Chapter Summaries

Qian Ye visited the Alchemist Association with Ning'er and ran into Xiao Yan in the trading area. Xiao Yan left after vowing to defeat Qian Ye and rescue Yao Chen, while continuing to pursue ingredients and pills to strengthen himself.

• Qian Ye entered the Alchemist Association with Ning'er and wandered into its trading area.
• Qian Ye recognized Xiao Yan by the heavy ruler on his back and approached him.
• Xiao Yan warned Qian Ye that he would defeat him and rescue Yao Chen, but Qian Ye dismissed his threat.
• Xiao Yan left the trading area after seeing that Qian Ye still wore the Yao Chen Ring.
• Xiao Yan continued his search for medicinal ingredients and pill formulas as he advanced toward Nine-Star Dou Wang.

Qian Ye absorbed the Void Devouring Flame after checking in at the capital's Alchemist Association. He then encountered Ao Ba harassing Xue Mei, and the chapter ended with Ao Ba using his teacher's status to intimidate her.

• The Check-in System rewarded Qian Ye with the Void Devouring Flame, which he absorbed into his Dantian.
• Qian Ye told Ning'er that he had crossed paths with a hostile man but did not consider him a concern.
• Qian Ye and Ning'er approached a crowd gathered around an argument at a medicinal ingredient stall.
• Qian Ye recognized the woman as Xue Mei and the man harassing her as Ao Ba, a disciple of the association elder Fu Yan.
• Ao Ba insulted Xue Mei and threatened her by invoking Fu Yan's authority, while Xue Mei rejected his advances.

Qian Ye intervened when Ao Ba bullied Xue Mei over an Ice and Fire Snake Scale Fruit, defeating Ao Ba’s lackeys and severing both of Ao Ba’s arms. Ao Ba survived and fled toward a passage, vowing revenge.

• Ao Ba outbid Xue Mei for the Ice and Fire Snake Scale Fruit and taunted her, but Qian Ye offered a hundred thousand gold coins and bought it.
• Ao Ba ordered his lackeys to attack Qian Ye, who swiftly knocked them all unconscious.
• Qian Ye slapped Ao Ba and sent him flying after Ao Ba confronted him.
• Ao Ba ran toward a passage, but Qian Ye severed both his arms with a saber, leaving Ao Ba to swear revenge.

Qian Ye confronted Ao Ba’s teacher, Fu Yan, after Ao Ba returned with him to seek revenge. Qian Ye revealed that the invisible Void Devouring Flame had consumed Fu Yan’s arm, leaving the Alchemist Association elder terrified and unsure what Qian Ye would do next.

• Ao Ba found Fu Yan and told him a distorted account of how Qian Ye had severed his arms.
• Xue Mei warned Qian Ye that Ao Ba might bring someone back for revenge, while Qian Ye assessed her potential as an apothecary.
• Fu Yan arrived with Ao Ba, demanded a hundred thousand gold coins and Qian Ye’s arms as punishment, then attacked him.
• The Void Devouring Flame silently consumed Fu Yan’s left arm, and Qian Ye admitted that he had caused it.
• Qian Ye explained that the invisible Heavenly Flame could devour life, leaving Fu Yan afraid of its power.

Qian Ye demonstrated the power of his invisible Void Heavenly Flames, then spared Ao Ba and Fu Yan after making Ao Ba apologize to Xue Mei and promise to leave her alone. Qian Ye departed without revealing his name, while Fa Ma and Yao Yue watched and discussed their connection to him.

• Qian Ye made ten gold coins liquefy and vanish to prove the power of his invisible Heavenly Flames, and the onlookers recognized him as a one-star Dou Huang.
• Ao Ba knelt and begged Qian Ye for mercy, and Qian Ye told him to obtain Xue Mei's forgiveness for his rude treatment of her.
• Fu Yan apologized to Xue Mei and asked her to spare Ao Ba, and Xue Mei asked Qian Ye to let them go.
• Qian Ye released Fu Yan and Ao Ba but warned Ao Ba never to disrespect Xue Mei again; Ao Ba rolled away, and Fu Yan left to treat his wound.
• Qian Ye refused Xue Mei's offer to visit and thank him, then left with Ning'er without giving her his name.
• Fa Ma and Yao Yue discussed why they had not intervened, while Mi Qie Er failed to understand their conversation.

Qian Ye summoned Xue Mei to the imperial palace and gave her the Ice and Fire Snake Scale Fruit he had bought for her. After she recognized him as the masked man from the day before, the Check-in System rewarded Qian Ye with the Heavenly Flame Emperor Flame, which he absorbed.

