Chapter Summaries

Yu Sui survived the Golden Crow Red Arrow, and Mei Chengyu rescued her while dragging the defeated Wen Yanghui down the mountain. As they traveled, Yu Sui spoke about her painful past and her hard-won self-acceptance, while Mei Chengyu admitted he wanted to become the happiest person in the world.

• Mei Chengyu kicked the gravely injured Wen Yanghui down the mountain and found Yu Sui lying beneath it, apparently dead.
• Mei Chengyu reached Yu Sui, discovered she was alive, and healed her with Five Elements Qi and the Medical School's Heavenly Secrets Technique.
• Mei Chengyu carried Yu Sui and dragged Wen Yanghui away in an Iron Chain, while Yu Sui smeared blood over herself to hide the location of her wound.
• Mei Chengyu told Yu Sui that he would not become her enemy even if he knew all her secrets, and they discussed Wen Yanghui's family and the danger of killing him.
• Yu Sui reflected on her parents' lack of love, her past despair, and how she had learned to accept and love herself.
• Yu Sui told Mei Chengyu that if she loved him, he would be the happiest person in the world, and Mei Chengyu said he wanted to work toward that goal.

Mei Chengyu carried the wounded Yu Sui out of danger while resolving to have Sage Chang Gen kill Wen Yanghui. On Mechanism Island, the Situ siblings warned the Wen Yang Family about the crisis, and Sage Chang Gen’s consciousness descended demanding that they hand the captives over.

• Mei Chengyu carried Yu Sui through the snowy mountain, told her Wen Yanghui had to die, and tried to keep her awake until she fell asleep in his arms.
• Lady Linxiang discovered Wen Yanghui had taken the Mechanism Nine Dice and learned the Situ siblings were bringing the matter before Wen Yangzhi.
• Situ Jin and Situ Ling arrived at the Meeting Hall, where Situ Jin explained that Wen Yanghui had trapped Mei Chengyu and a woman who might be Nangong Sui on Second Mechanism Island.
• Wen Yangzhi confronted Lady Linxiang about helping Wen Yanghui, and she broke down as he warned that killing Mei Chengyu could destroy the Mechanism Clan.
• Sage Chang Gen’s consciousness pressed down over the Heavenly Cloud Court and demanded that they hand the captives over.

Mei Chengyu and Yu Sui escaped Second Mechanism Island with Wen Yanghui after Mei Chengyu defeated Sui Tianjun, and Mei Chengyu entrusted Yu Sui with memories his master had sealed. Sage Chang Gen killed Wen Yanghui for trying to kill his disciples, while Shi Yuezhen prepared to take the injured Mei Chengyu and Yu Sui back to the academy.

• Mei Chengyu passed Yu Sui a Star Source Curse containing memories of his childhood and explained that Gu Gan’s seal had erased his past.
• Mei Chengyu brought Wen Yanghui and Yu Sui out of Second Mechanism Island, where they met the Wen Yang Family, Sage Chang Gen, and Medical School Saint Jiang Shulan.
• Wen Yanghui blamed Mei Chengyu for Sui Tianjun’s death, but Mei Chengyu demanded an explanation for the attempt on his life.
• Sage Chang Gen struck Wen Yanghui with Thunder Serpents and killed him despite pleas from the Wen Yang Family Head.
• Jiang Shulan offered treatment, but Mei Chengyu and Yu Sui declined her care and asked Shi Yuezhen to help them instead.

Mei Chengyu returned to the academy with the wounded Yu Sui after Wen Yanghui died, while Gu Gan resolved to pursue the matter. At the dormitory, Gu Gan confronted Mei Chengyu, whose seal then triggered another fragment of memories showing a gentle white-robed man and three children.

