toward Sky Snake Mansion and resolved to return to the Northwest.

After Shen Wen defeated and converted Demon Crow, Qing Lin persuaded him to keep the Nine Netherworld Dark Python elder alive, and Shen Wen learned that the attack on her might have been linked to the Sky Snake Mansion in the Northwest. He decided to return there with Qing Lin to complete a spatial teleportation passage, leaving Cao Ying and the pregnant Cai Lin in Sacred Pill City to manage affairs and maintain contact with Demon Crow.

• Qing Lin asked Shen Wen to spare Demon Crow, and Shen Wen agreed to keep him alive as a source of information about the Nine Netherworld Dark Python clan.
• Shen Wen reassured Shen Tian that he was not to blame for the attack, then ordered Demon Crow to deceive his clan while remaining undercover.
• Shen Wen returned with his group to Sacred Pill City, where Cao Ying and Cai Lin questioned the injured Demon Crow's presence.
• Shen Wen told Cao Ying and Cai Lin that the Nine Netherworld Dark Python clan had targeted Qing Lin and that the Sky Snake Mansion in the Northwest might have supplied information.
• Shen Wen announced he would leave for the Northwest with Qing Lin the next day, while Cao Ying stayed to oversee Sacred Pill City and Shen Tian and Xiong Tao remained in the Snake People Mountain Range.

Dan Chen gave Shen Wen records about the Ancient Void Dragon Clan and secret alchemy materials before he left for the Northwest with Qing Lin. Tang Huo'er, who had fallen for Shen Wen, visited Shen Manor and was unsettled by the accomplished women gathered around him.

• Dan Chen hurried to Shen Wen and offered to travel with him, but he urged her to continue preparing for her Rank Seven Alchemist assessment.
• Dan Chen shared a clan record describing how to locate and open a weak point in the Ancient Void Dragon Clan's Void Space, and gave Shen Wen a Storage Ring of advanced alchemy techniques and secret arts.
• Shen Wen thanked Dan Chen and left Sacred Pill City with Qing Lin for the Northwest to construct the Space Channel.
• Tang Huo'er learned about Shen Wen's wives and close companions, then visited Shen Manor under the pretext of discussing business cooperation.
• Tang Huo'er met Cao Ying, Xiao Yi Xian, Cai Lin, and Dan Chen at Shen Manor and felt inadequate beside their beauty, talent, and strength.

Tang Huo'er questioned why Shen Wen’s wives accepted sharing him, and Cao Ying made her confront her attraction to him. After Tang Huo'er left to ponder her feelings, Cao Ying discussed helping Qing Lin grow closer to Shen Wen and told Xiao Yi Xian that a Seventh-Order Heavenly Poison Scorpion Dragon Beast had been found.

• Tang Huo'er asked Cao Ying why women as talented and accomplished as Shen Wen’s wives were willing to share one husband.
• Cao Ying told Tang Huo'er that Shen Wen was so exceptional that she could not make room for another man, then pointed out that Tang Huo'er had come partly because of her feelings for him.
• Cao Ying reassured Tang Huo'er and offered to help her with anything in Sacred Pill City, and Tang Huo'er left in a fluster to consider her words.
• After Tang Huo'er departed, Xiao Yi Xian suggested she might become another sister, but Cao Ying said Tang Huo'er still had to overcome her pride and accept the situation herself.
• Cao Ying explained that Shen Wen’s trip to the Northwest with Qing Lin could give them a chance to grow closer.
• Cao Ying told Xiao Yi Xian that her people had found traces of a Seventh-Order Heavenly Poison Scorpion Dragon Beast in Fallen God Ravine and would send Xiong Tao to capture it once they had precise information.

Shen Wen and Qing Lin traveled by Flying Boat toward the Sky Snake Empire so Shen Wen could confront Sky Snake Mansion over its betrayal of Qing Lin. During the journey, Qing Lin worked up the courage to visit Shen Wen at night and began to open up to him.

