Recaps

Qi Shan discovered Tan Ting and Qi Miao had grown close, then ended up paying for their lavish outing and purchases. Meanwhile, Shen Tang investigated a rumor that Qi Shan was hiding a beauty, only to chase down a thief and enjoy a drink from the grateful shopkeeper.

• Qi Shan awoke to find Qin Li gone and learned from Tan Ting that Qin Li had left without explaining his visit.
• Qi Shan discovered that Qi Miao had taken Tan Ting around Fengluo to help him shop, then paid the bills Tan Ting sent to his household.
• Tan Ting continued charging his expenses to Qi Shan, prompting a censor to accuse Qi Shan of keeping a beauty in a golden house.
• Shen Tang went undercover to investigate the rumor and heard that Tan Mengyuan had been seen with Qi Miao and Qi Shan.
• Shen Tang chased down a thief, returned the stolen goods to a shopkeeper, and drank a bowl of fruit drink while holding the culprit.

Shen Tang spent the day teasing people and enjoying Capital Fengluo’s lively nighttime entertainment, where she danced with Jimò Qiu. A sudden pain in her chest left her unsettled, and her description of it as resembling a wooden roof beam visibly affected Jimò Qiu.

• Shen Tang teased the proprietress and Jimò Qiu at a water stall, then fled with a captured villain while the Imperial Recorder was left to pay for unpaid wontons.
• Shen Tang visited a musical-instrument shop but bought nothing because she lacked money; Jimò Qiu gave her pearls and bought a reed pipe.
• Tan Ting joined Qi Miao and her friends to watch a new-play procession, received a red silk flower, and floated down to meet the performers.
• Shen Tang danced atop a musicians’ carriage as the crowd joined in, then challenged Jimò Qiu to dance after taking a reed pipe from a musician.
• Jimò Qiu began a strange, story-like dance, and Shen Tang felt stabbing pain in her chest before describing the sensation as like a wooden roof beam.

Shen Tang learned that her heartache and strange symptoms were tied to a mysterious former life, but heavenly censorship kept Jimò Qiu from explaining the details. As Shen Tang drifted into a vision of the Gongxi Clan’s past, she heard that a being called Your Highness faced a killing tribulation and was being entrusted with a gifted child.

• Shen Tang pulled Jimò Qiu away from the crowd and asked him about her abnormal symptoms, while Tan Ting watched them leave and wondered about their relationship.
• Jimò Qiu told Shen Tang a censored story about a powerful figure whose tribulation failed, and said her present body carried traces of what happened in that former life.
• Shen Tang returned to the palace, worried over her uncertain mythological background, then heard a voice warn that her ordeal was a killing tribulation.
• Shen Tang entered a vision in which a High Priest and a child discussed Your Highness’s supposed emotional tribulation and the child’s connection to her.
• The High Priest brought the child to serve Your Highness in the Divine Temple, while Your Highness warned that the coming tribulation could endanger those close to her.

Shen Tang witnessed a dream of Jimò Qiu’s childhood and centuries as the Divine Temple’s High Priest, revealing his efforts to form a bond with the woman in green during her emotional tribulation. As the clan’s faith faltered and the woman in green vanished, the Divine Temple burned, and Jimò Qiu prepared to fight its attackers.

• The High Priest Yin brought a six-year-old child to the Divine Temple, where the woman in green explained that the tale of a steadfast stone referred to her own origin.
• The woman in green’s avatar cared for the child when he fell ill, then appeared more often as he grew into a mischievous teenager who wanted to form a bond with her and help her overcome her emotional tribulation.
• The teenager rejected the idea that their bond had to be romantic and remained steadfast in his service for more than six hundred years before succeeding Yin as High Priest.
• After the woman in green stopped appearing, the clan’s people grew resentful as lifespans shortened and illness spread, while the tree in the Divine Temple withered.
• The young High Priest told Shen Tang that the clan’s wavering faith had caused the crisis and declared that it should be cut off.
• The Divine Temple burned amid battle, and the young High Priest confronted a familiar figure among the attackers, declaring that all who disturbed the temple must die.

Shen Tang awoke from a disturbing dream about the reincarnation of a god and sought reassurance from Chu Yao, but the dream stirred a loneliness tied to her past. Jimò Qiu explained that Shen Tang had once endured a long, lonely existence, and by morning she had returned to her cheerful New Year routine.