• Mei Chengyu and Shi Yuezhen brought the unconscious Yu Sui back to the academy, and Shi Yuezhen agreed to care for her.
• Mei Chengyu explained that Wen Yanghui’s accusations of parental favoritism were false, while Yu Sui examined the memories in the Star Source Curse he had given her.
• Xue Mushi received Yu Sui’s message, and Wei Ren struggled with her distrust of him.
• Qian Ying told Gu Gan that Wen Yanghui had died; Gu Gan mourned his former friend and said he would not let the matter go.
• Mei Chengyu returned to the dormitory, where Yu Sui heard his memories and recognized that he had once been cherished by his family.
• Gu Gan stopped Mei Chengyu outside the dormitory to ask where Yu Sui was, and Mei Chengyu’s seal revealed a memory of a white-robed man with three children.

Mei Chengyu fought Gu Gan and told him that Wen Yanghui had nearly killed Nangong Sui before his death, but Gu Gan rejected the claim and searched for her. Gu Gan learned that Nangong Sui was injured and hidden somewhere in the academy, and Sheng Zui joined the effort to find her.

• Mei Chengyu and Gu Gan stopped fighting when instructors on night patrol intervened, and Mei Chengyu told Gu Gan to look in his room for Nangong Sui.
• Mei Chengyu told Gu Gan that Wen Yanghui had nearly killed Nangong Sui, but Gu Gan refused to believe him and went to Mei Chengyu's dormitory.
• Gu Gan triggered Wei Ren's traps while searching Mei Chengyu's room, then learned from Wei Ren that Nangong Sui was injured and had not been brought to the dormitory.
• Gu Gan tried to use the Mohist School's Name-Seeking technique to locate Nangong Sui, but failed and decided to seek Sheng Zui's help.
• Gu Gan told Sheng Zui that Nangong Sui was badly injured and hidden by Mei Chengyu, and Sheng Zui messaged Mei Chengyu before preparing to search for her.

Sheng Zui attacked Gu Gan after learning Yu Sui had nearly died, while Gu Gan used his Mystic Technique to demand to know where she was. As the instructors took the two men away, Yu Sui considered the World Destroyers and the strange fire, ending by waiting for the flame to appear in her palm.

• Sheng Zui read Yu Sui’s messages saying she did not want to see Gu Gan, then attacked Gu Gan when he demanded to know where she was.
• Sheng Zui accused Gu Gan of being connected to Wen Yanghui’s attempt to kill Yu Sui, and Gu Gan openly used his Mystic Technique to dispel Sheng Zui’s Nine Schools Technique.
• Gu Gan accused Sheng Zui of caring about Yu Sui only when it involved him, while Sheng Zui told the watching disciples that Yu Sui did not want to see Gu Gan.
• Yu Sui received Wei Ren’s updates about the fight and continued planning to move out and live alone.
• Yu Sui reflected on the five World Destroyers and the strange fire, then opened her hand and waited for the tiny flame to appear.

Yu Sui recovered from her injuries while Mei Chengyu reclaimed the memories stored in the Star Source Curse and confirmed that the Spiritwood Seed had revealed her strange fire to him. As they grew closer and their friends fussed over them, Mei Chengyu began considering how to find the places in his memories, though he remained bound to Taiyi by Sage Chang Gen.

• Yu Sui woke briefly, then slept while Mei Chengyu went to speak with Master about his lost memories.
• Mei Chengyu told Yu Sui that Master believed the past should remain in the past, and admitted he wanted his memories back.
• Cang Shu interrupted Yu Sui and Mei Chengyu as she returned his memories through the Star Source Curse, then Xing Chun arrived to check on Mei Chengyu.
• Yu Sui asked whether the Spiritwood Seed had revealed her strange fire, and Mei Chengyu confirmed it before she thanked him.
• Xing Chun and the others gathered food from Cang Shu's fields, while Mei Chengyu stopped Zhongli Shan from taking both rabbits.
• As Yu Sui recuperated, she asked Mei Chengyu to find the places in his memories and wondered what Master would do if he left Taiyi; Mei Chengyu recounted how Master had stopped him from leaving before.

While recovering, Yu Sui helped Gu Gan decipher the Secret Text needed to reach Hanging Moon Cave and learned from Mei Chengyu why the Mechanism Clan’s inventions had been suppressed. Mei Chengyu revealed that Instructor Mu, Yan Xiaochuan’s master, had told him about the history of the Six Kingdoms.

