Chapter Summaries

Gongsun Lin confronted Liuli after seeing her concern for Xiao Yan, then pulled them into a separate space and warned her against interfering with the Xiao Family. Liuli refused to leave with him, saying she needed to resolve matters with Xiao Yan first, and asked to discuss something serious with her father.

• Gongsun Lin seized Xiao Yan by the collar and hurled him toward the Misty Cloud Sect plaza, where Xiao Yan cushioned his fall but injured his hands.
• Liuli hurried to Xiao Yan and gave him a healing pill, then explained that it came from her; Gongsun Lin transported them into a Small World.
• Gongsun Lin criticized Liuli for only reaching Dou Zong after nearly three years and warned her that her ties to Xiao Yan could raise suspicions about the Sword Clan's interest in the Ancient Jade.
• Gongsun Lin expelled Xiao Yan from the Small World and explained that the Sword Clan had to avoid involvement with the Xiao Family's Ancient Jade.
• Liuli refused to return to Jia Nan Academy with Gongsun Lin, saying she had unresolved matters with Xiao Yan, then asked her father to hear something important.

Xiao Yan returned to the Misty Cloud Sect to fulfill his Three Year Agreement with Nalan Yanran, while Jia Xingtian and Fa Ma learned that a powerful Dou Zong had recently been defeated by someone Xiao Yan summoned. Xiao Yan and Nalan Yanran began a fierce duel, which ended with her advancing on him using the Wind Spirit Fractal Sword.

• Xiao Yan returned to the square, confirmed his identity, and declared that he had come to fulfill the Three Year Agreement.
• Hai Bodong told Jia Xingtian and Fa Ma that a powerful Dou Zong had been dealt with by a great figure summoned by Xiao Yan.
• Yun Leng agreed to let the duel proceed with life and death left to fate, and Xiao Yan challenged Nalan Yanran over the humiliation she had brought upon his family.
• Nalan Yanran struck first with her Green Longsword and Wind Blades, but Xiao Yan countered with his Mysterious Heavy Ruler and Green Flame.
• Nalan Yanran used the Wind Spirit Fractal Sword to form six sword shadows and charged at Xiao Yan.

Xiao Yan and Nalan Yanran continued their duel, with Xiao Yan gaining the advantage through his techniques but exhausting his Dou Qi. Nalan Yanran survived his final explosive attack and stabbed him through the abdomen, leaving the match’s outcome uncertain.

• Xiao Yan used his Purple Cloud Wings and Dou Skills to destroy Nalan Yanran’s sword phantoms and send her crashing to the ground.
• Xiao Yan took a Qi Replenishing Pill but avoided restoring too much Dou Qi because it could trigger a dangerous breakthrough.
• Xiao Yan used Explosive Steps to strike Nalan Yanran with a combined attack based on the Eight Extremes Collapse and Nine Heavens Firefall Palm.
• Nalan Yanran emerged from the flames with a dark-red energy barrier protecting her, though she had suffered internal injuries.
• Nalan Yanran charged at the exhausted Xiao Yan, pierced his abdomen with her longsword, and apologized to him as Yan Xiao.

After realizing Xiao Yan was the Yan Xiao she loved, Nalan Yanran regretted their past, while Liuli intervened and healed Xiao Yan after their duel. Xiao Yan survived but began breaking through, and Liuli hinted that Nalan Yanran could make amends before turning to Yun Leng with a request.

• Nalan Yanran recognized Xiao Yan as Yan Xiao, regretted breaking their engagement, and threw away the Fire Spirit Pearl that had blocked his final strike.
• Liuli appeared, effortlessly split Yun Leng’s dust attack with Sword Qi, and stopped Nalan Yanran from remaining beside the wounded Xiao Yan.
• Liuli pulled the sword from Xiao Yan’s abdomen and used the White Flame to heal his wound and steady his rampaging Dou Qi.
• Xiao Yan’s breathing stabilized, and Liuli said he was out of danger but was about to break through and could not keep fighting.
• Liuli asked Nalan Yanran whether she wanted to make up for her mistakes, then turned to Yun Leng with something to ask him.

