Chapter Summaries

After Dugu Bo’s failed attempt to kill him, Di Yao used the threat of exposing the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and his knowledge of Dugu Yan’s poison to force the deal to continue. Dugu Bo agreed to let Di Yao temper his body and receive information about fire-attribute soul beasts, but demanded that he first suppress Dugu Yan’s poison.

• Dugu Bo’s attack left Di Yao wounded, but Di Yao insisted that their deal still stood.
• When Dugu Bo threatened him again, Di Yao warned that killing him would draw Spirit Hall and others to the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, and leave Dugu Yan untreated.
• Dugu Bo asked what Di Yao wanted, and Di Yao requested secrecy about the Herb Garden, access to the spring’s outer area, and information on high-level fire-attribute soul beasts in Sunset Forest.
• Di Yao explained that he needed to temper his body and stabilize the Soul Power compressed within him before obtaining his Third Soul Ring.
• Dugu Bo agreed to Di Yao’s requests on the condition that Di Yao first suppress Dugu Yan’s poison in front of him.
• Di Yao accepted, but said curing the root cause would cost extra, then let Hu Liena support him as they left.

Di Yao used the Great Sun Golden Flame to force some bone-deep poison from Dugu Yan, proving he could suppress it but warning that curing it would cost more. After the risky treatment weakened him, Hu Liena helped him leave while Dugu Bo watched him with new wariness.

• Dugu Yan resisted treatment until Di Yao warned her that the poison would not spare her, and Dugu Bo ordered her to cooperate.
• Di Yao sent a fine thread of Great Sun Golden Flame into Dugu Yan's meridians while Dugu Bo and Hu Liena watched closely.
• When Dugu Yan's Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul reacted, Di Yao used Ten Thousand Demon Edict to suppress it and drove bone poison out through her fingertips.
• Dugu Bo asked whether Di Yao could cure Dugu Yan, and Di Yao said he could but that Dugu Bo could not afford the price yet.
• Dugu Yan asked why Di Yao helped her, and he explained that Dugu Bo had paid and that both of them had value to him.
• Di Yao swayed after the treatment, so Hu Liena caught his arm, while Dugu Bo watched him leave with genuine wariness.

Di Yao consumed the Fusang Red Heart Lotus and used the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well’s cold energy to tame its Core Flame, restoring the source of his Martial Soul. Though still weak, he immediately reached for another herb, the Great Sun Blazing Grass, despite warnings from Hu Liena and Dugu Bo.

• Di Yao ate the Fusang Red Heart Lotus, causing its fire to rage through his body as Hu Liena, Dugu Bo, Dugu Yan, and Yue Guan watched.
• Di Yao endured the Lotus’s Core Flame and drew cold energy from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well to suppress and tame it.
• The Fusang Fire Seed settled into Di Yao’s Martial Soul, and the Three-Legged Golden Crow’s phantom grew clearer and more majestic.
• Di Yao told Hu Liena he knew the danger and had kept her back, then said the Core Flame’s stabilization was only the first step.
• Despite Hu Liena and Dugu Bo warning him against taking another herb, Di Yao picked up the Great Sun Blazing Grass and said his body needed to become a hotter furnace.

Di Yao used Great Sun Blazing Grass to temper his body with fire and cold, preparing to withstand his Third Soul Ring. After he survived, a distant Hammer Intent suggested that someone was watching the group, but Di Yao remained focused on gathering what he needed.

• Hu Liena warned Di Yao against consuming another Immortal Herb, but he ate the Great Sun Blazing Grass anyway.
• The herb’s power burned through Di Yao’s flesh and bones, while Hu Liena and Dugu Yan defended him from fire-attributed soul beasts and venomous insects.
• Di Yao drew cold energy from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and used it to seal and forge the herb’s power within his body.
• After half an hour, Di Yao’s body had healed and grown stronger, and he asked Dugu Bo for information on a soul beast for his Third Soul Ring.
• A heavy Hammer Intent flickered in the distant mountains, and Di Yao said the watcher did not dare approach yet.

Di Yao and his companions caught a Black Market Soul Hunting Group scouting Dugu Bo’s Herb Garden and let its scarred captain escape so they could trace the people behind the attack. With a damaged hammer emblem hinting at a possible connection to Clear Sky Sect, Di Yao prepared to seek the Golden Crow Vine and settle his Third Soul Ring.

