Recaps

Si Li confessed to Xiao Mo that Empress Dowager Yan had ordered her to spy on him, and Xiao Mo spared her while considering whether to use her as a double agent. The next day, he brought Si Li to the Imperial Preceptor’s Residence, where she recognized Jiang Qingyi and reacted as if facing a rival.

• Si Li told Xiao Mo that she had agreed to spy on him for Empress Dowager Yan but claimed her loyalty was to him.
• Xiao Mo spared Si Li, told her to continue her usual duties, and considered making her his spy in Empress Dowager Yan’s household.
• After leaving Xiao Mo’s room, Si Li removed the cloth binding her chest and whispered that she would take things slowly.
• The next morning, Si Li explained her changed appearance to Xiao Mo, then accompanied him to the Imperial Preceptor’s Residence.
• Si Li recognized the veiled Jiang Qingyi as the Imperial Preceptor, and Jiang Qingyi furrowed her brows at Si Li.

Xiao Mo tested Si Li’s loyalty with a miniature Heart Piercing Sword and learned that she genuinely loved him, though she had concealed her feelings out of embarrassment. After Si Li reassured him, she secretly misled Yu Yunwei about her search for her Master, while Wang Xin waited outside the palace for news.

• Jiang Qingyi gave Xiao Mo a Heart Piercing Sword after refusing to use soul-searching on Si Li.
• Xiao Mo placed the sword in Si Li and confirmed that the Empress Dowager had sent her to spy on him.
• The sword’s questioning forced Si Li to admit that she wanted Xiao Mo to favor her and that she had lied because she was embarrassed.
• Xiao Mo forgave Si Li, promised to protect her, and left the sword inside her for the time being.
• Si Li told Yu Yunwei that she was still gathering information about her Master, while Wang Xin wondered why Si Li had not contacted her.

Xiao Mo tested Si Li’s loyalty with the Heart Piercing Sword and learned that she genuinely loved him, while Si Li concealed her cultivation and continued her mission for the Myriad Dao Sect. The chapter ended with Wang Xin wondering why Si Li had not sent her any news from the palace.

• Jiang Qingyi gave Xiao Mo a Heart Piercing Sword that could force Si Li to answer truthfully, rather than using a truth-telling spell.
• Xiao Mo used the sword to question Si Li, and she admitted she wanted him to favor her because she had fallen in love with him.
• Xiao Mo forgave Si Li and promised to protect her, while Si Li said she wanted to keep the sword so she could see him regularly.
• Si Li secretly told Yu Yunwei that she had not found her master and was still gathering information.
• Wang Xin wondered why Si Li had not sent her any news after nearly a month in the palace.

As Xiao Mo prepared for his wedding to Yan Ruxue and Qin Mujiu, the palace’s demands kept him from cultivating until a moment of quiet at the Dao Seeking Altar nearly led him to establish his foundation. Jiang Qingyi stopped him and spoke with unusual intensity about the coming marriage, leaving Xiao Mo to face a livelier harem after the ceremony.

• Si Li learned palace duties, reported to the Empress Dowager, and remained wary of Jiang Qingyi while continuing to serve Xiao Mo.
• As the wedding approached, Xiao Mo received envoys, reviewed arrangements, and entrusted Si Li with harem matters while he sought quiet at the Dao Seeking Altar.
• Xiao Mo entered a state of enlightenment and nearly began establishing his foundation, but Jiang Qingyi interrupted him with sword qi and sealed three of his spiritual apertures.
• Jiang Qingyi questioned Xiao Mo's melancholy about the wedding, and he wondered whether Yan Ruxue and Qin Mujiu truly wanted to marry him.
• Jiang Qingyi insisted the two women wanted to enter the palace and declared that Xiao Mo's harem would become very lively.

On her wedding day, Yan Ruxue prepared to marry the Emperor in a humble village courtyard chosen for its ties to an old love story. While waiting for the procession, she gave candy to village children and said the man she had been waiting for had arrived and was marrying her.