• Shen Tang dreamed of a young man defying the gods before heavenly lightning engulfed him, then woke shortly after the fourth watch.
• Hungry, Shen Tang visited Chu Yao, who was working late, and asked what “born at dawn, dead by dusk” meant.
• Shen Tang asked Chu Yao whether he would remain with her for thousands of years, then fell asleep after his promise brought her pain.
• Jimò Qiu examined Shen Tang and told Chu Yao that her former self had been lonely and unlike her present personality.
• Shen Tang woke late on New Year’s morning, visited Chu Yao in disguise, and gave him a gold pendant as New Year’s money.

Shen Tang spent New Year’s visiting her ministers to give them lucky money, stumbling into comic family scenes and enjoying rare leisure with Chu Yao. After seeing Jimò Qiu’s striking face, she decided to ask Yuan Liang to make her a temporary version of it.

• Chu Yao revealed that one of his soup dumplings contained a lucky coin, which Shen Tang found after eating the others and tucked away for good fortune.
• Shen Tang and Chu Yao visited Wei Shou, interrupting his role-play with Jin Rui; Wei Shou accepted her gold lucky-money gift and called his children over to collect gifts too.
• Shen Tang gave Chu Jie lucky money, and Chu Yao invited him to join them for New Year’s Eve; they also visited Zhao Feng and Zhao Wei, where Zhao Feng gave in to his daughter’s plans after the holiday.
• Shen Tang gave Bai Su her lucky-money gift and told Gu Chi to ask his Whale King for money, then she and Chu Yao toured the streets and visited Xun Zhen’s family.
• Shen Tang saw Jimò Qiu’s face and, after briefly recalling Qin Li, decided to find Yuan Liang and ask him to change her face temporarily.

Shen Tang visited her family and friends during the New Year, then asked Qi Shan to give her a new body with Gongxi Chou's physique and the High Priest's face. The chapter ended with Shen Tang trying out her new appearance.

• Shen Tang left Jimò Qiu and Gongxi Chou with New Year's red envelopes, and Gongxi Chou returned to caring for A Dou.
• Gongxi Chou agreed to keep the usual New Year's Eve gathering and rejected matchmaking portraits because none of the prospective matches could fight.
• Shen Tang learned that Another Spring was her private property and found Qi Shan there with Qin Li, He Xin and his wife, Tan Mengyuan, Ning Yan, Li Wan, and Kang Shi.
• Shen Tang handed out New Year's red envelopes and learned that Qi Shan's group had been fishing, where he had sabotaged Qin Li before losing.
• Shen Tang asked Qi Shan to make her a body like Gongxi Chou's with the High Priest's face, and she received the new body at the start of the year.

Shen Tang celebrated the New Year at Another Spring, handing out gifts, enjoying a sheep feast, and competing in a Sandbox Battlefield match. The festivities later caused confusion at court when censors accused Qi Shan of poisoning them with pastries that temporarily stole their voices.

• Shen Tang changed into Gongxi Chou's appearance and openly admired his physique before leaving to distribute New Year's money.
• A Gongxi Chou fan asked Shen Tang for an autograph, and she wrote bold battle slogans on his back.
• Shen Tang joined the others at Another Spring, where Xu Xie devised a way for the gathering to watch a Sandbox Battlefield match; Shen Tang's team lost to Bai Su and Li Wan.
• The group ate ten roasted sheep and tried Shen Tang's cooking, after which several people remembered how quiet she had been for days.
• At the Flower Festival, censors accused Qi Shan of poisoning them with pastries that temporarily made them mute, while Qi Shan insisted the pastries were an imperial gift.

In Yuanhuang Year Eight, Shen Tang remained focused on governing Kang Country while preparing for a chance to move against her rivals. In Qi Country, Cui Hui’s imprisonment and torture sparked Cui Zhi’s open defiance of the law and Mei Meng’s demotion.