• Di Yao discovered that intruders had used Poison-Avoiding Powder, Array-Breaking Needles, and Soul Beast Luring Incense to scout the valley, and convinced Dugu Bo to spare one of them for questioning.
• Di Yao directed poisonous insects to herd the Black Market Soul Hunting Group along a false escape route, where Hu Liena ambushed them and marked their scarred captain as he fled.
• Di Yao recovered an Iron Tablet bearing part of a scraped-away hammer emblem, but said the evidence was not enough to confirm a Clear Sky Sect connection.
• Di Yao decided to follow the escaped captain to whoever had hired him, then ordered preparations to seek the Golden Crow Vine for his Third Soul Ring.

Di Yao absorbed the Golden Crow Vine, which connected his flame, body, and Spirit, then chose the nearly ten-thousand-year-old Corona Golden Eagle King as his Third Soul Ring target. He and Hu Liena set out for Broken Cliff, where Di Yao revealed he wanted the Soul Ring as a Domain Cornerstone.

• Hu Liena and Dugu Bo suspected the Black Market Soul Hunting Group’s attack was connected to Tang Hao and the Clear Sky Sect, while Di Yao decided not to delay his cultivation.
• Di Yao absorbed the Golden Crow Vine, strengthening his Great Sun Golden Flame and making the Three-Legged Golden Crow in his Spirit more distinct.
• Dugu Bo identified the Corona Golden Eagle King at Sunset Forest’s southeastern Broken Cliff as a suitable, though dangerous, Third Soul Ring target, and Di Yao accepted the risk.
• Hu Liena agreed to accompany Di Yao and disrupt the eagle’s low-ranking avian Soul Beasts, while Dugu Yan stayed behind.
• Di Yao and Hu Liena headed toward Broken Cliff with Dugu Bo and Yue Guan guarding them, and Di Yao told Hu Liena he sought a Domain Cornerstone.

Di Yao and Hu Liena challenged the Corona Golden Eagle King at Broken Cliff while it was strengthened by the midday sun. After testing its attacks and its command over the flock, Di Yao realized that breaking its wings could bring the flying king down, but the battle remained unresolved.

• Di Yao chose to face the Corona Golden Eagle King at its strongest, and his Ten Thousand Demon Edict disrupted the nearby birds until the eagle rallied them with its cry.
• The Corona Golden Eagle King attacked Di Yao, broke his fire shield, and coordinated the flock to hinder him and assault Hu Liena.
• Di Yao held his position on the mountain path while Hu Liena used Charm and her short blade to fight off the birds; both were wounded.
• Di Yao noticed the eagle recovering its scorched talons in the sunlight and concluded that it had to be kept from flying.
• Di Yao used his soul rings to stall the flock and caught one of the eagle's wings with Great Sun Golden Flame, burning a feather before the eagle escaped the restraint.
• Di Yao realized that the Corona Golden Eagle King could be killed if its wings were broken.

Di Yao and Hu Liena fought the Corona Golden Eagle King and its flock at Broken Cliff, with Hu Liena creating openings for Di Yao to burn the eagle’s wings. After the wounded king fell, a true Beast Tide surged from the forest, and Dugu Bo realized someone was moving the mountain.

• Hu Liena disrupted the flock’s formation with Charm, giving Di Yao an opening to attack the Corona Golden Eagle King.
• Di Yao burned through the Golden Eagle King’s left wing while Hu Liena kept the flock from overwhelming him.
• When the king flew toward its nest to recover, Hu Liena held back the horde for ten breaths as Di Yao climbed to the cliff summit.
• Di Yao burned away the king’s mangled wing and sent it crashing from the cliff, then steadied the exhausted Hu Liena.
• Dugu Bo and Yue Guan sensed a true Beast Tide approaching, and Dugu Bo said someone was moving the mountain.

Di Yao diverted the beast tide into the Black Market Soul Hunting Group and learned that the Iron Hammer Order had supplied the group with information about him. With Dugu Bo and Yue Guan clearing a path, Di Yao killed the Corona Golden Eagle King and prepared to absorb its nearly black soul ring despite his injuries.