• The Imperial Capital and Shiqiao Village prepared for the Emperor's wedding, while palace maids dressed Yan Ruxue in her wedding gown.
• Madam Yan combed Yan Ruxue's hair, offered her advice for palace life, and left Chunyan to accompany her.
• Yan Ruxue told Chunyan the legend of a poor scholar and a white snake who grew up together and promised to marry.
• Yan Ruxue asked Chunyan to wait at the village entrance, then stayed alone in the courtyard and remembered a man from long ago.
• Yan Ruxue welcomed five curious children into the courtyard, gave them wedding candy, and told them she was waiting for someone to marry her.
• Yan Ruxue said the man had arrived and that she was getting married.

On her wedding day, Qin Siyao prepared her dowry and revisited memories of Xiao Manor and her family. Alone in a rebuilt courtyard, she addressed her mother and said that she and Xiao Mo were getting married.

• Mingyue confirmed that the bridal procession and dowry were ready, and Qin Siyao inspected the red chests.
• Qin Siyao placed a mask and the Small Clay Figure in a chest, saying they had belonged to Xiao Mo.
• Qin Siyao sent Mingyue and the other maids outside so she could be alone.
• Qin Siyao walked through the envoy residence and remembered how its courtyards had changed since the Ancient Qin Kingdom.
• Qin Siyao sat in the small courtyard she had rebuilt, remembered her family, and told her mother that she and Xiao Mo were getting married.

Xiao Mo prepared to marry Yan Ruxue and Qin Mujiu, while the Ruler of Qi learned that he was getting married and renewed her vow to kill him. The chapter ended with her looking toward Myriad Laws Under Heaven, intent on repeating what she had done before.

• Xiao Mo dressed in wedding attire made by Yan Ruxue and prepared to leave the palace with Si Li.
• Xiao Mo told Si Li that the Ministry of Rites had arranged for him to fetch Yan Ruxue and Qin Mujiu together.
• Ding Dang reported to the Ruler of Qi that the Zhou Kingdom's ruler was getting married and that Qiu Ye had delivered their condition to the sect master of the Myriad Sword Sect.
• The Ruler of Qi dismissed Ding Dang after rebuking her for asking why she cared about Xiao Mo.
• The Ruler of Qi looked toward Myriad Laws Under Heaven and vowed to kill the Daoist again.

Xiao Mo fetched Yan Ruxue and Qin Siyao and completed their imperial wedding ceremony in the Zhou Kingdom. Real auspicious signs and Wang Xin’s prayers accompanied the celebration, which ended with the three formally exchanging bows.

• Xiao Mo rode to Mount Zhou, where Yan Ruxue and Qin Siyao waited in bridal sedan chairs, and promised their families he would treat both consorts sincerely.
• Xiao Mo led the two consorts around Mount Zhou and paid homage there; genuine radiant omens appeared, astonishing Yan Zhen, who had not arranged them.
• Wang Xin chanted sutras and prayed for the ruler’s wedding, privately admitting to Little Hundun that she would accept Xiao Mo marrying other women if he was happy.
• Xiao Mo led Yan Ruxue and Qin Siyao through the palace rites, read their investiture edict, and formally granted them the rank of Noble Consort.
• Xiao Mo, Yan Ruxue, and Qin Siyao completed the wedding bows before Heaven and Earth and their elder, bringing the ceremony to an end.

After the wedding feast, Xiao Mo left the choice of which consort to visit to a coin toss and went to Qin Siyao’s Hanjiu Hall. He lifted her veil and drank the wedding wine with her, leaving them poised to blow out the candles.

• Xiao Mo finished bathing after the wedding feast while Si Li asked which consort he would visit.
• Xiao Mo tossed Si Li’s jade pendant to decide where to go.
• Xiao Mo entered Hanjiu Hall and lifted Qin Siyao’s bridal veil.
• Xiao Mo and Qin Siyao drank the cross-cupped wedding wine.
• Qin Siyao told Xiao Mo it was time to blow out the candles.

