Chapter Summaries

Ten-year-old Xiao Yan became a one-star Dou Zhe and planned to find a cultivation technique while avoiding Old Yao draining his Dou Qi. Xiao Zhan delayed giving him one because an honored guest was coming, leaving Xiao Yan suspecting the visitor was Nalan Yanran.

• Xiao Yan passed the test as a one-star Dou Zhe, and he resolved to grow stronger before Old Yao awakened and drained his Dou Qi.
• Xiao Xun Er tested at the eighth stage of Dou Qi, then praised Xiao Yan and discussed his exceptional cultivation with him.
• Xiao Yan led Xun Er to Xiao Zhan and asked for a cultivation technique.
• Xun Er considered giving Xiao Yan a Mystic Tier high-grade technique because the Xiao Clan lacked high-grade techniques.
• Xiao Zhan told Xiao Yan to wait because an honored guest was coming, and Xiao Yan suspected the visitor was Nalan Yanran.

Yun Yun and Nalan Yanran visited the Xiao Family, where Yun Yun offered to take Xiao Yan as her disciple after hearing of his talent. Xiao Yan refused to join the Misty Cloud Sect but said he might consider becoming Yun Yun’s personal disciple if he did not have to go there.

• Xiao Yan recognized Yun Yun and Nalan Yanran and realized they had come to take him away from Wutan City.
• Nalan Yanran greeted Xiao Zhan respectfully and introduced Yun Yun as her master, the Sect Master of the Misty Cloud Sect.
• Yun Yun offered to take Xiao Yan as her disciple, explaining that Nalan Yanran had praised his talent.
• Xiao Yan declined to join the Misty Cloud Sect, disappointing Nalan Yanran and surprising the people in the hall.
• After Yun Yun offered to take him personally, Xiao Yan said he could consider it if he did not have to go to the Misty Cloud Sect.

Xiao Yan agreed to become Yun Yun’s disciple after she offered to teach him in Wutan City rather than require him to join the Misty Cloud Sect. Yun Yun gave him fire-attributed cultivation techniques and a Storage Ring, while Xun Er grew suspicious of Nalan Yanran’s sudden friendliness and jealous of Yun Yun’s closeness with Xiao Yan.

• Xiao Yan weighed the benefits and dangers of accepting Yun Yun as his master while Nalan Yanran regretted the harm she had caused him.
• Yun Yun took Xiao Yan aside and offered to stay in Wutan City and teach him and Nalan Yanran, and Xiao Yan accepted her as his master.
• Xun Er watched Nalan Yanran grow closer to Xiao Zhan and concluded that something was wrong with her.
• Yun Yun tested Xiao Yan’s fire affinity, gave him three Mystic Tier mid-level fire techniques and a Storage Ring, and held his hand as they returned.
• Xiao Zhan welcomed Yun Yun’s plan to remain in Wutan City and led her and Nalan Yanran to a quiet courtyard in the Xiao Clan estate.

Xiao Yan made rapid progress cultivating Explosive Step under Yun Yun's guidance, while Nalan Yanran's selfish plan to bind her teacher and Xiao Yan as master and disciple left her jealous when Yun Yun favored Xiao Yan. Inspired by Xiao Yan's dedication, Nalan Yanran left to intensify her own training.

• Xiao Yan demonstrated that he could use Explosive Step for nine strides, covering three hundred meters, and Yun Yun praised his progress.
• Nalan Yanran arrived and complained that Xiao Yan called her Senior Sister, but Yun Yun pointed out that he was not a Misty Cloud Sect disciple.
• Nalan Yanran reflected that she had arranged for Yun Yun to take Xiao Yan as her disciple in hopes of preventing them from becoming romantically involved, and she felt bitter when Yun Yun showed him affection.
• Xiao Yan asked Yun Yun to explain the Fire Origin Sword Canon, while Nalan Yanran took his dedication as inspiration.
• Nalan Yanran left the mountain resolved to train harder and reach the eighth stage of Dou Qi within a year.

Xun Er resisted Ling Ying’s suggestion to deal with Nalan Yanran and instead demanded more resources from her clan. After training with Yun Yun and spending the evening with Xun Er, Xiao Yan asked what she thought of Nalan Yanran, leaving Xun Er determined to watch over him more closely.

