Recaps

Ning Chen returned to Nine Heavens to seek Meng Xuanji and learned that she had left with the Gilded Feathered Halberd, which could break open space. He then investigated the Heavenly Curtain at the Summit of Nine Heavens and entered its spatial turbulence, where he and the pursuing Calamity King were swallowed into different spaces.

• Ning Chen arrived at Nine Heavens, where the Headmaster and the Venerables let him pass after sensing his strength.
• Ning Chen searched Jade Mechanism Hall for Meng Xuanji and found ancient books and the cultivation manual she had once given him.
• Sword Venerable told Ning Chen that the Calamity King had come seeking the Gilded Feathered Halberd, and the Headmaster confirmed that it could break open space.
• Ning Chen demonstrated his sword intent as repayment to Nine Heavens, then climbed to the Summit of Nine Heavens to investigate why he had once fallen from the sky.
• Ning Chen and the Calamity King entered spatial turbulence beneath the Heavenly Curtain and were separated into different spaces.

Ning Chen crossed the spatial turbulence toward the Heavenly Curtain while the Calamity King pursued him, and he discovered that the passage led to the ruined Featherfall Valley. Meanwhile, Lihuo secretly prepared to forge a Weapon of Destiny, as Li Yan and Li Youwei each took steps to divert the Holy Land’s attention; Ning Chen escaped into the turbulence again with the Calamity King close behind.

• Ning Chen evaded the Calamity King through the spatial turbulence as he searched for the Heavenly Curtain, while Xuantian failed to find them and Jiang Xin settled into life at Earthly Artisan Manor.
• Li Youwei discovered Jiang Xin’s identity and learned from her about Ning Chen, while Li Yan visited the manor and arranged for Lihuo to forge a Weapon of Destiny in one month.
• Li Yan secretly sent a letter without letting Li Youwei’s people see it, while Li Youwei ordered her spies to spread false reports about spies from the Eastern Divine Continent to distract the Holy Land.
• Ning Chen and the Calamity King continued their dangerous pursuit through the spatial turbulence, and Ning Chen’s weapons became badly cracked.
• Ning Chen reached the Heavenly Curtain and recognized the wasteland beyond it as Featherfall Valley, the boundary between the Four Extremes Realm and the Divine Continent.
• Ning Chen vanished into the spatial turbulence after telling the Calamity King they would never meet again, and the Calamity King angrily pursued him.

Ning Chen discovered that Jiang Xin had been abducted and rescued her from a carriage, only to be confronted by Duan Fengchen. The Calamity King and four other powerful pursuers waited nearby, leaving Ning Chen in the midst of a deadly trap.

• Ning Chen escaped the Calamity King through spatial turbulence and learned that the Lihuo Dynasty was spreading false reports to distract the Sacred Lands.
• The Calamity King ordered Xuantian, Yu Yangtian, Xingyun, and Buyu to help eliminate Ning Chen, while his search for Meng Xuanji continued.
• A guard carrying Li Youwei's letter lured Jiang Xin from the Earthly Artisan Manor and drugged her during the carriage ride south.
• Ning Chen realized Jiang Xin was missing, followed the carriage tracks, and caught up with her near Half-Moon Mountain.
• Ning Chen rescued Jiang Xin after killing the guard, but Duan Fengchen confronted him, while the Calamity King and four allies waited nearby.

Ning Chen fought Luan Fengchen and then the Calamity King’s forces while protecting the unconscious Jiang Xin, but he was overwhelmed after his weapons broke and his strength ran out. Jiang Xin fell from Halfmoon Cliff, and a mysterious azure-and-crimson sword rose from Ning Chen as a terrifying pressure shook Half-Moon Mountain.