Xiao Mo left Qin Siyao on their wedding night to fulfill the wedding rites at Ningxue Hall, while Siyao concealed her jealousy behind understanding words. There, he lifted Yan Ruxue’s veil and discovered she was the woman he had met several times before.

• Xiao Mo apologized to Qin Siyao for leaving to spend the night at Ningxue Hall, explaining that he had chosen where to go by tossing a jade pendant.
• Qin Siyao reassured Xiao Mo and watched him leave, then admitted to herself that she could not yield her husband to anyone.
• Xiao Mo arrived at Ningxue Hall, set aside his suspicions about the Yan Clan, and entered Yan Ruxue’s chamber.
• Xiao Mo lifted Yan Ruxue’s veil and recognized her as the woman whose kite he had retrieved and with whom he had shared tea, a boat ride, and New Year’s wishes.
• Yan Ruxue greeted Xiao Mo, saying they had met again.

On his wedding night, Xiao Mo lost consciousness in Yan Ruxue’s arms as a mysterious fragrance knocked Si Li and the palace guards asleep. Qin Siyao entered Ningxue Hall, and Yan Ruxue addressed another hidden visitor waiting by the window.

• Xiao Mo recognized Yan Ruxue as the woman he had met before, and they drank their nuptial wine together.
• A breeze extinguished the candles, and Xiao Mo began to lose consciousness as he leaned toward Yan Ruxue.
• Si Li sensed a terrifying spiritual pressure outside the room, then fell asleep along with the palace maids when a fragrant breeze swept through.
• Yan Ruxue laid Xiao Mo on the bed and welcomed Qin Siyao, who came in and sat down for tea.
• Yan Ruxue suggested Qin Siyao was older than she claimed, then invited Sect Master Jiang, who was sitting on the windowsill, to join them.

Bai Ruxue, Qin Siyao, and Jiang Qingyi agreed to settle their dispute over Xiao Mo with a written contract rather than risk destroying the Zhou Kingdom. The next morning, Xiao Mo woke with no clear memory of the night before, and Jiang Qingyi appeared before him in a foul mood.

• Bai Ruxue told Qin Siyao and Jiang Qingyi that fighting over Xiao Mo could devastate the Zhou Kingdom, then proposed a rule between them.
• Bai Ruxue showed them a written contract, and Qin Siyao agreed to sign it while Jiang Qingyi asked to add a condition.
• Xiao Mo woke the next morning and asked Si Li what had happened, but she said she had fallen asleep and learned he had been carried back to his room.
• Si Li suspected Qin Mujiu had come to take Xiao Mo but concluded that Yan Ruxue had prevented anything from happening.
• Xiao Mo dismissed Si Li and poured tea, then Jiang Qingyi arrived through the window, visibly displeased.

Jiang Qingyi told Xiao Mo that Yan Ruxue and Qin Mujiu were powerful immortals with hidden motives, though they would not harm him, and urged him to focus on cultivation. After Jiang left, Xiao Mo set aside his suspicions and prepared to take his new consorts to pay respects to the Empress Dowager.

• Jiang Qingyi visited Xiao Mo and questioned whether he realized his two consorts were not ordinary people.
• Jiang Qingyi revealed that Yan Ruxue and Qin Mujiu were immortals of a realm comparable to her own, but withheld their deeper identities and aims.
• Jiang Qingyi assured Xiao Mo that the consorts would not harm him and told him to focus on reaching Foundation Establishment within a month.
• Jiang Qingyi teased Xiao Mo about being unable to enjoy intimacy with the consorts, then left through the window.
• Xiao Mo decided to prioritize improving his strength and prepared to take his consorts to serve tea to the Empress Dowager.
• Bai Ruxue and Qin Siyao waited outside Yangxin Hall and greeted Xiao Mo as he came out.