• Mei Chengyu kept Yu Sui company as she recovered, while Sheng Zui and Gu Gan searched for her and his friends guarded him from the Wen Yang Family.
• Yu Sui contacted Gu Gan through her alternate account and offered to decipher the Secret Text so he could pursue the Futuo Tower Fragments in Hanging Moon Cave.
• Gu Gan returned to Xiaoyao Pool with Xun Zhiya to copy the shifting Secret Text, and Yu Sui recorded its changing symbols through the Five Elements Light Core.
• Mei Chengyu brought Yu Sui soup, explained the limits on mechanism keys, and recounted how the Six Kingdoms had destroyed the Mechanism Clan after the King of Yan’s weapon plan was exposed.
• Yu Sui asked who had taught Mei Chengyu about the Six Kingdoms, and he named Instructor Mu, Yan Xiaochuan’s master.

Yu Sui recovered, deciphered the hidden passage’s Secret Text, and began planning with Xue Mushi, Wei Ren, and Li Jinshuang to steal Dustless Earth and fake the Futuo Tower Fragments. In the outer city, she received messages revealing Nangong Ming’s past collaboration with Sage Chang Gen and rewarded Black Beard, securing his loyalty as she awaited her next move.

• Yu Sui studied curse arts with Sage Chang Gen through the night, then gave Xue Mushi the deciphered Secret Text for the hidden passage beneath Xiaoyao Pool.
• Yu Sui told Xue Mushi that Mei Chengyu did not know about the strange fire, and the two discussed how to intercept Gu Gan’s fragments without drawing suspicion.
• Wei Ren proposed stealing Dustless Earth from the Agricultural Knowledge Hall to create a fake of the Futuo Tower Fragments, and Yu Sui agreed to wait two days before preparing for the attempt.
• Yu Sui met Black Beard in the outer city and learned that Nangong Ming and Han Bing were still in Canhai Prefecture, while Lady Su had not contacted Taiyi.
• Nangong Ming’s letter asked Yu Sui to pass his regards to Sage Chang Gen and suggested they collaborate again, startling her with evidence of their past connection.
• Yu Sui gave Black Beard proof of a two-million deposit for his wife, and he pledged to protect her and closely oversee affairs between Qingyang and Taiyi.

Yu Sui met with Sheng Zui in the Outer City, then secretly gathered information about Gu Gan and worked on a device made from Mechanism Wood. After Mei Chengyu came to escort her back, he noticed a suspicious gambler returning to the gambling house.

• Sheng Zui visited Yu Sui, discussed her recovery and the Wen Yang Family, and sent a letter to Nangong Ming about them.
• Sheng Zui accompanied Yu Sui to buy clothes and jewelry before returning to the academy, while Yu Sui stayed in the Outer City to meet Li Jinshuang and work with Black Beard.
• Yu Sui carved Secret Text into pieces of Fusang Wood as Black Beard told her about Gu Gan’s movements and messages over the past two years.
• Yu Sui promised to protect Black Beard’s family, then messaged Mei Chengyu and told him she would return in the morning.
• Mei Chengyu waited near Yu Sui’s tavern without disturbing her, and he noticed a bloodshot-eyed gambler turn back into the gambling house.

Yu Sui created Fusang Pearls that let her group communicate through Listening Wind Rulers, then tested their limits and led a team toward the Agricultural Knowledge Hall to steal Dustless Earth. Xue Mushi and Li Jinshuang entered the hall after fighting through its formations and a giant python, while Yu Sui and Wei Ren kept watch outside.