• Shen Wen and Qing Lin left Tianya City aboard a Flying Boat and headed for the Sky Snake Empire.
• Shen Wen practiced using the Fallen Heart Flame to explore the power of the Heavenly Fire Three Profound Changes.
• Qing Lin recalled Shen Wen protecting her and Cao Ying’s encouragement to speak with him while they traveled alone.
• That night, Qing Lin brought Shen Wen tea and pastries and entered his room.
• Shen Wen asked Qing Lin what she wanted to tell him, and she finally met his gaze.

Qing Lin confessed her love to Shen Wen, and he accepted her despite his other companions; they spent the night together aboard the Flying Boat. At dawn, they reached the Sky Snake Empire and headed for Sky Snake Mansion to resolve the trouble there.

• Qing Lin confessed that she wanted to stay by Shen Wen's side, and he accepted her while warning that he already had other companions.
• Shen Wen and Qing Lin kissed and spent the night together aboard the Flying Boat.
• At dawn, Shen Wen studied the fusion of the Bug Treasure Technique and Space Ancestral Talisman while Qing Lin slept beside him.
• Shen Wen and Qing Lin dressed as the Flying Boat approached the Sky Snake Empire's Imperial Capital.
• Shen Wen said they would go to Sky Snake Mansion to uncover the truth and settle matters, and the Flying Boat headed toward its mountain sect gate.

Grandmaster Shen brought the Jade-Eyed Girl to Sky Snake Mansion and attacked it with the Great Desolation Prison Heaven Palm, accusing the sect of colluding with the Nine Netherworld Dark Python and targeting someone close to him. Old Ancestor Black Zetsu failed to stop the palm, and Huang Ling recognized Grandmaster Shen and pleaded that there had been a misunderstanding.

• Grandmaster Shen's Flying Boat arrived above Sky Snake Mansion, and his overwhelming pressure crushed the guards and grounded the sect's fighters.
• Grandmaster Shen summoned a massive Chaos-colored palm that covered Sky Snake Mansion's peaks.
• Old Ancestor Black Zetsu emerged and attacked the palm with the Sky Snake Soul Devour Strike, but the palm absorbed the attack without slowing.
• Grandmaster Shen accused Sky Snake Mansion of leaking the secret of the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils and seeking to harm someone by his side.
• Black Zetsu denied the accusation and asked Grandmaster Shen to reconsider as the Great Desolation Prison Heaven Palm descended.
• Huang Ling recognized Grandmaster Shen and called out that there had to be a misunderstanding.

Shen Wen converted Sky Snake Mansion and ordered it to investigate Soul Hall’s new presence in the Northwest. He left Qing Lin there to cultivate and oversee the mansion while he went to arrange the other end of the Space Channel.

• Shen Wen used the Great Pudu Technique to convert Hei Jue, the Mansion Lord, and Sky Snake Mansion’s people, then Qing Lin killed two elders who had colluded with the Nine Netherworld Dark Python.
• The Mansion Lord told Shen Wen that Shi Ming Sect had moved into the Twilight Mountain Range near the Black Corner Region, and Shen Wen ordered Sky Snake Mansion to monitor it secretly and send intelligence to Cao Ying.
• Shen Wen left Qing Lin at Sky Snake Mansion to study its serpent-bloodline texts, improve her Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils, and oversee the converted mansion.
• Hei Jue and the Mansion Lord opened the mansion’s resources to Qing Lin, who began her secluded cultivation.

Shen Wen traveled to the Monster Beast Mountain Range to build a secret Space Channel linking the northwest to Central Continent, seeing it as vital to expanding his influence and gathering Faith Power. After several days of work, he opened the channel and left Shen Tian and the Snake People Clan elders to guard it.

• Shen Wen resolved to unify and bring order to the northwest to gather widespread General Faith and accelerate his cultivation.
• Shen Wen arrived in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, where the four Snake People Clan elders greeted him; he ordered them to keep the channel's construction secret.
• Shen Wen built the Space Channel in a concealed valley using rare materials, a Twin Space Crystal, and his mastery of space.
• Shen Tian emerged from the completed channel and confirmed that the connection was stable.
• Shen Wen ordered Shen Tian and the four elders to guard the passage, strengthen its defenses, and follow his instructions for its use and maintenance.