• Ning Chen battled Luan Fengchen beneath Half-Moon Mountain while carrying the unconscious Jiang Xin, until the Calamity King and four Sacred Lands experts arrived and Luan Fengchen departed.
• Ning Chen fought Yu Yangtian, Xingyun, and Buyu, wounding them with his Ink Sword and Crimson Blade, but Xuantian joined the attack and the Crimson Blade shattered.
• Jiang Xin woke and called Ning Chen her master, distracting him long enough for the enemy assault to wound him and break his Crimson Blade.
• Ning Chen blasted the attackers back with July Snowfall, then tried to escape with Jiang Xin, but the Calamity King’s palm strike and the pursuing fighters drove him to exhaustion.
• At Halfmoon Cliff, Jiang Xin told Ning Chen she would no longer burden him and fell into the abyss; as Ning Chen watched helplessly, a two-colored sword rose from his body and unleashed a terrifying pressure.

Ning Chen was rescued by Meng Xuanji after a desperate battle on Half-Moon Mountain, then recovered and warned her about the Calamity King and the Gilded Feathered Halberd. He reached Lihuo Canyon as the Weapon of Destiny was completed, where it resonated with the Knowing Fate Sword and Li Yan recognized him.

• Knowing Fate’s sword intent killed Buyu, broke Yu Yangtian’s divine halberd and severed his right arm, and gravely wounded Xingyun before Xuantian’s Vast Sword pierced Ning Chen.
• Meng Xuanji interrupted the Calamity King’s attack, carried the unconscious Ning Chen away, and left Xuantian, Xingyun, and Yu Yangtian to withdraw with Buyu’s body.
• Meng Xuanji healed Ning Chen and used a powerful Life-Death Severance Seal to question him about his identity and the alleged invasion; Ning Chen told her what he had learned at the Summit of Nine Heavens and warned her about the Gilded Feathered Halberd.
• Ning Chen recovered, traveled to Lihuo, and searched for Li Youwei as the Weapon of Destiny was completed and its heavenly tribulation began.
• The finished weapon resonated with Ning Chen’s Knowing Fate Sword, and Li Yan’s joy vanished when he saw Ning Chen arrive.

Ning Chen learned that Jiang Xin had been betrayed and confronted Li Yan, crippling him before carrying him to Halfmoon Cliff. After Ning Chen dropped Li Yan into the abyss, Jiang Hua appeared from below with Li Yan in hand, bringing the two enemies face-to-face.

• Ning Chen seized Li Youwei and demanded to know who had endangered Jiang Xin; Li Yan admitted he had arranged the forged letter.
• Ning Chen defeated Elder Li and Qu Jiang, shattered Li Yan's sea of qi, and took the Weapon of Destiny despite their attempts to stop him.
• Ning Chen carried Li Yan to Halfmoon Cliff while reflecting on his failure to protect Jiang Xin, and Li Youwei and the two Attendants caught up with him.
• Ning Chen dropped Li Yan over the cliff and blocked Qu Jiang and Elder Li when they tried to pursue him; Li Youwei fainted after seeing her brother fall.
• Jiang Hua emerged from beneath the cliff carrying Li Yan, and he and Ning Chen recognized each other and halted their weapons.

Ning Chen and Jiang Hua descended beneath Halfmoon Cliff to rescue Jiang Xin, but ancient swords and the beast Yazi trapped them in deadly battles. Above the cliff, Li Yan remained near death, while Duan Fengchen arrived and left without freeing him.

• Ning Chen and Jiang Hua went down the cliff after learning Jiang Xin was still alive, leaving Li Yan pinned to the cliff by the Snow Sword.
• Ning Chen and Jiang Hua fought twelve mysterious swords in the mist, and Jiang Hua followed a blood signal toward Jiang Xin while Ning Chen held off their pursuers.
• Ning Chen shattered eleven swords with Heaven's Forgiveness, Guiltless, then hurried into the valley as Jiang Hua battled Yazi beside Jiang Xin's unconscious body in a pool.
• Ning Chen joined Jiang Hua against Yazi, and both fought on despite severe injuries to reach Jiang Xin.
• Qu Jiang took the unconscious Li Youwei back to the palace as Elder Li waited by Li Yan, whose survival and ability to rule were in doubt.
• Duan Fengchen appeared at Halfmoon Cliff, saw Li Yan pinned by the sword, and left without intervening.