• Di Yao redirected the leading beasts toward the Black Market Soul Hunting Group, throwing its ambush into chaos.
• Di Yao captured a squad leader, who revealed that the Iron Hammer Order had paid the group to collect Di Yao's corpse; Hu Liena killed the man and Di Yao took his token.
• Di Yao charged for the Corona Golden Eagle King's nest while Dugu Bo and Yue Guan pushed the beasts aside.
• Di Yao killed the Corona Golden Eagle King with his Great Sun Golden Flame and obtained its deep-purple, nearly black soul ring.
• Despite Hu Liena's warning and his bleeding shoulder, Di Yao sat down to absorb the soul ring immediately.

Di Yao absorbed the Corona Golden Eagle King’s near-ten-thousand-year Soul Ring as his third ring, forming the Corona Emperor Domain prototype. As he and the others faced the approaching killing intent of Tang Hao, Di Yao was weakened from the absorption and the story ended with the Clear Sky Hammer’s pressure bearing down on them.

• Di Yao endured the Soul Ring’s physical strain while the Three-Legged Golden Crow swallowed the Corona Golden Eagle King’s lingering will.
• The three Immortal Herbs helped stabilize Di Yao’s body and martial soul as the third Soul Ring settled.
• Di Yao awakened the Corona Emperor Domain prototype, suppressing the surviving avian soul beasts and amplifying his Great Sun Golden Flame.
• Di Yao withdrew the domain, weakened, and Hu Liena stood in front of him to protect him.
• Tang Hao’s approaching Hammer Intent pressed over Broken Cliff, and Di Yao recognized that he had finally come.

Tang Hao ambushed Di Yao with the Clear Sky Hammer, but Di Yao opened the Corona Emperor Domain long enough for Yue Guan and Dugu Bo to blunt the attack. Tang Hao withdrew after failing to kill him, leaving Di Yao injured and the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well exposed; Di Yao vowed to remember the strike and make Tang Hao pay.

• Hu Liena told Di Yao to fall back as Tang Hao's Clear Sky Hammer pressure approached, but Di Yao pushed her aside to protect her.
• Di Yao activated the Corona Emperor Domain, briefly slowing Tang Hao's hammer phantom and giving Yue Guan and Dugu Bo time to deflect its force.
• The remaining shockwave struck Di Yao, injured him, and collapsed his domain, while Tang Hao retreated after declaring that Di Yao could not be allowed to live.
• Hu Liena supported Di Yao as Yue Guan helped suppress his injuries, and Di Yao said he would remember the attack.
• Di Yao warned Dugu Bo that Tang Hao already knew about the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and would return even if Di Yao left.

After witnessing Di Yao's nearly ten-thousand-year third Soul Ring, Tang San realized he could not catch up by following his old path. He chose to begin cultivating the Clear Sky Hammer and seek help from the Black Market Soul Hunting Group, leaving Yu Xiaogang unable to control his future direction.

• Tang San asked Tang Hao whether he could catch up to Di Yao, and Tang Hao said not if he followed his original path.
• Tang Hao urged Tang San to cultivate the Clear Sky Hammer, and Tang San accepted despite Yu Xiaogang's objections.
• Tang San decided he could no longer rely only on Blue Silver Grass and his former cultivation plan.
• Tang San proposed giving hidden weapons to the Black Market Soul Hunting Group so he could target Di Yao's allies.
• Tang San looked toward the depths of Sunset Forest and vowed not to stand by helplessly next time.

After Tang Hao nearly crippled Di Yao, Di Yao negotiated a verbal agreement with Dugu Bo involving the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, Dugu Yan’s treatment, and intelligence on their enemies. The chapter left Di Yao ordering Spirit Hall to investigate Heaven Dou and pursue those aiding Tang Hao and Tang San.

• Yue Guan stabilized Di Yao’s meridians, while Hu Liena rebuked Di Yao for risking his life.
• Di Yao warned Dugu Bo that Tang Hao’s attack meant Sunset Forest and the Herb Garden were now at risk.
• Di Yao and Dugu Bo agreed that Spirit Hall would keep the well’s location secret, Di Yao would continue treating Dugu Yan, and Dugu Bo would provide intelligence without committing to fight Tang Hao.
• Di Yao agreed not to take Immortal Herbs without Dugu Bo’s permission and said they would negotiate a price if he needed one.
• Di Yao told Hu Liena to notify Spirit City and set their people in Heaven Dou to work investigating their enemies.

