Chapter Summaries

As the Three-Year Agreement between Nalan Yanran and Xiao Yan approached, the sect prepared for the confrontation while Xiao Yan reflected on his sleeping teacher. After learning the Nalan Family had no further Seven-Illusion Green Spirit Saliva, Xiao Yan accepted an invitation to the Misty Cloud Sect and set out to attend the agreement.

• Qing Lin learned that classes and sect activities were suspended so disciples could watch the Three-Year Agreement, and Yun Zimo warned Zi Yan not to sneak down the mountain.
• Nalan Yanran told Nalan Su she would not lose, then left the Nalan Family for Misty Cloud Mountain; Nalan Jie lamented that the family had wronged Old Lin.
• Xiao Yan remembered Yao Lao's sacrifices and resolved to find a way to wake him from his deep sleep.
• Nalan Su met Xiao Yan near the Mittel Auction House and told him the Alchemist Guild might have records of ingredients similar to the Seven-Illusion Green Spirit Saliva.
• Xiao Yan accepted Nalan Su's invitation to attend the Misty Cloud Sect's spar, then headed to the Mittel Auction House, where Hai Bodong was waiting.

Xiao Yan defeated Nalan Yanran in their Three-Year Agreement duel and declared that their grudge was settled. As the summit reacted to his victory and mercy, a sinister figure emerged from black mist and confronted Yun Shan.

• Xiao Yan and Hai Bodong climbed Misty Cloud Mountain, where Yun Leng announced the rules and began the duel between Xiao Yan and Nalan Yanran.
• Xiao Yan and Nalan Yanran fought with matching six-star Da Dou Shi strength, trading weapon strikes and hand-to-hand attacks before unleashing powerful techniques.
• Xiao Yan escaped Nalan Yanran's wind-blade storm with his Purple Cloud Wings and formed a miniature Buddha Fury Fire Lotus from purple and green flames.
• Nalan Yanran launched Extreme Wind: Meteor Kill, but Xiao Yan neutralized the attack and spared her, then declared the Three-Year Agreement over and relinquished his grudge.
• As the gathered sect leaders reacted to Xiao Yan's victory, a sinister figure formed from black mist and accused Yun Shan of disappointing him.

Wu Ying attacked the gathered leaders of the Jia Ma Empire, but Yun Zimo, Yun Shan, Queen Medusa, and their allies fought back and trapped him. Xiao Yan, aided by Yao Lao and three Heavenly Flames, sealed the defeated Soul Hall Protector in a jade bottle, leaving the empire safe for now.

• Wu Ying revealed that he had controlled several clan heads and Misty Cloud Sect elders, then offered Xiao Yan and Yun Zimo a place in the Soul Hall.
• Yun Zimo commanded the Misty Cloud disciples to form the Cloud Smoke Covering Sun Formation, while Queen Medusa and a Black Robe man joined Yun Shan against Wu Ying.
• Yun Zimo led the others in attacking the Soul Envoys and interrupting Wu Ying, while Gu He, Xiao Yan, and the Yun father and son fought the Dou Zong Soul Envoys with Heavenly Flames.
• Yun Shan, Queen Medusa, and Yun Zimo struck Wu Ying with powerful Dou Techniques, but the battered Protector unleashed chains and black fog to devour everyone on Misty Cloud Mountain.
• Xiao Yan used Bone Spirit Cold Fire, Gu He's Fire Cloud Water Flame, and his own blue flame to burn and seal Wu Ying in a jade bottle.
• Xiao Yan thanked Yun Shan and Queen Medusa, and Yun Zimo concluded that the Jia Ma Empire had gained several years to develop before the Soul Hall discovered Wu Ying's disappearance.

After the Xiao Clan was attacked and Xiao Zhan disappeared, Xiao Yan learned that his father was still alive and took responsibility for rebuilding and relocating the clan. As the Xiao Clan prepared to leave Wutan City, Yao Lao alerted Xiao Yan to a Dou Emperor battle in the Magical Beast Mountain Range, where a Poison Master was present.