Meng Xuanji entered the spatial turbulence with the Gilded Feathered Halberd as she sought the truth about the sky and the Holy Land. At Halfmoon Cliff, Ning Chen, Jiang Hua, and Luan Fengchen fought Yazi long enough for Jiang Hua to rescue Jiang Xin, and Ning Chen began healing her despite his grave injuries.

• Meng Xuanji stepped into the spatial turbulence on the Summit of Nine Heavens, carrying the Gilded Feathered Halberd as she pursued answers about the sky and the Holy Land.
• Ning Chen and Jiang Hua struggled against Yazi while Jiang Xin's aura weakened, and Ning Chen's sword shattered as his accumulated injuries caught up with him.
• Luan Fengchen arrived and joined Ning Chen and Jiang Hua in battle, while Ning Chen used the Scroll of Life to restore Jiang Xin's qi and slow her decline.
• The three prodigies wounded Yazi with their ultimate techniques, but Ning Chen suffered a devastating shoulder and arm injury from the Crimson Sword.
• Jiang Hua seized Jiang Xin and escaped as Ning Chen and Luan Fengchen held back Yazi's attack, then the three reunited beyond Halfmoon Cliff and all vomited blood.
• Ning Chen stopped Jiang Hua from treating Jiang Xin and used the Scroll of Life to channel spiritual energy into her despite his exhausted condition.

After recovering from his battle with Yazi, Ning Chen revealed his origins to Luan Fengchen and left Jiang Xin in her brother Jiang Hua’s care. He learned that his blade was a Weapon of Destiny named Thoughts of Affection, then used it to shatter Lihuo’s ancient bell and seize the dynasty’s destiny, ending by asking Li Youwei whether the blade’s name suited it.

• Ning Chen, Jiang Hua, and Luan Fengchen joined their power to heal Jiang Xin, but Ning Chen collapsed from his severe injuries and was carried to the Jiang Family’s Blade Tomb.
• Four days later, Ning Chen awoke, identified himself as the Marquis of Knowing Fate of Great Xia, and showed Luan Fengchen the Phoenix Blood that explained his connection to the Longevity Palace.
• Luan Fengchen returned to the Sacred Lands, while Ning Chen left Jiang Xin with Jiang Hua and traveled to Earthly Artisan Manor.
• Ning Chen asked the earthly artisan whether his blade was a Weapon of Destiny and learned that it was named Thoughts of Affection.
• Ning Chen used the blade to destroy Lihuo’s ancient bronze bell, draw the dynasty’s released destiny into the weapon, and withstand the efforts of the Sacred Lands and imperial attendants to stop him.
• As Ning Chen passed Li Youwei, he asked whether Thoughts of Affection was a fitting name for the blade that remembered their past feelings.

Ning Chen fought the Calamity King while Xuan Zhi and the Four Extremes Realm Lord prepared to open a passage between realms. Meng Xuanji was betrayed and gravely wounded beneath the Heavenly Curtain, and Xuan Zhi entered the newly opened passage as Ning Chen arrived.

• Li Youwei helped establish the child emperor's rule after the plain-clothed man vanished, while Meng Xuanji continued toward the Heavenly Curtain.
• Xuan Zhi used the Yin-Yang Jade to complete the Four Extremes Sacred Lands' formation, and Ning Chen intercepted the Calamity King on his way there.
• Ning Chen and the Calamity King fought a fierce battle, while Wang You restrained two Xiantian experts from interfering.
• The Four Extremes Realm Lord and Xuan Zhi confronted Meng Xuanji beneath the Heavenly Curtain, where Xuan Tian's Vast Sword pierced her and Xuan Zhi took the Gilded Feathered Halberd.
• After Meng Xuanji's Life-Death Severance Seal disappeared, the Calamity King escaped Ning Chen and joined the Four Extremes Realm Lord in opening a passage between realms.
• Xuan Zhi entered the passage as the plain-clothed figure arrived and moved to act.

Ning Chen escaped the closing boundary passage with Meng Xuanji, saved her by sealing her in ice, and returned to the Divine Continent after two years away. He learned that Great Xia and the Eternal Night Divine Cult were at war, and that the new Military Advisor Zong Qianqiu had begun planning a decisive strike against Great Xia.