• Wei Cheng visited Shen Tang and urged her to launch a campaign, saying Wei Lou hoped she would win; Shen Tang said she was waiting for an opportunity and had already made arrangements.
• A letter arrived for Shen Tang, who read it and said an east wind was rising.
• Miao Ne visited the imprisoned Cui Hui, warmed her, and promised to tell Cui Zhishan the truth about her condition.
• Cui Zhi broke into the prison and carried Cui Hui away, openly shielding her from the law.
• Mei Jinghe confronted Cui Zhi, while Qi’s Sovereign rebuked Mei Meng for failing to provide evidence against the Cui clan.
• Cui Hui woke to learn that Mei Meng had been demoted, and she asked Miao Ne whether she had been promoted.

After Cui Hui survived her staged torture, she revealed to Cui Mi that she had used herself as a pawn to drive a wedge between Mei Meng and the Sovereign. Cui Zhi began considering how the Sovereign might win Shen Zhongli over, while Cui Hui recovered from injuries that could shorten her life.

• Cui Hui woke after three days and four nights unconscious and learned from Liao Jia that Cui Zhi had desperately sought physicians and prayed for her recovery.
• Cui Hui admitted that she had arranged the torture with Liao Jia to disrupt the alliance between Mei Meng and the Sovereign and shift the Sovereign toward the aristocratic forces.
• Cui Mi arrived and learned that his mother wanted the Sovereign to win Shen Zhongli's loyalty, then promised not to reveal what he had heard.
• Cui Mi thanked Liao Jia for helping save Cui Hui, and Liao Jia tested him with a question about what might have happened if she had died.
• Cui Zhi learned from Cui Mi that Cui Hui might suffer lasting damage to her lifespan and resolved to handle her recovery himself.
• Cui Zhi realized that the Sovereign should respond to Cui Hui's suffering by making amends, and Cui Mi silently recognized that his parents were both plotting to win Shen Zhongli over.

After recovering, Cui Hui challenged Cui Xiong over his treatment of Bao Jun while Shen Tang used her promotion and growing forces to prepare a swift campaign to conquer the Southwest Continent. The chapter ended as an assassin attacked Shen Tang while she was leaving for her new post, and she seized the initiative to counterattack.

• Cui Xiong told Cui Hui that he had sent Bao Jun away because he resented the Sovereign and feared Bao Jun might betray him, and Cui Hui urged him to consider his fiancée’s feelings.
• The Sovereign of Qi rewarded Cui Hui, praised Shen Tang’s record, and appointed Shen Tang’s disguise to govern an expansive commandery, fueling rumors of renewed ties between the Sovereign and the Cui family.
• Shen Tang told Liao Jia she planned to take the Southwest Continent within a year, and Liao Jia questioned whether the Central Continent would allow them enough time.
• Shen Tang explained that Wei Cheng and her Central Continent incarnation, Zixu, could help delay any intervention, while Kang’s officials were already eager to fight.
• After delaying her transfer for ten days, Shen Tang set out for her new post and narrowly evaded an assassin’s ambush before attacking him in return.

Shen Tang fought off a shadow-hiding assassin who escaped after she wounded him, then discussed the attack and her many political enemies with Liao Qian. She suspected someone in Mei Jinghe’s circle was responsible.

• A mysterious killer ambushed Shen Tang with deceptive attacks, but she struck his hidden body through the shadow beneath her feet.
• The wounded killer melted into darkness and escaped, leaving Shen Tang unable to finish him off.
• Liao Qian arrived and found Shen Tang barefoot beside a pool of blood; she explained that an assassin with strange shadow-based abilities had attacked her.
• Shen Tang and Liao Qian discussed the assassin’s limitations and the many enemies Shen Tang had made through her political work.
• Liao Qian suspected someone displaced by Shen Tang’s appointment, but Shen Tang thought the culprit might be someone in Mei Jinghe’s circle.

Mei Meng dealt with a subordinate who had arranged an unauthorized assassination, while her investigation into a stolen military deployment letter deepened the rift between her and the Sovereign. The letter reached Shen Tang, who faced an envoy from a small Southwest country seeking Kang Country’s protection from Qi Country.

• Shen Tang told Liao Qian that Mei Meng could not punish subordinates who acted in her name without risking her remaining support, and Mei Meng’s subordinate admitted hiring an assassin for his own interests.
• Mei Meng learned the assassin had failed, then Qi Cang killed the subordinate for betraying her.
• Mei Meng continued investigating the stolen deployment letter as the Sovereign rejected her evidence against the Cui clan, burned the documents, and further damaged their trust.
• A small Southwest country’s envoy asked Shen Tang to make it a vassal state in exchange for protection from Qi Country.
• The envoy presented a letter that Mei Jinghe recognized, revealing that the stolen confidential letter had reached Shen Tang.