• Xiao Yan returned from Misty Cloud Mountain and learned that Xiao Zhan had disappeared after drawing Chu Yun Empire attackers away from the Xiao Clan.
• Hai Bodong and Yao Lao calmed Xiao Yan, while Empress Yao Ye ordered a national lockdown and the Misty Cloud Sect sent Yun Zimo and elders to the Magical Beast Mountain Range.
• Xiao Yan found the Xiao Clan’s home in ruins and received the Clan Head Jade from Xiao Ying, whose soul-light showed that Xiao Zhan was still alive.
• The Xiao Clan elders recognized Xiao Yan as young clan head, and Xiao Yan called on the clan to rebuild together.
• Xiao Yan persuaded the elders to relocate the clan to Stone Desert City, where his elder and second brothers had a foothold.
• Yao Lao told Xiao Yan that a Dou Emperor battle had broken out in the Magical Beast Mountain Range and that a Poison Master’s aura was present, so Xiao Yan flew there after asking Hai Bodong to protect the Xiao Clan.

Xiao Yan confronted the Chu Yun Empire’s attackers after learning they had taken his father and burned the Xiao Clan, while Yun Yun and Jia Ma Empire forces stopped the fleeing Poison Masters. The captured enemies revealed that the Soul Hall had masterminded the attack.

• Yun Yun delayed the Chu Yun Empire’s group in the Magical Beast Mountain Range until Xiao Yan arrived and demanded his father’s return.
• The Flower Plume Dou Emperor claimed he had thrown Xiao Yan’s father off a cliff and admitted to breaking his limbs, prompting Xiao Yan to beat him until his meridians were severed.
• Yun Zimo and Jia Xingtian trapped the fleeing attackers, but Yi Lanfen sacrificed his subordinates in a poisonous explosion and tried to escape.
• Yun Zimo pinned Yi Lanfen with his sword energy and soul sword intent as Xiao Yan and Yun Yun arrived with two captured Dou Emperors.
• The captured Poison Masters identified the Soul Hall as the mastermind behind the attack.

Yun Zimo learned that Soul Hall’s Iron Protector had likely captured Xiao Zhan, while Yun Shan proposed uniting Jia Ma Empire’s factions against outside threats. After Xiao Yan returned to Jia Nan Academy, Yao Lao’s remnant entrusted Yun Zimo with a soul technique and a message for Feng Xian, and Yun Zimo entered the conference hall to settle the alliance dispute.

• Yun Zimo told Yun Shan that Iron Protector was a Three-Star Dou Zong and suspected he had taken Xiao Zhan, but urged them to wait before targeting another Soul Hall Protector.
• Yun Shan proposed forming an alliance among Jia Ma Empire’s factions, and Yun Zimo agreed to watch the eastern region for further Soul Hall incursions.
• Xiao Yan told Yun Zimo he was returning to Jia Nan Academy and delivered a jade slip from Yao Lao.
• Yao Lao’s remnant told Yun Zimo to seek Feng Xian at Starfall Pavilion if he went to Central Plains, and gave him a fragment of the Ancient Soul Technique.
• Yun Zimo entered the conference hall amid objections to the alliance and asked whether he should take charge of punishments, silencing the attendees and settling the alliance.

Two years after the Alliance was founded, Yun Zimo dealt with the Heavenly Snake Mansion’s efforts to recruit Qing Lin. Qing Lin chose to leave for the mansion to cultivate, promising to return as a Dou Sheng and protect Yun Zimo.

• Over two years, Jia Ma Empire consolidated its power, founded the Alliance and new institutions, and grew to twenty-six Dou Emperors and two Dou Zong.
• After Soul Hall agents took part in an attack on the Xiao Clan, the Alliance moved the clan to a protected settlement near Misty Cloud Mountain.
• Zi Yan warned Yun Zimo that Lu Man of the Heavenly Snake Mansion was trying to take Qing Lin with her.
• Yun Zimo told Qing Lin that the choice was hers, and Qing Lin asked how strong she would need to become to protect him.
• Lu Man said the Heavenly Snake Mansion might help Qing Lin become a Dou Sheng, so Qing Lin agreed to go and promised to return to protect Yun Zimo.
• Yun Zimo approved Qing Lin’s leave from the Beast Taming Hall until she became a Dou Sheng.

Zi Yan persuaded Yun Zimo to take her to the Black-Corner Region, where they learned that Han Feng’s Black Alliance was expanding aggressively. At Jiuling City, Yun Zimo reunited with the Xia Lan Order and revealed to Xiao Li that Xiao Yan might still be alive, then began planning a gift for Elder Yao.