• The Four Extremes Realm Lord ordered Xuantian to help the Calamity King conquer the sects and unify the Four Extremes Realm within half a year.
• Ning Chen failed to heal Meng Xuanji, spent the Nianqing Blade’s remaining fortune to save her, and sealed her in ice with the Scroll of Life.
• Ning Chen returned to Featherfall Valley and destroyed Xuan Zhi’s hidden talisman formation before leaving.
• The Eternal Night Divine Cult revealed its Second Hall and Divine Martial Army, escalating its war against Great Xia across the western regions.
• Zong Qianqiu told the Martial Lord that he planned to trap Marquis Kaixuan and lead an assault on Great Xia’s Imperial City.
• Ning Chen reunited with the Ghost Maiden, learned that two years had passed and heard about Zong Qianqiu’s rise.

Zong Qianqiu led the Eternal Night Divine Cult’s assault on Great Xia, forcing Xia Ziyi and the defenders into desperate battles in the imperial city. As King Xiaoyu’s life waned and Zong unleashed a devastating spell, a familiar figure arrived beside a ghost sedan, leaving Master Yantian demanding his name.

• Zong Qianqiu appeared in the imperial city with the Divine Martial Guard, while Xia Ziyi, Grand Tutor, and Qing Ling prepared to oppose him.
• Huazhuang led five Divine Martial Guards against Xia Ziyi, who held them off with Silence of Autumn Water, and Qing Ling and Grand Tutor joined battle against Remnant Wind and the remaining guards.
• Xia Mingri authorized the Dark Dragon Guard commanders to awaken Great Xia’s reserves, and Imperial Ancestor Xiaoyu emerged to confront Zong Qianqiu.
• Zong Qianqiu trapped King Xiaoyu in a sea of thunder, and Xia Ziyi broke free of the killing formation, killed a Divine Martial Guard, and attacked the Eternal Night Military Advisor.
• Zong Qianqiu summoned four flame divine generals to attack Xia Ziyi, but a familiar figure arrived beside a ghost sedan, prompting Master Yantian to ask his name.

Ning Chen returned to the imperial city as the Martial Marquis, helped repel Zong Qianqiu’s forces, and learned that a Four Extremes Realm visitor threatened to open a passage between realms. He went with Qing Ling to see the sleeping Empress Dowager, while his unease over Xia Ziyi’s strange gray energy remained unresolved.

• The imperial city welcomed Ning Chen back as the Martial Marquis, and he joined Xia Ziyi and the others to fight Zong Qianqiu’s forces.
• Ning Chen froze and destroyed the four flaming divine generals, then cut apart Zong Qianqiu’s talisman before Zong Qianqiu ordered a retreat.
• King Xiaoyu crumbled into ashes after seeing Xia Ziyi and Ning Chen, while gray energy briefly appeared in Xia Ziyi’s Grand Righteous Qi and worried Ning Chen.
• Qing Ling slapped Ning Chen and took him to the palace, where he explained the Four Extremes Realm threat to Xia Mingri and urged him to watch for a Three Calamities Realm ally.
• Ning Chen went with Qing Ling to Weiyang Palace and learned that Changsun’s chambers were kept sealed and lit by night pearls because covering them would wake her.

After two years away, Ning Chen returned to Great Xia and reunited with Changsun, who had grown frail and set him three years to find a wife. He returned to the Zhiming Marquisate, where his family welcomed him, but Ghost Maiden warned that she could only sustain the unconscious woman’s life temporarily.

• Ning Chen quietly knelt beside Changsun’s bed, and she awoke to find him returned and welcomed him with tears.
• Changsun told Ning Chen she had adopted Ning Xi and gave him three years to find someone to marry before she arranged a match herself.
• Ning Chen spent the morning with Changsun and Qing Ling before leaving Weiyang Palace as visitors began arriving to pay their respects.
• Ning Xi, Liu Ruoxi, and the household welcomed Ning Chen at the Zhiming Marquisate, and news of his return spread through the imperial city.
• Ghost Maiden used her Ghost Source to sustain the unconscious woman and told Ning Chen they needed another way to save her.