Shen Tang weighed a neighboring country's plea for protection while Kang Country secretly prepared to act against Qi Country. Tan Ting and Qin Li considered how to turn the conflict into a just cause for expansion, and Shen Tang told the envoy that a small force had already been sent ahead.

• The envoy's vivid storybook-inspired thoughts about Shen Tang made Gu Chi cough, and he told Shen Tang that the envoy was one of her Supporters who had come to curry favor.
• The envoy explained that a minister in Qi Country had possessed the stolen documents, which were sold at an auction, and said investigations had confirmed Qi Country was fortifying locations and stockpiling provisions.
• Shen Tang challenged the envoy's request for military aid by stressing its costs, but the envoy swore an oath on her imperial clan and promised her country would remain Kang Country's vassal.
• Tan Ting warned that helping the threatened state could create trouble, while Qin Li argued Kang Country should send troops quickly and let Qi Country's actions provide a pretext to seize the land.
• Shen Tang told the envoy she had dispatched a disguised force of three hundred elite soldiers, while Gongxi Chou had not yet arrived and Shen Tang and Liao Jia continued stirring tensions in Qi Country.

Shen Tang sent Gongxi Chou toward the Southwest with orders to put up a serious fight, while Liao Jia stoked Qi Country’s anger over Kang’s mobilization. Qi’s officials considered destroying You Country’s royal house to remove Kang’s pretext for intervention, leaving Qi Cang to face the prospect of fighting Gongxi Chou.

• Gongxi Chou asked Shen Tang whether she truly wanted to save You Country, and she ordered him to fight seriously because she had arranged for someone to handle matters.
• Jimò Qiu prayed for Gongxi Chou’s fortune, received signs of repeated defeats in the Southwest, and gave him powerful Gu Worms to use if necessary.
• Gongxi Chou left secretly at night, while A Dou’s parents struggled to quiet her until she stopped crying and asked Xun Ding for a hug.
• Liao Jia informed Qi Country that Kang had sent an estimated hundred thousand troops to answer You Country’s request for aid.
• Cui Zhi proposed eliminating You Country’s royal house so Kang could no longer claim it was restoring the country.
• Qi Cang said that war was not a one-on-one fight when Cui Zhi asked whether he could handle Gongxi Chou.

The Sovereign told Mei Meng about Cui Zhi’s plan to win the loyalty of a powerful hidden ancestor, deepening Mei Meng’s doubts about their relationship and her influence over the throne. Meanwhile, Gongxi Chou entered You Country to aid its imperial line, got lost, and discovered a stranded physician carrying herbs for male ailments.

• Mei Meng warned the Sovereign that Qi Cang was no match for Gongxi Chou, but the Sovereign insisted Gongxi Chou would die if he came.
• The Sovereign explained that Cui Zhi had introduced a young man descended from a powerful Marquis who had spent years studying male ailments after discovering he was infertile.
• Mei Meng realized the Sovereign was tempted by the aristocratic clans’ support, then asked whether someone had been arranged to kill Gongxi Chou; the Sovereign said the person would act at the critical moment.
• Gongxi Chou crossed into You Country with a small group, but the crude map led them astray in unfamiliar terrain.
• Gongxi Chou and his men found a middle-aged physician stranded at the bottom of a hidden cliff, and Gongxi Chou recognized the man’s herbs as treatments for male ailments.

Gongxi Chou’s party met a reclusive herb gatherer who recognized Gongxi Chou’s hidden infertility, then warned them away. Soon after, Gongxi Chou arrived by giant python in the war-torn You Kingdom, where Qi Cang awaited him with a sudden urge to kill.