• Zi Yan convinced Yun Zimo to seek leave from Yun Yun and travel with her to visit the academy; Yun Yun gave Yun Zimo a Unity Knot before they departed.
• While crossing the Black-Corner Region, Yun Zimo and Zi Yan heard that Han Feng had formed the Black Alliance and was suppressing factions that refused to join.
• Yun Zimo and Zi Yan reached Jiuling City, where the guards stopped them for lacking residence permits until Ren Xia recognized Yun Zimo as the Xia Lan Order’s Great Commander.
• Ren Xia showed Yun Zimo the Order’s nine halls, including Zero’s Ninth Hall, where Xiao Li had become a feared assassin and a Dou Wang after Xiao Yan’s apparent death.
• Yun Zimo told Xiao Li that Xiao Yan was not dead, restoring a spark of hope in him, and decided to prepare Han Feng as a grand gift for Elder Yao.

Yun Zimo returned to Jia Nan Academy with Zi Yan and visited the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower, where he sensed a life force beneath it and warned the elders. After watching Liu Qing and Lin Xiuya spar, he reflected on his own cultivation and reached the late Spirit Realm.

• Zi Yan surprised Su Qian by returning to the academy and told him Yun Zimo had gone with Elder Lin to the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower.
• Yun Zimo admired Xiao Yan’s statue and learned from Elder Lin about Xiao Yan’s deeds and the academy’s precautions around the tower.
• Yun Zimo sensed a life force beneath the tower and warned Elder Lin, who decided to report it to Su Qian.
• Yun Zimo disguised himself as a student and watched Liu Qing and Lin Xiuya spar in the arena.
• Yun Zimo reconsidered his comparisons with other cultivators, and his soul realm advanced to the late Spirit Realm.

Yun Zimo used his intelligence network to plan the Black Alliance’s collapse and prepare the Misty Cloud Sect’s eventual expansion into the Central Plains. Meanwhile, Mo Tianxing joined Han Feng’s alliance to secure pills for his son, while quietly keeping ties with Xia Lan as a safeguard.

• Yun Zimo received intelligence from Lin Xiuya and advised him to abandon his old sword techniques and train at the waterfall on Jiuling Mountain.
• Yun Zimo decided to bring the Black-Corner Region under control, investigate the Soul Hall’s western operations, and later advance into the Central Plains.
• Yun Zimo marked factions such as the Rakshasa Gate and Mad Lion Gang as targets to win over, and planned for Ren Xia and Lin Xiuya to weaken the Black Alliance from within.
• Yun Zimo questioned why Mo Tianxing’s Black Emperor Sect had joined Han Feng’s Black Alliance while Demon Flame Valley remained inactive.
• Mo Tianxing agreed to support the Black Alliance in exchange for pills to help his son Mo Ya advance, but kept his ties with Xia Lan as a backup plan.

After six months of training under Yun Zimo, Lin Xiuya awakened his sword and broke through to Dou Emperor. He developed a way to cultivate sword energy throughout his body, while Liu Qing continued training beneath the waterfall.

• Yun Zimo used Origin Sword Force to intensify the waterfall's pressure as Lin Xiuya trained with his sword and Liu Qing practiced with his spear.
• Lin Xiuya dispersed his Dou Qi and meditated beneath the waterfall, then wind and waves surged around him as he reached enlightenment.
• Lin Xiuya broke through to Dou Emperor, and Yun Zimo urged him to circulate the Cloud Sky Art and unite with heaven and earth.
• Yun Zimo checked on Liu Qing after the waves nearly swept him away, and Liu Qing said he was unharmed and glad Lin Xiuya had found a teacher.
• Lin Xiuya explained that he had nourished sword intent in his dantian and used sword energy to transform his body, becoming one with his sword.

Lin Xiuya recounted how he sacrificed his body to the sword and returned as a sword cultivator, then spent six months training with Liu Qing under Yun Zimo. Their powerful clash destroyed the mountain pool, and Yun Zimo caught them as they tried to flee.

• Lin Xiuya explained how he found his sword by giving himself to the Sword Qi, which rebuilt his body around sword bones and formed a sword soul within him.
• Lin Xiuya proved he was still himself by sparring with Liu Qing, and Yun Zimo told him to master his sword body and Qing Feng.
• During six months of training, Liu Qing refined his spearwork and Lin Xiuya improved his sword techniques while Yun Zimo guided them.
• Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing fought with their strongest techniques, destroying the cliff and burying the waterfall pool beneath rubble.
• Yun Zimo carried the exhausted pair from the ruins, then intercepted them when they tried to escape with their weapons.