• Yu Sui made six Fusang Dewdrops, met Mei Chengyu for breakfast, and delivered Nangong Ming's message to Sage Chang Gen, who refused to discuss his work with Yu Sui's father.
• Yu Sui gave Fusang Pearls to Wei Ren, Li Jinshuang, and Xue Mushi; a Golden Thunder strike caused a painful resonance, but the group found the devices otherwise effective.
• Yu Sui and the others planned to steal Dustless Earth from the Agricultural Knowledge Hall, and Wei Ren supplied Breath-Avoiding Pills while Xue Mushi and Li Jinshuang prepared to cross its formations.
• Li Jinshuang and Xue Mushi rode into the reeds, where the Ghost Armor Heavenly Spider grew enormous and helped them defeat a giant green python.
• Li Jinshuang's sword spirit suppressed the Lower Interest Divination, and Yu Sui helped Xue Mushi and Li Jinshuang reach the wall and enter the Agricultural Knowledge Hall.

Li Jinshuang and Xue Mushi retrieved Dustless Earth from the Agricultural Knowledge Hall, and Yu Sui used it to reveal that the Fusang Pearls were replicas without Five Elements Qi. Later, a tense confrontation at the Dining Hall ended with Yu Sui slapping Shu Chujun, while Mei Chengyu and Nian Qiuyan clashed with Zhang Xiangyun and Luo Fu as Gu Gan approached.

• Li Jinshuang and Xue Mushi fought through Wan Spiders and the crushing pressure of the Agricultural Knowledge Hall, then Li Jinshuang took the Dustless Earth and escaped with Xue Mushi.
• Yu Sui pressed the Fusang Pearls into Dustless Earth and discovered it could replicate their appearance but not their Five Elements Qi, then assigned Wei Ren to make a replica of a fragment.
• At the Dining Hall, Kong Yiyi invited Li Jinshuang to spar the next day, while Qian Ying confronted Yu Sui about her injuries and learned how firmly Yu Sui stood by Sheng Zui.
• Qian Ying and Shu Chujun challenged Li Jinshuang for eating with Yu Sui, and Yu Sui slapped Shu Chujun after she accused Yu Sui of sweet-talking Li Jinshuang.
• Gu Gan, Zhang Xiangyun, and Luo Fu entered as the confrontation escalated; Nian Qiuyan broke Zhang Xiangyun's Divine Wood Sign, and Luo Fu crushed the golden lightning Mei Chengyu sent at Zhang Xiangyun.

Yu Sui used a tearful act to turn Gu Gan against Shu Chujun and Qian Ying, then left the Dining Hall with Mei Chengyu. On the way to the Taoist Saint Hall, Mei Chengyu admitted he liked her, leaving Yu Sui stunned.

• Zhang Xiangyun, Mei Chengyu, and Nian Qiuyan exchanged hexes over a broken Divine Wood Sign before the Dining Hall steward stopped them from fighting.
• Yu Sui told Gu Gan that Shu Chujun and Qian Ying had mistreated her, and Gu Gan took her side while Shu Chujun protested.
• Kong Yiyi offered Yu Sui and Li Jinshuang a place to stay, while Mei Chengyu summoned Yu Sui to the Taoist Saint Hall and she chose to leave with him.
• Li Jinshuang asked Xun Zhiya to speak privately, and Gu Gan questioned Qian Ying about whether she had picked on Yu Sui.
• Yu Sui admitted to Mei Chengyu that she had feigned tears to manipulate Gu Gan, and Mei Chengyu said he liked her.
• Yu Sui froze as Mei Chengyu walked ahead, then he turned back with an amused look.

Yu Sui asked Sage Chang Gen about her cultivation and waited to see whether Mei Chengyu would explain his feelings, while Zhongli Que wondered if she liked Gu Jun. After learning that the Taiyi Sage who pursued the World Destroyer had returned, Mei Chengyu hurried to Wutong Tower to speak privately with Instructor Mu Yong'an.