Xiao Yan woke to find that Old Yao had returned and learned that his recent injuries and a powerful pill had raised his cultivation to Four-star Dou Grandmaster. Old Yao explained the dangers posed by the Soul Hall and Mo Yuan, then revealed that Xiao Yan's Three Year Agreement had been postponed by three days.

• Xiao Yan woke and reunited with Old Yao, who examined his severed finger and marveled at his cultivation breakthrough.
• Xiao Yan recounted his recent encounters, and Old Yao identified his attacker as a member of the Soul Hall and named Mo Yuan as a peak Dou Zun.
• Old Yao warned Xiao Yan to avoid the Soul Hall and explained that Mo Yuan was connected to a powerful force.
• Xiao Yan confessed that he had lost the Three Year Agreement to Nalan Yanran, and Old Yao told him it had been postponed by three days.
• Old Yao said a Jia Nan Academy classmate had secured the postponement, and Xiao Yan guessed it was Miss Gongsun.

Xiao Yan learned that Gongsun Liuli had defeated 1,123 Misty Cloud Sect disciples in a single move to secure him a second chance at the Three Year Agreement. After hearing Ya Fei’s account, he set out for the Misty Cloud Sect, confident he could overcome the Fire Spirit Pearl.

• Ya Fei told Xiao Yan that Gongsun Liuli had challenged the Misty Cloud Sect to postpone the Three Year Agreement and that Nalan Yanran had supported her request.
• Gongsun Liuli wagered two rare pills against the Misty Cloud Sect disciples and defeated all 1,123 opponents with a single technique that turned raindrops into blue needles.
• Yun Leng honored the agreement to give Xiao Yan another chance but confined Nalan Yanran, while Elder Yu took Gongsun Liuli away from the sect.
• Ya Fei explained what had happened, and Xiao Yan left for the Misty Cloud Sect, saying he could break the Fire Spirit Pearl’s suppression.

Xiao Yan returned to the Misty Cloud Sect to continue the Three Year Agreement, confident that his increased strength would let him defeat Nalan Yanran. Nalan Yanran left confinement to face him herself, and the chapter ended as she entered the plaza.

• Xiao Yan flew toward Misty Cloud Mountain after Old Yao agreed to cover his escape, while Hai Bodong followed him.
• Nalan Yanran regretted her past choices and wept alone in the confinement room.
• Nalan Yanran refused the great elder’s wooden strip and threat to strip her of her position, then left to meet Xiao Yan.
• Xiao Yan arrived at the Misty Cloud Sect plaza, where Yun Leng warned him that losing would settle the challenge and Hai Bodong rebuffed Yun Leng.
• Nalan Yanran walked into the plaza as the assembled disciples watched.

Xiao Yan and Nalan Yanran began their Three Year Agreement duel after Xiao Yan urged them to fight without the burdens of their past. Xiao Yan gained the advantage, while Yun Leng learned that Nalan Yanran had not taken the item he had given her to ensure the Misty Cloud Sect's victory.

• Nalan Yanran confronted Xiao Yan, and he proposed treating their duel as a separate judgment from her earlier victory in the Three Year Agreement.
• Xiao Yan told Nalan Yanran to cast aside her burdens and fight him as the Jia Ma Empire's strongest genius; she agreed through tears.
• The crowd discovered that Xiao Yan had reached the Da Dou Shi level, and he and Nalan Yanran began their duel.
• Xiao Yan countered Nalan Yanran's attacks and used Suction Palm and Fire Blowing Palm to send her flying, leaving her at a disadvantage.
• Yun Leng expected Nalan Yanran to use the item he had given her, but the law-enforcement elder reported that she had refused to take it.

Xiao Yan overwhelmed Nalan Yanran with his physical attacks and newly mastered Formless Dou Qi, but she advanced to a Three-star Great Dou Shi and prepared her strongest secret technique. The duel remained undecided as Nalan Yanran unleashed Extreme of Wind—Meteor Kill.