Xiao Yan and Yun Zimo arrived in time to save Xiao Li from the Black Alliance’s ambush and wiped out most of its forces. Xiao Li recovered as he reunited with Xiao Yan, while the surviving enemy Han Beng was captured and the decisive battle against the Black Alliance loomed.

• Bi Sha and the Black Alliance forces overwhelmed Xiao Li, crippled him, and prepared to kill him.
• Xiao Yan arrived, killed Bi Sha, and ordered his companions to leave no Black Alliance members alive.
• Yun Zimo and his allies joined the fight, while Zi Yan and Lin Xiuya cut down the remaining enemies and stopped Han Beng from escaping.
• Yun Zimo healed Xiao Li, and Xiao Yan greeted him after revealing he had become a Dou Emperor.

Xiao Yan defeated Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing in a spar, then used medicinal liquid to awaken Yao Lao from the Bone Flame Ring. As the decisive battle with the Black Alliance approached, Yun Zimo and Su Qian’s bait drew the alliance toward a trap, while Han Feng sent Yuan Yi to attack Jia Nan Academy and secretly prepared to eliminate him if he failed to report back.

• Xiao Yan fought Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing, held off both at once, and earned the jade box after their clash devastated the forest.
• Xiao Yan refined the medicinal liquid and awakened Yao Lao from the Bone Flame Ring, while Yun Zimo hid the soul-energy waves from the chamber.
• Yun Zimo met Su Qian at Jia Nan Academy, where Su Qian revealed that they had sent most of the academy’s elders away as bait for the Black Alliance.
• Yuan Yi learned that Su Qian and most of the elders had left, then proposed leading an attack on Jia Nan Academy before its defenses could respond.
• Han Feng ordered Yuan Yi to lead the attack and told Han Yi to brand him a traitor and target his children if he failed to report within a day.

Mo Shou crippled Han Beng and sent him back to Han Feng, who sought help from a sinister ally as Yuan Yi led the Eight-Fan Gate into a trap at Jia Nan Inner Academy. Xiao Yan defeated Yuan Yi, learned Han Feng had made him a Pill Slave, and set out for Feng City while Jia Nan Academy and the Xia Lan Order launched their own advance.

• Mo Shou shattered Han Beng’s crystal core and sent him to Feng City, where Han Feng examined him and summoned a sinister figure using a Stone Lock.
• Yuan Yi led the Eight-Fan Gate through the Space Barrier toward Jia Nan Inner Academy, while Han Feng’s informant slipped away to watch for news.
• Xiao Yan revealed the ambush, defeated Yuan Yi, and learned that Han Feng had enslaved him as a Pill Slave.
• Yao Lao identified Yuan Yi’s condition, and Xiao Yan killed him before deciding to head straight to Feng City.
• Su Qian led Jia Nan Academy’s forces out of the Inner Academy as Ren Xia led the Xia Lan Order from Jiuling City toward Feng City.

Han Feng and the Black Alliance faced Jia Nan Academy in the decisive battle after Yuan Yi’s betrayal. Xiao Yan confronted Han Feng as the two sides clashed, leaving their personal fight about to begin.

• Han Yi announced that Han Feng had executed Yuan Yi for betraying the Black Alliance.
• Qi Yan attacked the Black Alliance manor, and Ming Ye intercepted him in the air.
• Su Qian led Xiao Yan and the academy’s fighters toward Feng City as Han Feng greeted Xiao Yan and asked about their teacher.
• Su Qian offered to disband the Black Alliance, but the Gold and Silver Elders rejected his proposal and attacked him.
• Han Feng sent the Black Alliance forces into battle while Mo Tianxing stayed out of the fight.
• Han Feng addressed Xiao Yan as his junior brother, and Xiao Yan raised his Heavy Profound Ruler to face him.

Xiao Yan fought Han Feng while Jia Nan Academy and the Black Alliance battled around them, and Yun Zimo intervened when Han Feng detonated his flames. Han Feng revealed that Yao Chen was inside Xiao Yan just as Mu Gu appeared as a Nine-Star Dou Zong, leaving Xiao Yan and his allies facing a powerful new threat.