Ning Chen returned to Great Xia and confronted several growing threats, including Meng Xuanji’s injuries, the Underworld Son, and the Four Extremes Realm. He discovered Xia Xinyu had developed the Seven Absolutes Body and left the chapter showing her a Phoenix Plume.

• Ning Chen froze Meng Xuanji again and considered seeking a way to repair her shattered dantian while the Ghost Maiden warned him that the Underworld Son was devouring warriors and growing stronger.
• Ning Chen rejected gifts from the nobles, entrusted Ning Xi and the Ghost Maiden with estate matters, and asked The Master whether Great Xia would perish and what gray energy in Grand Righteous Qi meant.
• The Master said Great Xia would perish and that gray energy signified demonic corruption; Ning Chen realized Xia Ziyi might be afflicted and hurried to the Haowu Prince's Estate.
• Ning Chen discovered Xia Xinyu had developed the Seven Absolutes Body, then watched her dance and discussed his return from the Four Extremes Realm with her and Xia Ziyi.
• Xia Ziyi agreed to handle the Underworld Son while Ning Chen pursued the visitor from the Four Extremes Realm, and Ning Chen produced a Phoenix Plume for Xia Xinyu.

Ning Chen visited the Wang Family and learned that the Empress held the Ruyi Method, then confronted Su Feiyan in the imperial garden to negotiate for it. Su Feiyan demanded that he endure three attacks at the acquired realm, and after Mingyue permitted their contest, he calmly faced her first strike.

• Ning Chen gave Xia Xinyu a Phoenix Plume, then left Xia Ziyi and Xia Xinyu after drinking with them.
• Ning Chen paid respects at the Martial Marquis Shrine, where he saw the new spirit tablets for Wangchuan and Xueyi.
• Ning Chen visited the Wang Family to ask for Duke Xiyu's disguise art, and the Grand Elder told him the Empress held the Ruyi Method.
• Ning Chen watched Mingyue at court, then confronted Su Feiyan, who attacked him with the Spring Thunder Zither before he subdued her and demanded the Ruyi Method.
• Su Feiyan offered the Ruyi Method if Ning Chen survived three moves at the acquired realm, and Mingyue allowed their contest to proceed.
• Su Feiyan unleashed her first attack, and Ning Chen announced that it was over and that she had two moves remaining.

Su Feiyan unleashed the Spring Thunder Zither’s six-string attack against Ning Chen, but he defeated her and saved her from the backlash. After comforting Mingyue, Ning Chen received the Ruyi Method from the Empress Dowager, giving him a path toward the Eternal Night Divine Cult and a chance to search for the person he sought.

• Su Feiyan used the Spring Thunder Zither’s five-string attack to reach the innate realm, but Ning Chen repelled it without injury.
• Su Feiyan forcibly opened the sixth string and devastated the imperial garden, while Ning Chen countered with sword and blade intent and emerged with only a wound to his shoulder.
• Su Feiyan collapsed from the backlash, and Ning Chen suppressed her rebounding true qi before Mingyue ordered her attendants to take her back to Qiyu Palace.
• Ning Chen comforted Mingyue, promised to visit often, and agreed to stay with her for the next two days.
• Zijing delivered the jade slip containing the Ruyi Method to Ning Chen, who planned to use it to seek the Eternal Night Divine Cult and investigate the person from the Four Extremes Realm.

Ning Chen protected Mingyue at Qianyuan Palace, then joined Marquis Kaixuan on the western battlefield as the threat from the Eternal Night Divine Cult and the Four Extremes Realm loomed. The chapter left Ning Chen warning that Great Xia’s victory could mean the Eternal Night Divine Cult’s annihilation, giving the cult strong reason to seek outside help.

• Ning Chen placed a dangerous spiritual mark and martial insights within Zijing so she could protect Mingyue in a crisis.
• Ning Chen comforted Mingyue with a story, then studied Su Feiyan’s cultivation method and practiced it in the courtyard.
• The Underworld Son destroyed the Sword Sect and several other sects, spreading fear across the Southeast Territory.
• Xia Ziyi left the royal court after hearing reports of the Underworld Son’s devastation.
• Ning Chen left the Northern Mongol Royal Court and met Marquis Kaixuan on the western battlefield, where they discussed the Eternal Night Divine Cult and the possible invasion by the Four Extremes Realm.
• Marquis Kaixuan said Great Xia would eradicate the Eternal Night Divine Cult if it won the war.