Xiao Mo accompanied Bai Ruxue and Qin Siyao to pay their respects to Empress Dowager Yan, who urged them to live harmoniously and encouraged Xiao Mo to spend more time with his wives. After breakfast, Qin Siyao invited Xiao Mo to accompany her to Hanjiu Hall, leaving him uncertain about her true feelings and motives.

• Xiao Mo traveled with Bai Ruxue and Qin Siyao to Lingxin Palace, where they greeted Empress Dowager Yan.
• Empress Dowager Yan welcomed the consorts, encouraged them to manage the harem together, and told Xiao Mo to spend more time with them.
• Xiao Mo, Bai Ruxue, Qin Siyao, and Empress Dowager Yan shared breakfast, during which Qin Siyao's lively manner made Empress Dowager Yan laugh.
• Empress Dowager Yan kept Bai Ruxue behind to talk while Xiao Mo left with Qin Siyao.
• Qin Siyao turned to Xiao Mo and asked him to accompany her to Hanjiu Hall.

Qin Siyao gave Xiao Mo a childhood clay figure and an ancient mask, which stirred a powerful sense of familiarity in him. Meanwhile, Bai Ruxue discussed the Nine-Tails Kingdom and the heavenly threat with Xiao Qing, revealing that she meant to protect Xiao Mo herself.

• Qin Siyao welcomed Xiao Mo into Hanjiu Hall and declined to explain the matter she and Bai Ruxue both sought.
• Qin Siyao gave Xiao Mo a Small Clay Figure and an ancient mask; wearing the mask left him dazed as Qin Siyao admired him.
• Bai Ruxue returned to Ningxue Hall, reunited privately with Xiao Qing, and heard that the ruler of the Nine-Tails Kingdom had refused their terms.
• Bai Ruxue told Xiao Qing to continue helping the Great Wall despite the Nine-Tails Kingdom's refusal to make a pact.
• Xiao Qing questioned why Bai Ruxue still hid her identity from Xiao Mo, and Bai Ruxue hinted that the ancient heavenly gods might return.
• Bai Ruxue said she did not want to lose Xiao Mo again and that this time she would protect him.

Xiao Mo awoke from a dream of a masked general dying to protect a little clay figure, then visited Bai Ruxue at Ningxue Hall and asked which version of her was real. Bai Ruxue told him she had always been herself and had never changed.

• Xiao Mo woke from a dream he could not remember and put the little clay figure and mask away in a box.
• Xiao Mo chose to dine at Ningxue Hall because he wanted to hear Bai Ruxue's explanation about the previous night.
• Bai Ruxue told Xiao Mo she would not harm him or betray Zhou Kingdom, offered to help him reclaim power, and said she would leave once she obtained what she sought.
• Xiao Mo declined Bai Ruxue's offer and agreed to stay at Ningxue Hall for the night to avoid raising the Empress Dowager's suspicions.
• Xiao Mo asked Bai Ruxue which version of her was real, and she replied that Ruxue had always been herself and had never changed.

Bai Ruxue refined Xiao Mo’s Spiritual Energy with the Moonlight Art, and he woke the next morning with stronger, purer cultivation. She prepared a bloodstained sheet for the Empress Dowager to inspect, while Xiao Mo asked about the object she had spent so long seeking; Bai Ruxue said she would keep searching for it for the rest of her life.

• Bai Ruxue offered to help Xiao Mo cultivate and used the Moonlight Art to refine his Spiritual Energy until he fell asleep.
• Bai Ruxue caught Xiao Mo, laid him in bed, and vowed to protect their bond.
• Xiao Mo woke with denser, purer Spiritual Energy and learned he could continue cultivating before attempting Foundation Establishment next month.
• Bai Ruxue left blood on the bedsheet for the Empress Dowager to inspect, and Xiao Mo asked about the object she sought.
• Bai Ruxue said she would spend the rest of her life searching if she never found it.