• Yu Sui walked with Mei Chengyu to the Saint Hall, where he warned her to avoid Zhang Xiangyun and Luo Fu and described her reserved older brother, Han Bing.
• Mei Chengyu left after receiving news that the Sage who went to the Dan Kingdom to hunt the World Destroyer had returned, and Yu Sui asked Sage Chang Gen about her power and training the Six Po.
• Yu Sui chose not to inspect Mei Chengyu's messages and instead asked Zhongli Que whether she liked Captain Gu Jun; Zhongli Que admitted he was handsome and charming but wondered what liking someone meant.
• Yu Sui told Zhongli Que that she had arranged a gift that would let her listen to Taiyi's lectures, but kept its identity secret.
• Mei Chengyu arrived at Wutong Tower and went to see the awake Instructor Mu Yong'an, while Yan Xiaochuan waited downstairs.

Mu Yong'an explained the history of the World Destroyers, Strange Fire, and the Water Vessel to Mei Chengyu, including how Nangong Ming was undermining Yan and why Yan Manfeng was its last hope. Mei Chengyu resolved to protect his Junior Martial Sister from confinement in the Water Vessel, while Mu Yong'an ended the conversation gravely ill and warned him that someone from outside would come looking for him.

• Mei Chengyu told Mu Yong'an he had decided to recover his memories and asked whether his grudge involved the World Destroyers; Mu Yong'an said it did not.
• Mu Yong'an described the World Destroyers' past disasters, the changing danger of Strange Fire, and how the Water Vessel had been created to contain those willing to study it.
• Mu Yong'an explained that Nangong Ming had spent generations weakening Yan and that Yan Manfeng's death would extinguish the country's remaining hope.
• Mu Yong'an recounted Situ Fei and Zhao Xayan's experiences with the Water Vessel and revealed that Gao Tianhao had been friendly with Mei Chengyu because Mei had once saved him.
• Mu Yong'an said the Saints and Six Nations planned to offer the World Destroyers a chance to enter the Water Vessel; Mei Chengyu thought of his Junior Martial Sister and rejected the prospect of her being confined there.
• Mu Yong'an told Mei Chengyu to take Yan Xiaochuan when he left Taiyi, then coughed up blood after Mei departed; a woman in the Black Shadow warned that Mu Yong'an and his disciple might not survive.

Mei Chengyu learned that Yan Xiaochuan knew his forgotten past, then spent two days helping him challenge the Twelve Sky Ladders at Jueyun Peak. Exhausted, Mei Chengyu brought Yu Sui records about the World Destroyer and Shuizhou, but fell asleep while she studied them.

• Mei Chengyu asked Yan Xiaochuan whether he knew him, and Yan Xiaochuan confirmed they had been as close as brothers before Mei Chengyu lost his memory.
• Mei Chengyu followed Yan Xiaochuan through his many errands and joined him in challenging the Twelve Sky Ladders at Jueyun Peak.
• Yan Xiaochuan repeatedly tried to reach the Ninth Ladder, while Mei Chengyu attempted the Eleventh Ladder and was knocked back to the bottom.
• After nearly two days of climbing, Mei Chengyu returned to the dormitory, asked where Yu Sui was, and went to her new room.
• Mei Chengyu showed Yu Sui records about the World Destroyer and Shuizhou, then fell asleep as she read them.

Yu Sui considered the changing strange fire and the Water Vessel Plan while Mei Chengyu slept, then realized Mei Chengyu’s growing feelings for her as Gu Gan arrived with breakfast. After Yu Sui destroyed Gu Gan’s listening spell and teased Mei Chengyu about love and jealousy, she whispered that Taiyi possessed fragments of the Futuo Tower.

• Yu Sui reviewed the strange fire’s history and rejected the idea of going to the Water Vessel, deciding to focus on learning more Nine Schools Techniques.
• Mei Chengyu woke and watched Yu Sui sleep, recognizing that he had come to enjoy being alone with her.
• Gu Gan arrived with breakfast and was shocked to find Mei Chengyu in Yu Sui’s room, while Yu Sui explained that she had invited her Senior Martial Brother to discuss Ghost Dao School techniques.
• Yu Sui sensed and crushed the Eavesdropping Butterfly Gu Gan had left behind, then told Mei Chengyu that Gu Gan liked both her and Xun Zhiya.
• Mei Chengyu threatened to kill anyone Yu Sui might fall for, and they discussed his recovered memories and the need to keep his situation secret.
• Yu Sui whispered to Mei Chengyu that Taiyi had fragments of the Futuo Tower.