• Xun Er rejected Ling Ying’s proposal to deal with Nalan Yanran and ordered him to request double the best resources from the clan.
• Xiao Yan practiced the Fire Origin Sword Canon while Yun Yun praised his progress, then left to handle other matters.
• Xun Er joined Xiao Yan at the Back Mountain, where he explained that Yun Yun’s head pat had reminded him of his late mother.
• Xiao Yan asked Xun Er what she thought of Nalan Yanran, and Xun Er said she seemed to have designs on him that might be harmful.
• Xun Er resolved to pay closer attention to Xiao Yan and walked back with him as the sun set.

Xiao Yan sought Yun Yun’s advice about gaining combat experience, and she warned him that intense fights could harm his still-developing body. After she instantly defeated him in a spar, Nalan Yanran misunderstood what she saw and praised Xiao Yan, leaving Yun Yun convinced Yanran was falling for him.

• Xiao Yan considered possible places to gain experience and decided to ask Yun Yun for guidance.
• Yun Yun advised Xiao Yan to focus on cultivation and Dou Skills, then offered to spar with him.
• Yun Yun drew her sword and placed it at Xiao Yan’s neck before he could react, teaching him that enemies would not warn him before attacking.
• Nalan Yanran arrived, mistook the spar for a confrontation, and then praised Xiao Yan after learning what had happened.
• Yun Yun concluded that Nalan Yanran was beyond saving and wondered whether she should pass the Misty Cloud Sect to Xiao Yan.

On her coming-of-age day, Hun Li Li restored much of her power after Hun Tian Di returned part of her stolen bloodline, then demanded to leave the Soul Realm. Hun Tian Di gave her a clan token to requisition help from Hun Miesheng, and Hun Li Li flew out alone.

• Hun Li Li tested at Third Stage of Dou Qi and was mocked until the Soul Envoy killed two onlookers.
• Hun Li Li unleashed the Blood Soul Curse, but Hun Tian Di appeared and returned blood droplets that raised her to three-star Dou Wang while lowering her bloodline to the eighth rank.
• Hun Li Li confronted Hun Tian Di about repeatedly taking her bloodline and demanded to leave the Soul Realm.
• Hun Tian Di gave Hun Li Li a clan token that let her requisition aid from Hun Miesheng and summon him in danger.
• Hun Li Li formed Dou Qi wings and flew out of the Soul Realm.

Hun Li Li left the Soul Realm with supplies from Hun Miesheng and headed for the Jia Ma Empire, hoping to use the fallen genius to kill her biological father. A month later, Yun Yun and Nalan Yanran departed, and Xiao Yan went to the market with Xun Er after she arrived in high spirits.

• Hun Tian Di ordered Hun Miesheng to keep Hun Li Li's departure secret and ensured that Sacred Soul Mountain and its inhabitants were destroyed to conceal her identity.
• Hun Miesheng gave Hun Li Li a Storage Ring filled with supplies, and she set off toward the Jia Ma Empire after deciding she needed the fallen genius's help to kill her biological father.
• Yun Yun and Nalan Yanran left the Xiao Family Back Mountain, while Xiao Yan reflected on his inability to awaken Old Yao and continued cultivating.
• Xun Er found Xiao Yan on the mountain and persuaded him to go shopping with her at the Xiao Family market.

Xiao Yan took Xun Er shopping in the Xiao Family marketplace, where he met the guard captain Pei En and learned that Xun Er had reached the ninth stage of Dou Qi. Their outing was interrupted when a richly dressed youth approached and greeted Xun Er.

• Xiao Yan and Xun Er visited the Xiao Family marketplace, where guards recognized and respectfully greeted them.
• Pei En introduced himself as the marketplace guard captain, and Xiao Yan asked him to continue his duties while they browsed.
• Pei En ordered Pa Li and two guards to discreetly protect Xiao Yan and Xun Er from pickpockets or troublemakers.
• Xun Er praised Pei En and revealed that she could sense the concealed guards; Xiao Yan guessed she had reached the ninth stage of Dou Qi.
• A richly dressed youth approached the pair and greeted Xun Er with undisguised affection.

Xiao Yan defended Xun Er from Jia Lie Ao and slaughtered the guards who attacked him in the Xiao Family market. He left Jia Lie Ao alive, asked Pei En to clean up, and apologized to Xun Er, who praised him.

• Xun Er tried to leave with Xiao Yan, but Jia Lie Ao blocked their way and threatened them with his guards.
• Xiao Yan taunted Jia Lie Ao and drew the Azure Edge Sword when the guards surrounded them.
• Xiao Yan swiftly killed Jia Lie Ao's guards, including their four-star Dou Zhe captain, while the crowd watched in disbelief.
• Xiao Yan made Jia Lie Ao kneel, warned him to stay away, and let him flee alive.
• Pei En arrived with the market guards, and Xiao Yan asked him to clean up before leaving with Xun Er.
• Xiao Yan apologized for acting impulsively, but Xun Er told him he had been amazing.