Ning Chen resolved to infiltrate the Eternal Night Divine Cult and replaced the wounded General Tongguang while the war intensified. In the Southeast Territory, Xia Ziyi pursued the Underworld Son but left the burning Prajna City to chase him, and the two began a fierce battle.

• Ning Chen told Marquis Kaixuan to watch the Martial Lord and discussed finding the Four Extremes Realm envoy and eliminating the Martial Lord.
• Ning Chen spent days observing the Eternal Night Divine Cult's generals, then impersonated the wounded General Tongguang during his journey back to the divine hall.
• The Underworld Son destroyed Prajna City, killing hundreds of thousands of civilians, as Xia Ziyi arrived and pursued him instead of staying to rescue those trapped in the fire.
• Xia Ziyi caught up with the Underworld Son, and they exchanged life-threatening blows as the Underworld Son mocked Xia Ziyi for losing his sword.

Xia Ziyi defeated the Underworld Son but failed to kill him, then saved survivors in burning Prajna City and endured their blame. At the Eternal Night Divine Cult, Zong Qianqiu sent Huazhuang after Xia Ziyi, Ning Chen searched for a way to restore his qi sea, and the Saintess awakened from her stone coffin.

• Xia Ziyi and the Underworld Son unleashed their ultimate moves, and Xia Ziyi wounded him before the Underworld Son escaped.
• Xia Ziyi extinguished the flames in Prajna City with sweet rain and rescued a trapped boy, but the grieving survivors attacked and cursed him.
• Zong Qianqiu learned that Xia Ziyi was in Great Xia's Southeast Territory and sent Huazhuang to eliminate him.
• Ning Chen, disguised as General Tongguang, surveyed the Eternal Night Divine Cult and considered entering the First Divine Hall to find a method to restore his qi sea.
• A stone coffin shook in the Abyss of Darkness, and the Saintess emerged despite Zong Qianqiu's doubts about her awakening.

Ning Chen learned that the Eternal Night Divine Cult’s Saintess had awakened and that General Tanzhu was being sent to the Abyss of Darkness. In Great Xia’s Southeast Territory, Xia Ziyi fought Huazhuang and the Divine Martial Guards while gravely injured, then unleashed a forbidden sword technique before Consort Luo rescued him.

• Ning Chen met General Tanzhu, who said the Saintess had awakened and someone must take her place in the Abyss of Darkness.
• Tanzhu received a Divine Heaven Pill from Zong Qianqiu and prepared to break through to the Xiantian realm.
• Xia Ziyi, already wounded from his fight with the Underworld Son, was ambushed by Huazhuang and four Divine Martial Guards.
• Zong Qianqiu empowered the attackers with a strange art, and they summoned flame divine generals and an evil god to overwhelm Xia Ziyi.
• Xia Ziyi unleashed the Confucian school’s forbidden demon-slaying move, destroying the flame generals and defeating the Divine Martial Guards before collapsing from exhaustion.
• Consort Luo carried the nearly unconscious Xia Ziyi away, while the wounded Huazhuang was unable to pursue them.

Ning Chen infiltrated the Eternal Night Divine Cult to search its hidden core and discovered the Eternal Night Divine Canon, but a powerful lingering strike gravely wounded him. He escaped Zong Qianqiu’s pursuit and hid nearby as the cult began searching for him.

• Ning Chen sparred with Tanzhu, who defeated him with the Waterlight Shadow Body before announcing he would enter Xiantian and take the Saintess's position.
• Ten days later, after receiving orders to go to the front lines, Ning Chen returned to his original appearance and secretly infiltrated the First Divine Hall.
• Ning Chen killed the guards in his path and broke through an illusion formation of skeletons and Underworld Soldiers using Sword Snow Three Thousand Miles.
• Ning Chen entered the Hundred Revolutions Heavenly Pavilion, took the martial art he had sought, and followed the Scroll of Chaos to the Eternal Night Divine Canon.
• A restriction-breaking strike exposed Ning Chen to a devastating palm attack; Zong Qianqiu arrived, pursued him with lightning, and ordered Can Feng and five Divine Martial Guards to search the halls.
• Ning Chen escaped the hall and hid nearby, coughing blood from his severe injuries.