Xiao Mo prepared to establish his Foundation after a month of cultivation, while Bai Ruxue, Jiang Qingyi, and Qin Siyao each helped strengthen different aspects of his cultivation. Jiang Qingyi gave him a Steal Heaven Pill tailored to him, and Xiao Mo was left ready to begin Foundation Establishment.

• Empress Dowager Yan celebrated news that Xiao Mo had spent the wedding night with Yan Ruxue, while the maids of Hanjiu Hall grew hopeful when he began visiting Bai Ruxue and Qin Siyao in turn.
• Bai Ruxue purified Xiao Mo's Spiritual Energy, Jiang Qingyi taught him swordsmanship, and Qin Siyao secretly refined the realm's fortune around him.
• After a month, Xiao Mo's Spiritual Energy was as dense as molten gold, and he prepared for Foundation Establishment by choosing a site and asking Wei Xun to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill.
• Wei Xun panicked when Xiao Mo revealed his plan, but Xiao Mo remained determined to undergo Foundation Establishment.
• Jiang Qingyi gave Xiao Mo a Steal Heaven Pill made using his Birth Eight Characters and told him it could help the Heavenly Dao overlook him during Foundation Establishment.
• Jiang Qingyi left after urging Xiao Mo to cultivate and warning him not to let Bai Ruxue and Qin Siyao devour him.

Luo Yang and Wang Yue set out from the Yao Race World for Myriad Laws Under Heaven, where Luo Yang hoped to visit Xiao Mo and his junior sister. After defeating Kui to obtain its hide and core, Luo Yang received a letter from the Nine-Tails Kingdom to deliver to Xiao Mo.

• Luo Yang told Wang Yue they were returning to Myriad Laws Under Heaven, and she chose to accompany him.
• Luo Yang reflected on Xiao Mo's reincarnation and planned to visit his junior sister, now head of White Deer Academy.
• At Flowing Waves Mountain, Luo Yang asked Kui for its hide and core as a reunion gift, then defeated it and took both.
• Keqing, a palace maid of the Nine-Tails Kingdom, gave Luo Yang a letter from her queen and asked him to deliver it to Xiao Mo, ruler of the Zhou Kingdom.

Xiao Mo attempted Foundation Establishment, but his tribulation became far more dangerous than expected, summoning a thunder beast as his three companions prepared to intervene. As Xiao Mo faced the final strike with the strength of the people he had helped, Shang Jiuli and the Confucian Academy sensed the return of a long-missed Sage.

• Jiang Qingyi learned that Bai Ruxue and Qin Siyao had sent gifts to repay the blood Xiao Mo spent refining his pill, and she resented their attempt to keep him from owing her a favor.
• Xiao Mo traveled to a remote plain with Jiang Qingyi, Bai Ruxue, and Qin Siyao to attempt Foundation Establishment, then swallowed the Steal Heaven Pill and faced the first two lightning strikes.
• The second strike formed into a sword and wounded Xiao Mo, while a third bolt appeared as an ancient thunder beast, prompting Bai Ruxue, Jiang Qingyi, and Qin Siyao to prepare to intervene.
• Xiao Mo stood back up, drew on the merit of the people he had helped, and swung his sword at the descending thunder beast.
• Shang Jiuli sensed her long-missed old friend reaching Foundation Establishment, while a Book Flipping Wind arose at the Confucian Academy and Kong Sheng told Jin Che that a Sage had descended.

Xiao Mo woke after twenty days unconscious and confirmed that he had survived the tribulation and reached the Foundation Establishment Realm. As he began recovering, Bai Ruxue learned that the Confucian Academy had sent a Gentleman to meet her and agreed to see him despite her displeasure.