Xiao Yan discovered a strange scarlet bone fragment in his hidden hot spring, and its flame nearly consumed him. Old Yao awakened in time to suppress the flame and save him.

• Xiao Yan bathed in his hidden cave after washing away the blood from his recent fight, then reflected on his cultivation and Old Yao’s need for soul-repairing treasures.
• Xiao Yan watched the hot spring boil and change color before a cracked scarlet bone fragment rose from the water.
• Xiao Yan touched the fragment, and a blood-red flame entered his body and began scorching his meridians.
• Xiao Yan jumped into the pool and consumed Dou Qi-restoring pills as he struggled to control the powerful flame.
• Old Yao awakened, used a bone-white flame and soul force to subdue the Origin Flame Seed, and scolded Xiao Yan for touching a Heavenly Flame without preparation.

Xiao Yan survived refining the Myriad Beast Spirit Fire, though Old Yao drained most of his Dou Qi in the process. Old Yao accepted Xiao Yan as his alchemy disciple and explained how the Heavenly Flame had formed beneath the hot spring.

• The bone-white flames subdued the scarlet flame, and Xiao Yan's aura rose before Old Yao took nearly all the Dou Qi from his vortex.
• Xiao Yan awoke with his realm reduced to a newly advanced Dou Zhe and discovered that Old Yao had emerged from his ring.
• Xiao Yan inferred that Old Yao intended to teach him alchemy, knelt, and accepted him as his teacher.
• Old Yao evaporated the hot spring and revealed an enormous magical beast's spinal bone beneath it.
• Old Yao explained that blood and soul fragments from the people Xiao Yan had killed completed the Myriad Beast Spirit Fire's formation, and that the flame had tried to use Xiao Yan to finish its birth.

Old Yao explained how he had saved Xiao Yan from the Heavenly Flame and gave him an Earth Tier low-grade technique to cultivate. Xiao Yan chose to learn it but was told to stabilize his foundation before switching techniques.

• Old Yao explained that the Heavenly Flame had awakened him early and that he had refined it before it could kill Xiao Yan.
• Old Yao offered Xiao Yan an Earth Tier low-grade technique and warned that a higher-grade technique could attract powerful enemies.
• Xiao Yan asked about cultivating two techniques, and Old Yao explained that incompatible Dou Qi would clash inside one Dou Qi vortex.
• Xiao Yan accepted Old Yao as his teacher and received the Spirit Flame Tempering Technique, which could use his Myriad Beast Spirit Fire to greatly improve its cultivation effects.
• Xiao Yan wanted to switch techniques immediately, but Old Yao stopped him and told him to stabilize his foundation first.

Xiao Yan reached three-star Dou Zhe after months of cultivation and learned that he needed rare ingredients and large sums of money to support himself and Old Yao. Disguised as an older alchemist, he brought Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid to an auction house for appraisal, where the appraiser went to fetch Master Guni.

• Xiao Yan stabilized his cultivation, advanced to three-star Dou Zhe, and fed his soul blood to the Myriad Beast Spirit Fire.
• Old Yao taught Xiao Yan alchemy and listed the medicinal ingredients needed to replenish Xiao Yan's vitality and practice refining pills.
• Xiao Yan admitted he lacked the money to buy the ingredients, and Old Yao gave him the Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid formula as a way to earn startup capital.
• Xiao Yan disguised himself in bulky clothing and a black robe, then brought a bottle of Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid to an auction house.
• The appraiser recognized the liquid's unusual effect and summoned Master Guni to examine it.

Xiao Yan posed as a powerful alchemist to obtain herbs from the Jia Lie Clan for free, then brought five bottles of Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid to the Miter Auction House. After Guni confirmed the liquid was genuine, Xiao Yan entered the ongoing auction and waited for his bottles to be sold.

• Xiao Yan recalled how he had used Old Yao’s Fourth-Tier Alchemist persona to persuade Jia Lie Bi to give him medicinal herbs without charge.
• Xiao Yan had Old Yao refine the Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid and took five bottles to the Miter Auction House to sell.
• Guni examined the spirit liquid and recognized Xiao Yan as an alchemist, but advised the appraiser not to investigate his identity.
• Xiao Yan accepted a token from the appraiser and entered the auction, where he found little interest in the ordinary items on sale.