Shen Wen completed a stable Space Channel between the Northwest and the Central Continent, then returned to Sacred Pill City and learned Tang Huo'er had broken through to the Dou Ancestor realm. After Tang Huo'er left, he asked Cai Lin and Xiao Yi Xian what they thought of taking Qing Lin as a concubine.

• Shen Wen tested the Space Channel, confirmed it was safe, and returned from the Northwest to Sacred Pill City.
• Shen Wen reunited with Cai Lin and Xiao Yi Xian, then found Tang Huo'er visiting under the pretext of discussing business.
• Shen Wen congratulated Tang Huo'er on reaching the Dou Ancestor realm and explained how the Nine Dragon Thunder Gang Fire would aid her cultivation.
• Tang Huo'er left after telling Shen Wen she might seek his help with future cultivation difficulties.
• Xiao Yi Xian and Cai Lin revealed Tang Huo'er had visited every day for four days, and Shen Wen asked whether they would accept Qing Lin as his concubine.

Shen Wen and his household agreed to arrange Qing Lin’s status as his concubine, then discussed the growing Soul Hall presence in the Twilight Mountain Range and chose to wait for more intelligence before attacking. Shen Wen also directed Demon Crow to draw out members of the Nine Netherworld Dark Pythons so he could convert them, while the search for Cai Lin’s Nine-Colored Raw Stone remained underway.

• Cai Lin and Xiao Yi Xian supported giving Qing Lin the proper status of a concubine, and Cao Ying later proposed a modest celebration at the manor.
• Shen Wen told Cao Ying that the Lion Nether Sect had moved into the Twilight Mountain Range, and he considered striking its stronghold first.
• Cao Ying argued that an attack could provoke a two-front war with Soul Hall, so Shen Wen ordered the Sky Snake Mansion to keep watching for further movement.
• Cao Ying reported a lead on Cai Lin’s Nine-Colored Raw Stone but said there was no progress locating the Ancient Void Dragons.
• Cao Ying warned that Demon Crow’s infiltration of the Nine Netherworld Dark Pythons was at risk of exposure, so Shen Wen told him to lure out key figures by searching for the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils.
• Shen Wen said he would convert each member of the clan who came out.

Shen Wen and Cao Ying planned to draw peripheral elders of the Nine Netherworld Dark Python into their schemes, then agreed to visit the Cao Family and discuss its support. They arrived at Cao City, where the Cao Family had assembled to receive them.

• Cao Ying agreed with Shen Wen’s plan to target less central Nine Netherworld Dark Python elders and said Demon Crow would prepare a list.
• Cao Ying told Shen Wen that Xuan Danzi was looking for him, and Shen Wen promised to resume studying alchemy after his current work was finished.
• Cao Ying revealed that her grandfather wanted to meet Shen Wen to secure the Cao Family’s investment, and Shen Wen agreed to visit the family.
• Shen Wen sent Xuan Danzi a respectful message saying he could return to studying alchemy the following day.
• Shen Wen and Cao Ying traveled by Flying Boat to Cao City, where elderly family members, stewards, and guards gathered to welcome them.

Shen Wen and Cao Ying met with Cao Tianxiong, who offered Shen Wen the status and resources of a Cao Family heir in exchange for their first child bearing the Cao surname. Shen Wen refused, leaving Cao Tianxiong to weigh his answer against the influence the family could offer.

• Cao Ying introduced Shen Wen to the Cao Family elders, and they escorted the couple through the inner city to meet Cao Tianxiong.
• Shen Wen sensed that the Cao Family had at least five Dou Venerates, while judging Cao Tianxiong to be a Two Star Dou Venerate with an unstable foundation.
• Cao Tianxiong praised Cao Ying as the family’s most promising young alchemist and offered Shen Wen heir-level resources and influence.
• Cao Tianxiong’s condition was that Shen Wen and Cao Ying’s first child bear the Cao surname, but Cao Ying insisted their legitimate eldest son could not.
• Shen Wen refused the condition, and Cao Tianxiong explained how the Cao Family’s standing could help Shen Wen establish himself in the Pill Region.