• Xiao Mo examined his body with Spiritual Sense and realized that he had successfully established his foundation, greatly increasing his spiritual energy, lifespan, and Spiritual Sense.
• Bai Ruxue brought Xiao Mo medicine and told him that she, Mujiu, and Imperial Preceptor Jiang had watched over him while he was unconscious.
• Bai Ruxue told Xiao Mo that Eunuch Wei had dealt with Yan Shan'ao and that he would likely be able to get out of bed in five or six days.
• Chunyan told Bai Ruxue that her mother had arranged for her to return to the Yan residence because a Gentleman from the Confucian Academy wanted to meet her.
• Bai Ruxue concealed her displeasure at the Confucian Academy and agreed to meet its Gentleman.

Yu Yunwei suspected Si Li was hiding the Zhou Kingdom ruler’s identity and planned to send Ning Wei to investigate, but Ning Wei urgently brought her to Myriad Flower Valley. There, a blood kui flower bloomed into a little girl, whom Yu Yunwei named Xue Kui.

• Yu Yunwei read Listening Wind Pavilion’s report and suspected Si Li was concealing what she had learned about the Zhou Kingdom ruler.
• Yu Yunwei decided to send Ning Wei to the Zhou Kingdom, but Ning Wei interrupted her with news that something strange had happened in Myriad Flower Valley.
• Yu Yunwei flew to Senior Brother’s grave and saw spiritual energy gathering around a blood kui flower as petals swirled around it.
• The blood kui flower vanished and a little girl appeared in its place, reminding Yu Yunwei of Senior Brother’s words about his master wishing to become a flower in another life.
• Yu Yunwei dressed the girl in flower petals and named her Xue Kui.

At the Great Wall, He Yeye watched a powerful scholar-swordsman fight for Myriad Laws Under Heaven and spoke with Luo Yang about Xiao Mo. The Fox Clan appeared over the border, and He Yeye revealed that they were still pursuing Xiao Mo even after his death.

• He Yeye and Fu'er watched a blue-robed scholar-swordsman slaughter demons, while Du'er explained that his Sword Qi surpassed that of other Sword Cultivators beneath the Great Wall.
• He Yeye told Fu'er that the man had gone to the Yao Race World because people had made it impossible for him to live among them.
• Luo Yang returned with Wang Yue, and He Yeye gave him the jade token to Xiao Mo's house in Great Wall City.
• After a colossal nine-tailed fox's Dharma Aspect Projection appeared over the border, He Yeye complained that the Fox Clan still pursued Xiao Mo after his death.

Ning Wei traveled to the Zhou Kingdom Imperial Capital to find Xiao Mo and learn whether Si Li had already found him. With Wang Xin’s recommendation, she entered the palace as a maid assigned to Ningxue Hall, where she felt an unsettling presence as she arrived.

• Ning Wei reached Wang Xin’s residence and explained that Yun Wei suspected Si Li had found Xiao Mo but concealed it.
• Wang Xin wrote Ning Wei a recommendation, and Ning Wei persuaded Minister Yan to help her enter the palace as a cook.
• The palace officials instead assigned Ning Wei to serve Consort Xue at Ningxue Hall, where she learned the palace rules from Chunyan.
• As Ning Wei entered Ningxue Hall, she sensed that something was watching her, then reassured herself that she would not be discovered if she avoided cultivators and spells.

Ning Wei toured Ningxue Hall and met Consort Xue, whom she was assigned to serve. After learning that Ning Wei knew Wang Xin, Bai Ruxue suspected there was more to her new servant and found the connection interesting.

• Chunyan showed Ning Wei around Ningxue Hall and complained that a Grand Princess from Qin had thwarted Consort Xue's chance to become Empress.
• Chunyan introduced Ning Wei to Bai Ruxue, and Ning Wei was struck by Consort Xue's beauty.
• Bai Ruxue asked how Ning Wei had entered the palace, and Ning Wei explained that Wang Xin had written her a letter of introduction to Lord Yan.
• Bai Ruxue told Chunyan to teach Ning Wei her duties, then noted that Ning Wei was a Nascent Soul cultivator who knew Wang Xin from the Western Regions.