• Xiao Yan used his purple-black energy wings and a vibrating palm strike to send Nalan Yanran crashing to the arena floor with a badly injured arm.
• Nalan Yanran reset her dislocated arm, gathered the surrounding wind, and advanced naturally to a Three-star Great Dou Shi as she formed Dou Qi Armor.
• Nalan Yanran praised Xiao Yan as the man she acknowledged and attacked him with the Azure Edge sword aura.
• Xiao Yan used his Formless Dou Qi technique, Intent, to halt and tear apart Nalan Yanran's sword aura, though the technique drained his Soul Power.
• Nalan Yanran gathered wind energy into a strange formation and unleashed her sect's secret move, Extreme of Wind—Meteor Kill.

Xiao Yan and Nalan Yanran unleashed their strongest attacks, and the resulting storm and flames left Nalan Yanran near death. Xiao Yan rescued and shielded her, but with his recovery pills depleted, he hesitated over using his last Sixth-grade Pill as Yun Leng watched from the platform.

• Nalan Yanran’s Extreme of Wind—Meteor Kill collided with Xiao Yan’s flame attack, and the resulting blast battered the plaza and scattered part of the Sea of Clouds.
• Yun Leng ordered three Dou Wang elders to form a barrier around the plaza as the energy storm swept through the arena.
• Xiao Yan saw Nalan Yanran being overwhelmed and rushed to catch her before she fell to her death.
• Xiao Yan gave Nalan Yanran a Bone-Growing Pill, carried her to relative safety, and protected them both from the remaining energy storm.
• Old Yao pointed out that the pill was too weak for Nalan Yanran’s injuries, and Xiao Yan hesitated over using his last Sixth-grade Pill.

Yun Leng planned to use the duel to eliminate Nalan Yanran and Xiao Yan, clearing his path to control the Misty Cloud Sect. Xiao Yan saved Nalan Yanran with Gongsun Liuli’s Sixth-grade pill, while Liuli sensed its use from far away and wondered whether the story was veering toward conflict with the sect.

• Yun Leng dismissed the elders’ concerns, deciding to let Xiao Yan’s attack kill Nalan Yanran and planning to frame Xiao Yan afterward.
• Xiao Yan hesitated over using Gongsun Liuli’s Three Yang Jade Qiong Pill, but Old Yao urged him to save Nalan Yanran before it was too late.
• Xiao Yan gave Nalan Yanran the pill, and its healing flames rapidly restored her wounds as the Energy Storm weakened.
• Xiao Yan covered Nalan Yanran with a fresh black robe and waited for the Energy Storm to disperse.
• A thousand miles away, Liuli sensed that Xiao Yan had used her pill and wondered whether he had started fighting the Misty Cloud Sect.

After defeating Nalan Yanran, Xiao Yan faced Yun Leng’s attempt to seize him, and Hai Bodong intervened when the Misty Cloud Sect elders attacked. Old Yao revealed that the sect might be using the chaos to abduct the recovering Nalan Yanran and blame Xiao Yan, who chose to fight until they were forced to back down.

• The arena saw Nalan Yanran lying unconscious after Xiao Yan defeated her, and Yun Leng accused him of seriously injuring the Misty Cloud Sect’s young master.
• Xiao Yan rejected Yun Leng’s blame and tried to leave, but Yun Leng attacked him, prompting Hai Bodong to kick Yun Leng away and warn him against provoking Xiao Yan’s powerful allies.
• Yun Leng ordered the elders to seize Xiao Yan, and Hai Bodong took on Yun Leng and three Dou Wang elders while the remaining elders surrounded Xiao Yan.
• Xiao Yan dodged Yun Sha’s attack and smashed a white-robed elder into the ground, startling Yun Sha with his speed.
• Old Yao told Xiao Yan that Yun Leng might be using the fight to capture Nalan Yanran while she appeared to be dying, then blame Xiao Yan for her death.
• Xiao Yan chose to defeat the elders, wait for Nalan Yanran to recover, and clear his name.