• The deputy general offended the herb gatherer, and Gongxi Chou used his knowledge of herbs and a promise of his older brother’s medical expertise to persuade the man to guide them.
• Gongxi Chou explained that his older brother could treat infertility, and the herb gatherer claimed Gongxi Chou himself could not father children because of his Martial Gall Totem and martial energy.
• The herb gatherer revealed his overwhelming strength, told Gongxi Chou’s party to leave, and vanished at the foot of the mountain.
• Gongxi Chou admitted he had not recognized the man’s strength at first and warned that they might meet again if the herb gatherer was an enemy.
• Qi Cang held the severed head of the You Kingdom’s Sovereign amid the capital’s destruction and asked why Gongxi Chou had not arrived.
• Gongxi Chou arrived on a gigantic python, and Qi Cang felt his blood and bones stir with an urge to kill.

Qi Cang confronted Gongxi Chou over their old grudge and launched a full-strength attack, but a mysterious herb gatherer struck Gongxi Chou first with an ice attack. The chapter ended with Qi Cang staring in shock at the newcomer.

• Qi Cang recognized Gongxi Chou and challenged him, while Gongxi Chou initially failed to remember who he was.
• Qi Cang grew furious when Gongxi Chou dismissed him and unleashed his martial energy against him.
• Gongxi Chou summoned a venomous snake-headed whip and fought Qi Cang as the two exchanged powerful attacks.
• Gongxi Chou finally recognized Qi Cang as a former servant of Zheng Qiao just as Qi Cang’s massive sword strike closed in.
• A casually dressed herb gatherer attacked Gongxi Chou from behind with an ice strike, interrupting Qi Cang’s blow.

Gongxi Chou used a Gu Worm to force his cultivation to the Nineteenth Rank and fought the herb-gatherer, who nearly struck his vulnerable seven-inch mark. Jimò Qiu arrived in time to block the attack, then scolded Gongxi Chou for using the life-saving Gu Worm too soon.

• The herb-gatherer dismissed Qi Cang as a hindrance and ordered him to stand aside while he faced Gongxi Chou.
• Gongxi Chou recognized the herb-gatherer, and the two exchanged taunts before Gongxi Chou bit down on the Gu Worm in his mouth.
• The Gu Worm raised Gongxi Chou's aura to the Nineteenth Rank, and he began a dangerous transformation that caused his scales to peel away.
• The herb-gatherer attacked Gongxi Chou's seven-inch vital point with his saber, but a crimson spear-shadow split the strike apart.
• Jimò Qiu arrived and blocked the herb-gatherer's attack, then questioned why Gongxi Chou had used the Gu Worm before he was in mortal danger.

Gongxi Chou and Jimò Qiu fought Gongyang Yongye, whose weakened resolve had dulled the power of his Hundred Ghosts Saber. Gongxi Chou’s Dragon Breath struck Gongyang Yongye’s inner demon, and ink light began to cut through the flames.

• Gongxi Chou apologized when Jimò Qiu arrived, while the Herb-Picking Man urged Jimò Qiu to abandon the Highness’s cause.
• Jimò Qiu challenged Gongyang Yongye, and the Herb-Picking Man summoned his Evil Ghost Martial Armor and drew the Hundred Ghosts Saber.
• Gongxi Chou and Jimò Qiu coordinated their attacks against Gongyang Yongye, whose fading saber momentum kept him from defeating them.
• Gongxi Chou spat a vast torrent of Dragon Breath at Gongyang Yongye, while Jimò Qiu contained the flames and warned A Nian to control them next time.
• Jimò Qiu realized the fire had struck Gongyang Yongye’s inner demon, and ink light cleaved through the sea of flames.

The herb-gatherer regained his fighting spirit after Jimò Qiu burned away his inner-devil Qi, then attacked Gongxi Chou and Jimò Qiu. Jimò Qiu survived a lethal-looking strike and helped Gongxi Chou trap and poison the herb-gatherer, but the herb-gatherer unleashed a powerful attack to slay the dragon.

• Jimò Qiu explained that the flames had temporarily burned away the herb-gatherer's inner-devil Qi, and the herb-gatherer returned to his former strength with the Hundred Ghosts Saber.
• The herb-gatherer challenged the Gongxi brothers, and Gongxi Chou transformed into a True Dragon while Jimò Qiu began a spell with his wooden staff.
• The herb-gatherer used a hidden cage of light to slice Jimò Qiu apart, but Jimò Qiu survived and summoned a repeating crossbow made of Qi.
• Gongxi Chou fired explosive light balls while Jimò Qiu helped him evade attacks, and their blasts carried Gu Worms that numbed the herb-gatherer's muscles.
• The herb-gatherer purged the poison and struck at Gongxi Chou with a powerful saber attack that formed a demonic mask around the dragon.