• Qian Ye learned that President Fa Ma had arrived with Xue Mei and Lin Fei, then went to meet them in the Council Hall.
• Xue Mei asked Fa Ma why the Imperial Preceptor wanted to see her, and Fa Ma said she would find out when they met.
• Qian Ye entered the hall, introduced himself to Xue Mei, and had Ning'er bring her a jade box.
• Xue Mei opened the box and recognized the Ice and Fire Snake Scale Fruit from the Alchemist Association's trading area, then realized Qian Ye was the man who had bought it.
• The Check-in System rewarded Qian Ye with the Heavenly Flame Emperor Flame, and he absorbed it.
• Xue Mei asked why Qian Ye was so kind to her, and he told her not to dwell on his small favor.

Qian Ye revealed that he was a high-level seventh-tier alchemist and gave Xue Mei and Lin Fei seventh-tier Yin Yang Profound Dragon Pills. After Lin Fei left, he asked Xue Mei to stay so they could speak privately.

• Qian Ye learned that Xue Mei was a third-tier alchemist and Lin Fei was a second-tier alchemist, then revealed his seventh-tier rank.
• The system rewarded Qian Ye with 100 bottles of sixth-tier Green Underworld Longevity Pills for checking in with Goddess Lin Fei.
• Qian Ye gave Xue Mei and Lin Fei one seventh-tier Yin Yang Profound Dragon Pill each and warned them to keep the pills secret.
• Lin Fei and Xue Mei swallowed their pills, and Lin Fei left after Qian Ye asked Xue Mei to remain.
• Qian Ye invited Xue Mei to come with him, and she followed.

Qian Ye used pressure and threats to provoke Xue Mei, who believed he intended to assault her and finally attacked him in fury. He easily countered her, but she kept getting back up to fight.

• Qian Ye told Xue Mei that his help could raise her alchemy and cultivation levels, then demonstrated his power by pinning her down with crushing pressure.
• Qian Ye threatened Xue Mei and demanded that she give herself to him, leading her to condemn him and believe his earlier kindness had been a trap.
• Qian Ye told Xue Mei to undress, then said he was not interested in her and laughed at her reaction.
• Xue Mei rose after the pressure vanished and charged at Qian Ye, who repeatedly countered her attacks and sent her flying.
• Despite her injuries, Xue Mei kept getting back up and continued fighting Qian Ye.

Qian Ye helped Xue Mei break through by putting her in danger, and she thanked him, agreed to keep his help secret from Lin Fei, and grew close to him. The next day, Lin Fei came to ask Qian Ye for pill-refining guidance, and he offered to teach her if she could last an hour against him.

• Xue Mei broke through from a three-star Dou Ling to a nine-star Dou Ling and reached the fourth-tier alchemist level after Qian Ye withdrew his Dou Qi.
• Xue Mei thanked Qian Ye, agreed not to tell Lin Fei about his methods, and kissed him before staying overnight at his residence.
• The next afternoon, Lin Fei visited Qian Ye to ask him to teach her pill refining.
• Qian Ye told Lin Fei she had to last an hour against him without admitting defeat, and she balked when he claimed to be a nine-star Dou Zong.

Lin Fei accepted Qian Ye’s challenge, but he beat and taunted her before claiming that losers had to die. After he threw her into cold water, she awakened with no injuries, advanced to a Third-Tier Alchemist and Seven-Star Dou Ling, and found Qian Ye lying beneath a tree.

• Lin Fei accepted Qian Ye’s challenge and injured her hand when her first punch struck him.
• Qian Ye mocked Lin Fei’s abilities, and she attacked again, only to be badly injured and thrown into a tree.
• Lin Fei kept fighting despite her broken hands, but Qian Ye caught her ankle and told her that anyone who lost to him had to die.
• Qian Ye grabbed Lin Fei by the throat and dropped her into cold water, where she stopped struggling and began to glow.
• Lin Fei awoke healed and stronger, having advanced to a Third-Tier Alchemist and Seven-Star Dou Ling, then found Qian Ye beneath a tree.

Qian Ye accompanied Yao Ye on an outing after the eldest princess invited him to meet someone. During their carriage ride through the imperial capital, Yao Ye told him that the Mittel Clan had closed its auction house and nearly all its shops.