Xiao Yan accepted Old Yao’s enhancement and fought the Misty Cloud Sect elders at Dou Wang level, unleashing a devastating fire attack across the plaza. After the flames subsided, he shielded Nalan Yanran, who began to wake in his arms.

• Old Yao offered to raise Xiao Yan’s strength to Dou Wang level, and Xiao Yan knocked out the elder he had pinned without killing him.
• Xiao Yan defeated Yun Long with a palm strike after Yun Sha ordered the elders to attack together.
• Xiao Yan merged seven strange fire rings into the elders’ combined Great Wind Hand Seal, then carried Nalan Yanran away from the plaza before the attack detonated.
• The explosions engulfed the plaza, forcing Yun Sha and the other elders to flee while Hai Bodong pursued Yun Leng.
• Xiao Yan withdrew his Dou Qi barrier after the fire waves faded, and Nalan Yanran stirred and opened her eyes.

Xiao Yan revealed that he had reached the Dou Wang level and faced Yun Leng’s devouring technique while Hai Bodong fought off the Misty Cloud Sect elders. After learning how Formless Dou Qi could counter the technique, Xiao Yan prepared to stop the sphere as it pursued him.

• Nalan Yanran woke in Xiao Yan’s arms, and he covered her with his robe before flying to confront Yun Leng.
• Xiao Yan matched Yun Leng’s attack, revealing his Dou Wang strength, and Yun Leng launched a pitch-black sphere at him.
• Hai Bodong grabbed Yun Leng and used his ice dragon technique to defeat Yun Du and Yun Fan.
• Xiao Yan dodged the sphere and learned from Old Yao that it was the Heaven Devouring Palm and could be disrupted by guidance.
• Xiao Yan used Formless Dou Qi to spread through the sphere’s possible paths and prepared to counter it.

Xiao Yan turned Yun Leng’s attack back on him, but Yun Shan appeared and demanded that Xiao Yan stay in the Misty Cloud Sect’s Confinement Room for two years. Xiao Yan refused, leaving the confrontation with the newly revealed Dou Zong unresolved.

• Xiao Yan used Formless Dou Qi to seize control of Yun Leng’s black sphere attack and sent it flying back at him.
• Hai Bodong kicked Yun Leng into the attack, which tore through his arms until Yun Shan destroyed it with a Wind Blade.
• Yun Leng accused Xiao Yan of insulting the Misty Cloud Sect and called on Yun Shan to subdue him.
• Yun Shan descended from the Sea of Clouds, revealed his overwhelming presence, and confronted Xiao Yan and Hai Bodong.
• Yun Shan demanded that Xiao Yan spend two years in the Misty Cloud Sect’s Confinement Room, but Xiao Yan refused.

Xiao Yan agreed to remain in the Misty Cloud Sect for two years so Hai Bodong could leave without worsening the feud with the Mittel Family. Before going to the Confinement Room, Xiao Yan burned the Letter of Divorce and told Nalan Yanran they were free of their old entanglement, leaving her to ask whether they could become friends.

• Yun Shan rejected Hai Bodong's offer of compensation and insisted that Xiao Yan remain in the Misty Cloud Sect for two years.
• Xiao Yan asked Hai Bodong to leave, and Hai Bodong dispelled his Dou Qi and flew away from the sect.
• Yun Shan ordered Yun Cong to take Xiao Yan to the Confinement Room, while Nalan Yanran approached Xiao Yan with the Letter of Divorce.
• Xiao Yan burned the Letter of Divorce and told Nalan Yanran that they were even and free of their old hatred and obligations.
• Nalan Yanran cried, then asked Xiao Yan if they could be friends; Xiao Yan left the choice to her and continued toward the Confinement Room with Yun Feng.