Yu Sui and Mei Chengyu discussed the Futuo Tower Fragments, Taiyi’s ruling Sages, and their suspicions about who was pursuing the fragments. After Yu Sui went to class, Mei Chengyu studied Yin-Yang School star positions with Xing Chun until Nian Qiuyan contacted him about a child looking for him at the academy gates.

• Yu Sui told Mei Chengyu that Nangong Ming had sent her to save Gu Gan and help him find the Futuo Tower Fragments, and they considered whether Taiyi’s Sages had leaked the fragments’ location.
• Mei Chengyu explained how the Geothermal Core Power selected Taiyi’s Twenty-Four Saints, and Yu Sui and Mei Chengyu discussed Grandmother Situ’s Yanshu and the possibility that Mei Chengyu’s master was from Qingyang.
• Yu Sui explained that Gu Gan’s Legalism Judgment Technique had killed Yu Xian and told Mei Chengyu she planned to let Gu Gan steal the fragments before taking them from him.
• Yu Sui attended a beginner class to observe how Five Elements Qi moved during the Nine Schools Techniques and sent Xue Mushi what she had learned about the planned announcement concerning World Destroyers and Shuizhou.
• Mei Chengyu met Xing Chun at the Observatory, asked him about Water and Fire Compatibility techniques, and examined the Fourteen Mansions of Xuanwu and Zhuque on the Armillary Sphere.
• Nian Qiuyan contacted Mei Chengyu and told him that a child at the academy gates was asking for him.

Mei Chengyu and Nian Qiuyan helped Xiao Tu with money for his sick mother, then went to Mingzhu Casino to find his gambling father. At the casino, a crowded betting game featuring a Love-struck Gu began as Mei Chengyu studied the gamblers.

• Xiao Tu asked Mei Chengyu to save his mother after his father gambled away the family’s money, and Mei Chengyu explained the boy’s situation to Nian Qiuyan.
• Nian Qiuyan gave Xiao Tu money for his mother’s urgent expenses, and Mei Chengyu agreed they should find the boy’s father and make him take responsibility.
• Mei Chengyu and Nian Qiuyan headed to Mingzhu Casino, where Mei Chengyu knew Xiao Tu’s father would be gambling.
• Mei Chengyu recalled that he had joined a gang in the Outer City six years earlier after arguing with his master about leaving Taiyi.
• The casino dealer opened betting on a Love-struck Gu made from the Sixteen Poisons, and Nian Qiuyan asked Mei Chengyu if he wanted it.

Mei Chengyu and Nian Qiuyan went to Mingzhu Casino seeking the Love-struck Gu and the Little Earth Father, but Wei Lingshu and her accomplices accused the casino of cheating and turned the crowd against it. The Mingzhu Casino Steward learned Wei Lingshu was the new Tianhe Gang chief’s lover, and Mei Chengyu recognized her revenge for gouging out the chief’s eye as the accusation against him escalated.

• Nian Qiuyan and Mei Chengyu discussed taking a Love-struck Gu from Cang Shu, while Wei Lingshu invited them to wager on which Poison Beast would survive.
• Wei Lingshu urged Mei Chengyu and Nian Qiuyan to bet, but both refused before the casino began the Poison Beasts’ fight.
• Two men brought Little Earth Father to the table and accused him of cheating, and Mei Chengyu denied that he was the person he had come to find.
• Little Earth Father accused Mei Chengyu of ordering him to cheat, while Wei Lingshu and the Scarred Man claimed Mingzhu Casino had drugged the Poison Beasts.
• Number Seven and Number Nine died as the Scarred Man predicted, and the crowd accused Mingzhu Casino of rigging the game.
• The Mingzhu Casino Steward identified Wei Lingshu as the new Tianhe Gang chief’s lover, and Mei Chengyu realized she wanted revenge for gouging out the chief’s left eye.