• Lin Fei told Qian Ye that the seventh-tier Yin Yang Profound Dragon Pill had helped her advance to Seven-Star Dou Ling and become a third-tier alchemist, and she thanked him for concealing his plan so she would fight with real fear.
• Three days later, Xia'er told Qian Ye that Yao Ye was waiting for him in the Council Hall.
• Yao Ye invited Qian Ye to accompany her to meet someone, and he agreed to go with her immediately.
• Qian Ye and Yao Ye rode through the imperial capital in her carriage, where she told him that the Mittel Clan's auction house and nearly all its shops had closed.

Yao Ye explained to Qian Ye why the Mist Yun Sect was targeting the Mittel Clan and why the imperial family hesitated to intervene. The imperial family wanted to protect the Mittel Clan but feared that fighting the Mist Yun Sect would leave the Jia Ma Empire vulnerable to invasion.

• Yao Ye told Qian Ye that the Mist Yun Sect's conflict with the Mittel Clan stemmed from Xiao Yan's ties to both clans.
• Yao Ye recounted Xiao Yan's broken engagement to Nalan Yanran and his resulting conflict with the Mist Yun Sect.
• Yao Ye explained that Ya Fei and the Mittel Clan's supreme elder, Hai Bodong, were close to Xiao Yan, and Hai Bodong's support had helped Ya Fei lead the clan.
• Qian Ye asked whether the imperial family would intervene as the Mist Yun Sect and the Mittel Clan approached battle.
• Yao Ye said the imperial family wanted to protect the Mittel Clan but feared the Mist Yun Sect's strength and the threat of foreign invasion if war weakened the empire.

Qian Ye accompanied Yao Ye to Mittel Manor, where he agreed to help the Mittel Clan face the Mist Yun Sect while keeping his nine-star Dou Zong strength secret. The Mittel Clan leaders discussed their isolation and looming danger, then learned that Yao Ye had arrived.

• Qian Ye confronted Yao Ye for bringing him to Mittel Manor without asking and warned her not to use him without permission again.
• Qian Ye agreed to help Yao Ye handle the crisis, on the condition that she follow his instructions and conceal his nine-star Dou Zong strength.
• At Mittel Manor, the clan leader and other members discussed the Mist Yun Sect's threat and the other powerful families' refusal to help.
• Mittel Tengshan suggested joining forces with the imperial family, the Nalan Clan, and the Mu Clan, but the clan leader said they would not intervene.
• A gate attendant announced that Her Highness the Eldest Princess had arrived and asked whether the clan leader would receive her.

Yao Ye arrived at the Mittel Clan estate with Qian Ye while the clan was meeting to discuss its crisis. Ya Fei learned that Qian Ye was the imperial family’s newly appointed state preceptor, and after he ignored her, she secretly resolved to remember the slight.

• Ya Fei questioned Hai Bodong about whether Yao Ye had come to help, and he advised her to hear the princess out before deciding.
• Ya Fei went to welcome Yao Ye and Qian Ye, then led them toward the Council Hall.
• Ya Fei mistook the masked Qian Ye for a bodyguard until Yao Ye introduced him as the imperial family’s new state preceptor.
• Qian Ye stayed silent when Ya Fei apologized, leaving her awkward and prompting Yao Ye to explain that he was reserved.
• Ya Fei smiled outwardly but privately resented Qian Ye’s disregard, while Qian Ye suspected she would remember the slight and retaliate later.

Yao Ye brought the Jia Ma Empire’s state preceptor, Qian Ye, to the Mittel Clan estate to help with its conflict against the Mist Yun Sect. The hall doubted Qian Ye after learning he was only a nine-star Dou Wang, until Yao Ye revealed he was also a seventh-tier alchemist.

• Yao Ye declined Ya Fei’s offer of the seat of honor and explained that she had come because of the Mittel Clan’s conflict with the Mist Yun Sect.
• Qian Ye surveyed the hall and recognized the crippled Xiao Ding and the Ice Emperor, Hai Bodong.
• Yao Ye said one person could repel the enemy and identified Qian Ye as the Jia Ma Empire’s newly appointed state preceptor.
• Ya Fei questioned Qian Ye’s strength and warned that Yun Shan, the Mist Yun Sect, and a mysterious force made the fight dangerous.
• Yao Ye revealed that Qian Ye was a nine-star Dou Wang and a seventh-tier alchemist, leaving the hall to reconsider his value.

Qian Ye refined a seventh-tier pill before the gathered nobles and proved his skill when two-color pill lightning struck the Eight Trigrams Furnace. The onlookers were impressed by his ability, and the Mittel Clan wondered whether it could ever persuade him to support its business.