• Yun Zimo and his allies hid while Jia Nan Academy and Ren Xia’s forces carried out their plan to engage the Black Alliance.
• Xiao Yan battled Han Feng, using the Glazed Lotus Heart Transformation and his Heavenly Flames to drive Han Feng back.
• Han Feng summoned the Sea Heart Phantom Beast and thwarted two Black Alliance Dou Emperors who tried to attack him.
• Han Feng detonated the fire beast, and Yun Zimo appeared to shield Xiao Yan from the blast.
• Han Feng sensed Yao Chen’s soul inside Xiao Yan and revealed that he knew where Yao Chen was hiding.
• Mu Gu emerged from the black mist as a Nine-Star Dou Zong, confronting Xiao Yan and the others.

Yao Lao appeared to help Xiao Yan and the Jia Nan Academy forces face Han Feng and Protector Xuan, whose Soul Envoys attacked the Black-Corner Region. As the battle turned against them, Han Feng was left with only a few allies while Yao Lao's side gathered reinforcements.

• Yao Lao emerged beside Xiao Yan and Yun Zimo, and Su Qian joined him as Protector Xuan and Han Feng prepared to attack.
• Yao Lao's soul power overwhelmed the black fog, but Protector Xuan realized he was only at peak Dou Zong strength and unleashed his Soul Envoys.
• Protector Xuan's Soul Envoys slaughtered fighters across the Black-Corner Region, while Han Feng abandoned the Black Alliance and watched his former allies die.
• Tie Wu and several sects renounced the Black Alliance, and Yun Zimo cut through the fog as Yao Lao used the Bone Chilling Flame against Protector Xuan.
• Han Feng attacked Xiao Yan for the Burning Mantra, but Lan Fengzi, Liu Qing, Lin Xiuya, Yun Zimo, Zi Yan, and the Three Beast Emperors surrounded him.
• Han Feng escaped toward Protector Xuan, while Jia Nan Academy fighters and Ren Xia's Nine Halls reinforcements gathered beside Yao Lao, leaving Han Feng isolated.

Yao Lao and Xiao Yan fought the Black Alliance as Yao Lao faced his traitorous disciple Han Feng. After defeating Han Feng and hearing him reject any remorse, Yao Lao ended his life and sealed the Sea Heart Flame.

• Yao Lao entered the black fog and fought Xuan Protector while Xiao Yan charged at Han Feng.
• Han Feng stabbed Xuan Protector, devoured his soul, and used the power to transform into a towering black-armored fighter.
• Yao Lao took Xiao Yan's Heavy Profound Ruler and battled Han Feng, whose Heart of the Illusionary Sea and Blue Sea Waves devastated the Black Alliance manor and shook the Black-Corner Region.
• Yao Lao defeated Han Feng, who admitted he regretted not killing his teacher sooner and blamed him for his failures.
• Yao Lao ended Han Feng's life, sealed the Sea Heart Flame in a bone-white ice crystal, and collected the Orchid Storage Ring.

Yun Zimo learned that Soul Hall’s Third Protector had approached Xiao Yi Xian as the three-nation alliance prepared to invade the Jia Ma Empire. Xiao Yi Xian took command of Butterfly Medical Valley’s forces and joined the allied army, which began its advance toward Black Mountain Fortress.

• Yao Lao gave Xiao Yan Han Feng’s storage ring and the sealed Sea Heart Flame, then returned to the Bone Flame Ring as Xiao Yan vowed to help revive him.
• Yun Zimo received news that the allied forces of Chu Yun, Mulan, and Jin Yan were advancing on Black Mountain Fortress and that a Soul Hall Protector had sought out Xiao Yi Xian.
• Yun Zimo told Ren Xia to keep Jiuling City and the Black-Corner Region in order while he considered returning to the Jia Ma Empire.
• Xiao Yi Xian destroyed the black fog of the Soul Hall Protector who pressed her to send troops, then took her staff from her teacher’s shrine and prepared to go to war.
• Xiao Yi Xian flew to the Chu Yun imperial palace and led Butterfly Medical Valley’s forces to join the allied armies of the Golden Goose and Mulan Empires.
• Xiao Yi Xian rebuffed Yan Luotian, then ordered the allied army to cross into the Jia Ma Empire and break through Black Mountain Fortress.