Ning Chen fought his way through the Eternal Night Divine Cult, where Tanzhu rescued him and carried him toward escape. Tanzhu gave Ning Chen the last of his strength and sent him away, then turned to face Zong Qianqiu and the pursuing guards alone.

• A violent eruption of power at Tanzhu Palace drew the Divine Cult's attention while Ning Chen, badly wounded, tried to escape Canfeng and Zong Qianqiu.
• Ning Chen unleashed the Scroll of Earth, slaughtering and driving back guards before forcing his way through the encirclement.
• As the guards pursued him, Ning Chen's Phoenix Blood revived and began healing his injuries, but Canfeng, the Divine Martial Guards, and Zong Qianqiu caught up and surrounded him again.
• Tanzhu intervened, killed two Divine Martial Guards, and revealed that the Heart of Western Shadow had never betrayed Great Xia.
• Zong Qianqiu fought Tanzhu with thunder and a lightning-forged halberd, while Canfeng wounded him from behind as he tried to protect Ning Chen.
• Tanzhu gave Ning Chen the last of his strength, sent him a thousand zhang away, and stayed behind to confront Zong Qianqiu and the pursuers.

Ning Chen awakened his phoenix bloodline, defeated Zong Qianqiu’s forces, and brought the dying Marquis Xiying back to Great Xia. After burying Xiying beside the person whose grave he had visited, Ning Chen learned that Prince Haowu was near death and collapsed before he could reach him.

• Ning Chen’s phoenix bloodline awakened, restoring his cultivation and allowing him to kill the Divine Martial Guards and wound Canfeng while battling Zong Qianqiu.
• Zong Qianqiu summoned a god formed from faith, but Ning Chen’s Scroll of Earth countered its power; Zong Qianqiu called off the pursuit as Ning Chen escaped.
• Ning Chen reached Marquis Kaixuan’s camp with Marquis Xiying’s body, shared what he had learned about the Eternal Night Divine Cult, Martial Lord, and the Four Extremes Realm, then continued toward the imperial city.
• Ning Chen buried Marquis Xiying beside the solitary grave and kowtowed before leaving.
• At the Zhiming Marquisate, Ning Xi and Ruoxi told Ning Chen that Prince Haowu was gravely injured; Ning Chen collapsed before he could finish asking to be taken to him.
• At Prince Haowu’s Estate, Consort Luo’s true qi could no longer revive Prince Haowu as his life force faded.

As Great Xia’s king and marquis lay near death, the Ghost Maiden used the Rakshasa Life-Binding Pact to revive Ning Chen, who then tried to save Xia Ziyi with his Phoenix Blood. Meanwhile, Xuan Zhi met Zong Qianqiu to negotiate an alliance between the Four Extremes Sacred Lands and the Eternal Night Divine Cult, leaving the fate of the wounded men uncertain.

• Ning Chen and Xia Ziyi remained gravely injured at Haowu Prince's Estate, while Changsun collapsed from exhaustion and the Ghost Maiden returned her Phoenix Blood to Ning Chen without effect.
• Xuan Zhi arrived at the Eternal Night Divine Cult and fought Zong Qianqiu briefly before the two entered the Second Divine Hall to negotiate.
• Xuan Zhi proposed that the Four Extremes Sacred Lands help the Eternal Night Divine Cult conquer Great Xia in exchange for joint control of the Four Extremes Realm and the Divine Continent.
• The Ghost Maiden used the Rakshasa Life-Binding Pact to transfer her life force to Ning Chen, who awakened and severed their connection.
• Ning Chen insisted on helping Xia Ziyi, then used his Phoenix Blood to restore Xia Ziyi's blood qi before fainting again.