• Yao Ye told Ya Fei and the others that Qian Ye was a Seventh-Tier Apothecary, though they struggled to believe her.
• Qian Ye brought out the Eight Trigrams Furnace and began refining a pill in the hall while everyone watched.
• Two-color pill lightning struck the furnace, convincing the onlookers that Qian Ye had made a seventh-tier pill.
• Qian Ye caught the living pill, sealed it in a jade box, and returned to his seat.
• Hai Bodong praised Qian Ye, and Ya Fei and Mittel Tengshan discussed how valuable a Seventh-Tier Apothecary would be to the Mittel Clan.

The Mist Yun Sect arrived at the Mittel Clan’s gates, and Ya Fei prepared to face them with help from Yao Ye and Qian Ye. As the group went to meet the attackers, Qian Ye explained why he was concealing his true strength and why the imperial family intended to preserve the balance between the Mittel Clan and the Mist Yun Sect.

• A messenger warned Ya Fei and Mittel Tengshan that the Mist Yun Sect had arrived outside the gates with a large force.
• Ya Fei chose to follow the clan’s battle plan, and Yao Ye and Qian Ye agreed to join the Mittel Clan as they assessed the attackers.
• Yao Ye asked Qian Ye whether Yun Shan would come and why he had claimed to be a Nine-Star Dou Wang instead of a Nine-Star Dou Zong.
• Qian Ye explained that revealing his strength might make the Mittel Clan rely on him instead of fighting, and that he did not want to become their unappreciated shield.
• Yao Ye confirmed that the imperial family wanted to prevent either the Mittel Clan or the Mist Yun Sect from becoming too powerful while maintaining the sect as a defense against the Chu Yun Empire.

Qian Ye and Yao Ye faced the Mist Yun Sect’s forces as the Mittel Clan debated whether to surrender the Xiao Clan members. Hai Bodong and Ya Fei refused to abandon Xiao Ding, and Ya Fei revealed she had already arranged an escape plan for the younger clan members.

• Qian Ye and Yao Ye saw Yun Du and Yun Sha leading the Mist Yun Sect’s forces, and Mittel Tengshan, Hai Bodong, and Ya Fei realized the two elders had become Dou Huang.
• The Mittel Clan members urged Ya Fei to hand over the Xiao Clan members to avoid a battle, but Hai Bodong insisted he had promised Xiao Yan to protect them.
• Xiao Ding offered to stay behind with some of the Xiao Clan’s younger members so the rest could escape and preserve the clan’s ancestral flame.
• Hai Bodong rejected Xiao Ding’s sacrifice, warning that the Mist Yun Sect might attack even if the Xiao Clan members were surrendered.
• Ya Fei revealed that she had already moved some of the Mittel Clan’s younger members to safety and planned to evacuate the remaining Xiao Clan members if necessary.
• Xiao Ding thanked Ya Fei and Hai Bodong on behalf of the Xiao Clan and Xiao Yan.

The Mist Yun Sect attacked the Mittel Clan estate, overwhelming its defenders until Hai Bodong and the wounded were cornered. Qian Ye stepped forward in disguise to stop Yun Du, just as the Mist Yun Sect prepared to strike again.

• Yun Du and Yun Sha demanded that the Mittel Clan hand over the Xiao Clan members, then led the Mist Yun Sect disciples in an assault when Hai Bodong refused.
• Ya Fei, Mittel Tengshan, and the others fought back, but Yun Du and Yun Sha forced Hai Bodong into a two-on-one battle while the Mittel Clan suffered heavy losses.
• Yun Xiao wounded Ya Fei, Yao Ye caught her, and Hai Bodong retreated to shield the injured with a Dou Qi barrier.
• Yun Sha and Yun Du offered Hai Bodong a chance to surrender and join the Mist Yun Sect, but Hai Bodong refused to abandon the Xiao Clan.
• Qian Ye received medicinal items from the system, then stepped forward wearing a rabbit mask and challenged Yun Du before he could order another attack.

Yun Du killed Qian Ye with a single sword strike, leaving Yao Ye and the Mittel Clan convinced the Imperial Preceptor was dead. Qian Ye then rose into the air alive, and Hai Bodong suspected he had survived by taking a Life Returning Pill.

• Yun Du pierced Qian Ye's chest with his sword and mocked him after he collapsed.
• The Mittel Clan members accused Yao Ye of bringing them a useless ally, while Yao Ye mourned Qian Ye.
• Qian Ye's laughter rang out, and his body floated thirty feet into the air despite appearing to be dead.
• Hai Bodong explained that Qian Ye may have taken a Life Returning Pill, and Mittel Tengshan considered the value of having him serve the Mittel Clan.