Gongxi Chou recovered from his wounds and learned that Jimò Qiu believed he could bear a child, while the herb-gatherer’s victory over him earned rewards from Qi Country. The herb-gatherer gave those rewards to his descendant, then grew disillusioned after hearing the young man pass the women on to soldiers.

• Jimò Qiu treated Gongxi Chou with Gu Worms, and Gongxi Chou explained that the herb-gatherer’s Death Qi made him a natural counter.
• Gongxi Chou asked whether he could have children, and Jimò Qiu said he could bear one himself if he wanted to.
• The adjutant warned Jimò Qiu that the court might exploit male Martial Gall Warriors for reproduction if it learned about the Gu Worms.
• Qi Cang reported the victory over You Country and Gongxi Chou’s injury to the Sovereign of Qi Country, who rewarded the herb-gatherer with a carriage of women.
• The herb-gatherer gave the rewards to his descendant, who passed the women on to soldiers, and the herb-gatherer lamented that the world had not changed.

The herb-gatherer stopped the young man from treating female captives as rewards, while Qi Country’s Sovereign pressed ahead with her plans against Kang Country. Shen Tang revealed that You Country’s princess had survived, and the princess begged her to avenge the royal house.

• The officer claimed the young man wanted to arrange marriages for the female captives, and the herb-gatherer approved while reminding the young man not to shame his ancestor.
• The herb-gatherer recalled the washerwoman’s hardships and her descendants, while the young man sought Cui Zhi’s advice after the rebuke.
• Qi Country’s Sovereign ordered the captives handled by the old rules and discussed Mei Meng’s efforts to protect women with Qi Cang.
• Cui Zhi told the Sovereign that Gongyang Yongye could not be relied on, and she ordered You Country’s destruction proclaimed to test Shen Tang’s response.
• Shen Tang declared that You Country’s princess had survived, prompting Qi Country’s Sovereign to challenge her identity.
• The princess, enraged by the slaughter of her family, clutched Shen Tang’s robe and begged her to kill Qi Country’s Sovereign.

Shen Tang agreed to help the You Kingdom’s imperial-clan daughter seek revenge and warned her not to idealize the Sovereign of Qi Country. As Kang Country prepared to confront Qi Country, a Southwest alliance formed against Shen Tang, while Qi Cang visited her disguised identity and hinted at a familiar secret.

• Shen Tang let the You Kingdom’s imperial-clan daughter vent, then agreed to help her and explained that the Sovereign of Qi Country had used power to serve her own desires.
• The imperial-clan daughter stopped romanticizing the Sovereign of Qi Country but remained determined to kill her, and Shen Tang said she wanted the same.
• Shen Tang demanded that the Southwest countries return You Kingdom’s territory and compensate it or join Qi Country against Kang Country.
• Most small Southwest countries refused to support Qi Country, but an alliance called the Dragon Slaying Bureau formed to punish Kang Country.
• Qi Cang visited Shen Tang in her Zhongli Fu disguise, denied coming because of the Cui clan or Mei Meng, and asked whether the stone bird-and-fish ornaments at his waist looked familiar.

Qi Country struggled to hold its fractious Dragon Slaying Bureau alliance together as Shen Tang and Liao Jia secretly exploited the chaos. The allied forces were abruptly hit by a night raid, though the chapter left the attackers unidentified.

• Qi Cang tested Zhongli Fu, suspected she was Shen Tang, and later greeted Cui Zhi with unusual warmth.
• Cui Zhi learned Qi Cang had spoken with Zhongli Fu but refused to spy on them while war was imminent.
• Miao Ne, disguised as You Bao, tried to persuade the Sovereign of Qi Country to plead for Mei Jinghe, but he refused to press her before she was ready.
• Rival allied forces fought after discovering that troops upstream had contaminated their drinking water, and Cui Zhi intervened after more than ten people died.
• Shen Tang and Liao Jia secretly stirred up trouble among the allied forces while Liao Qian and Cui Mi discussed Cui Zhi's troubles.
• The Dragon Slaying Bureau Plus forces faced an unexplained night raid on their camp.