Yun Shan discussed his cooperation with the Soul Hall contact, who planned to hunt souls in the desert, while Nalan Yanran visited the imprisoned Xiao Yan and told him she wanted to leave her family and sect to seek freedom. Xiao Yan revealed he was escaping that night and agreed to take her with him.

• Yun Shan spoke with a Dark Figure from the Soul Hall about capturing Xiao Yan and expanding the Misty Cloud Sect, while the Dark Figure planned to hunt souls among the Snake People Tribe.
• Nalan Yanran visited Xiao Yan in the confinement room and asked if he would stay in the Misty Cloud Sect for two years.
• Xiao Yan told Nalan Yanran he was leaving that night and dismissed her concern that Yun Shan, a Dou Zong, could stop him.
• Nalan Yanran explained that she wanted to withdraw from the Misty Cloud Sect, leave her family, and travel beyond the Jia Ma Empire to seek independence and experience hardship.
• Xiao Yan realized Nalan Yanran lacked the strength to leave on her own and agreed to take her with him that night.

Xiao Yan attempted to escape the Misty Cloud Sect, drawing its elders and disciples into a confrontation while Nalan Yanran used Yun Feng’s Token to lead an interception force. Yun Shan attacked Xiao Yan, but Xiao Yan matched his first strike and revealed that the newly advanced Dou Zong had suffered a setback.

• Yun Feng told Yun Leng that Xiao Yan had blasted open the Stone Gate, then secretly gave Nalan Yanran Yun Leng’s Token so she could escape confinement and act.
• Nalan Yanran showed the Token to an Enforcement Team and ordered them to head to the southern mountain to intercept Xiao Yan.
• Xiao Yan stood surrounded by Misty Cloud Sect disciples as Yun Leng and Yun Shan arrived; Xiao Yan said he intended to return to Jia Nan Academy and refused Yun Shan’s offer to join the sect.
• Yun Shan attacked Xiao Yan with a palm strike, but Xiao Yan met it head-on without being forced back, astonishing Yun Shan and Yun Leng.
• Xiao Yan taunted Yun Shan for suffering a setback, and Yun Shan struck again, only for his palm to meet Xiao Yan’s Mysterious Heavy Ruler.

Nalan Yanran slipped away from the disciples as Old Yao, controlling Xiao Yan’s body, fought Yun Shan on Misty Cloud Mountain. Their attacks destroyed the Misty Cloud Sect’s main hall, and Fa Ma and Jia Xingtian arrived to witness the clash as an expanding burst of multicolored light engulfed both attacks.

• Nalan Yanran told the disciples to keep watch, then quietly left to carry out her plan with Xiao Yan.
• Old Yao, controlling Xiao Yan’s body, repelled Yun Shan’s attacks while Xiao Yan urged him to focus on escaping.
• Yun Shan unleashed the Misty Cloud Sect’s Meteor Kill, and Old Yao countered with Flame Splitting Wave Crushing Ruler.
• The collision of their attacks devastated the main peak and destroyed the Misty Cloud Sect’s main hall.
• Fa Ma and Jia Xingtian arrived, recognized Xiao Yan and Yun Shan, and watched as multicolored light swallowed their attacks.

After escaping the ruined arena, Xiao Yan recovered in the mountains while Nalan Yanran kept watch. They discussed their separate futures and agreed to travel together until they left the Jia Ma Empire, as the Misty Cloud Sect began hunting Xiao Yan.

• Yun Leng learned from Ge Ye that Xiao Yan was the Dou Huang who had killed Mo Cheng, while Yun Shan admitted that Xiao Yan had escaped.
• Yun Shan ordered the Misty Cloud Sect to issue a warrant for Xiao Yan and capture him dead or alive.
• Nalan Yanran found Xiao Yan meditating beside a pool and watched over him while he recovered.
• Xiao Yan invited Nalan Yanran to Jia Nan Academy, but she chose to venture into the world on her own before possibly joining it later.
• Xiao Yan said he would go to Jia Nan Academy to grow stronger, and he and Nalan Yanran agreed to travel together until they left the Jia Ma Empire.