Xiao Yan sold the Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid and used the proceeds to buy medicinal ingredients and a medicine cauldron through the Miter Auction House. Old Yao refined a Fourth-Grade pill for Xiao Yan to observe, leaving Xiao Yan with the finished pill and a closer look at pill refinement.

• Xiao Yan sold five bottles of Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid for 140,000 gold coins and used his Mittel Family VIP card to order medicinal ingredients and a better medicine cauldron.
• Guni delivered the supplies and offered a discount, and Old Yao promised to refine a pill for him in exchange for ingredients for three batches of Qi Gathering Powder.
• Xiao Yan planned to give one Qi Gathering Powder pill to Guni, sell another to the Miter Auction House, and give the third to Xun Er.
• Xiao Yan secretly went to a cave on the Back Mountain that night to watch Old Yao refine a Fourth-Grade pill with the Bone Chilling Flame.
• Old Yao completed the pill and tossed the jade bottle to Xiao Yan, who examined its fragrance.

Xiao Yan watched Old Yao refine Qi Gathering Powder and asked to learn alchemy. After gaining insight from the demonstration, he began his first attempt, leaving Old Yao astonished when he quickly found and used the Wood Force to control his Heavenly Flame.

• Xiao Yan examined Old Yao's flawless Fourth-Grade Qi Gathering Powder and asked him to teach him alchemy.
• Old Yao refined another Qi Gathering Powder slowly, and Xiao Yan watched closely until he gained an urge to try refining pills himself.
• Xiao Yan brought out his two-flame-port cauldron, and Old Yao explained how its fire channels worked.
• Xiao Yan channeled the Myriad Beast Spirit Fire through one fire channel, then infused Wood Force through the other to calm and steady the flames.
• Old Yao was stunned when Xiao Yan quickly located the Wood Force within his body.

Xiao Yan learned to control his Heavenly Flames while making Healing Medicine under Old Yao’s guidance. He completed his first batch, judged its quality inadequate, and immediately began another attempt.

• Old Yao taught Xiao Yan a Healing Medicine formula and instructed him as he began extracting its ingredients.
• Xiao Yan ruined his first stalk of Blood Coagulation Grass, then followed Old Yao’s advice to reduce both his Dou Qi and Heavenly Flames.
• Xiao Yan extracted the medicinal essences from the Blood Coagulation Grass, Vitality Fruit, and Poppy Flowers, then fused them in the cauldron.
• Old Yao divided the finished dark-red medicinal paste among jade bottles and congratulated Xiao Yan on his first successful attempt.
• Xiao Yan said the medicine still needed improvement and started refining another batch.

After three days of alchemy practice, Xiao Yan was ready to try refining first-rank pills, so he went to Jia Lie Bi to deliver the promised medicine. Old Yao gave Jia Lie Bi three bottles of cheap spirit liquid while secretly keeping the genuine Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid, and Xiao Yan continued on to the Miter Auction House.

• Xiao Yan improved his control over the Heavenly Flames, reached a one hundred percent success rate extracting medicinal essence from Blood Coagulation Powder, and moved closer to becoming a four-star Dou Zhe.
• Old Yao told Xiao Yan to buy herbs for first-rank pills and reminded him to deliver the promised medicine to Jia Lie Bi.
• Jia Lie Bi feared Xiao Yan’s talent and considered him a threat to the Jia Lie Clan, but asked Old Yao to make Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid for his son, Jia Lie Ao.
• Old Yao gave Jia Lie Bi three bottles of spirit liquid and left before Jia Lie Bi could continue their conversation.
• Xiao Yan discovered that Old Yao had given Jia Lie Bi only spirit liquid made from leftover herbs and had kept all fifty genuine bottles.

Xiao Yan sold Qi Gathering Powders and Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid through the Mittel Auction House, where Old Yao advised Guni on Alchemy. After leaving in disguise, Xiao Yan bought a black iron fragment at Old Yao’s suggestion.

• Guni praised the two Qi Gathering Powders, agreed to auction them, and accepted fifty bottles of Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid for sale.
• Xiao Yan gave Guni a list of medicinal ingredients, and Guni arranged to have them prepared after realizing they were for a disciple.
• Old Yao answered Guni’s Alchemy questions and encouraged him, earning Guni’s gratitude and respect.
• Xiao Yan collected the ingredients, left the auction house, removed his disguise, and noticed a strange fluctuation from a black iron fragment at a market stall.
• At Old Yao’s urging, Xiao Yan haggled for a fire magic crystal and bought it along with the black iron fragment and the other stall items.