After Xue Qinghe offered leads on Black Market dealings among Heaven Dou nobles, Di Yao negotiated search authority and a share of seized resources, while suspecting Xue Qinghe’s hidden Angel identity. With the Crown Prince’s authorization granted, Di Yao prepared to approach Seven Treasures despite his unhealed injuries.

• Hu Liena delivered Xue Qinghe’s letter naming three Heaven Dou noble merchants suspected of dealing with the Black Market Soul Hunting Group, and Di Yao decided to use the Crown Prince’s authority for his own investigation.
• Di Yao replied with three conditions: temporary search authority, no interference in the first arrests, and thirty percent of seized Black Market resources for Spirit Hall.
• Di Yao detected a pure, sharp energy on Xue Qinghe’s letter and privately recognized it as Angel energy, but chose not to expose his suspicion.
• Xue Qinghe accepted Di Yao’s terms and ordered his subordinate to grant the search authority, believing Di Yao would investigate as fiercely as he wanted.
• Di Yao received the authorization and told Hu Liena to contact Seven Treasures, prompting her to rebuke him for working through his injuries.

Di Yao pressed Ning Fengzhi to expose Seven Treasures’ hidden accounts and trade routes, forcing Ning Rongrong to confront the corruption concealed beneath the sect’s reputation. Seven Treasures agreed to cooperate, and Di Yao prepared to investigate the Black Market Soul Hunting Group in Heaven Dou Outer City.

• Ning Fengzhi arrived with Sword Douluo Chen Xin and Ning Rongrong, and Di Yao demanded Seven Treasures’ hidden accounts for soul beast materials and a list of Black Market trade routes.
• Di Yao gave Ning Rongrong an Account Ledger, and she read entries showing how Seven Treasures’ name and trade network had been used to transport illicit goods.
• Ning Fengzhi agreed to provide some secret accounts and trade routes, while reserving public verification of the Account Ledger for specific circumstances.
• Ning Rongrong said she would read the Account Ledger to the end, and Di Yao asked Ning Fengzhi for a map of Heaven Dou Outer City’s trade routes.
• Di Yao announced that he would establish a United Decree and investigate the Black Market, declaring that the dirty accounts had to be burned to be cleaned.

Di Yao secured cooperation from the Crown Prince’s Mansion, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and Dugu Bo to establish the Heaven Dou Soul Hunting United Decree and gain legal search authority. With the first searches set for that night, he and Hu Liena prepared to strike the Black Market Soul Hunting Group despite his lingering injuries.

• The Crown Prince’s Mansion, Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and Dugu Bo each set conditions for helping investigate the Black Market Soul Hunting Group.
• Di Yao assigned each side responsibilities and barred anyone from secretly silencing implicated witnesses.
• Di Yao obtained seals from the Crown Prince’s Mansion and Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, while Dugu Bo marked the token with his poison insignia.
• Di Yao established the Heaven Dou Soul Hunting United Decree and ordered searches of three outer-city trade routes, with a list of targets due before nightfall.
• Ning Rongrong promised to keep reviewing the accounts, and Dugu Bo warned Di Yao that he would not risk his life if the trail led to Tang Hao.
• After everyone left, Hu Liena noticed Di Yao’s pain and brought him warm water as he prepared to make the Black Market suffer.

Hu Liena and three Martial Soul Hall Deacons escorted Dugu Yan to a safehouse, but Black Market attackers ambushed them and tried to trigger her poison. After Hu Liena and Dugu Yan defeated the attackers, their evidence pointed to Black Crow Hall and a Hidden Weapon design resembling Tang San’s, leaving Di Yao to investigate the three leads.

• Hu Liena sensed an ambush on the escort route, and Black Market Soul Masters attacked Dugu Yan with Poison-Inducing Smoke and Soul-Breaking Crossbows.
• Hu Liena used herself and Dugu Yan as bait, allowing Dugu Yan to poison the Iron-Faced Leader before Hu Liena killed him.
• Hu Liena and the three Deacons defeated the remaining attackers and captured one, who named Black Crow Hall as the group that took the job.
• Hu Liena brought the captive’s testimony and battle evidence to Di Yao, who identified the crossbow fragment as resembling Tang San’s Hidden Weapon.
• Di Yao ordered Hu Liena to investigate Black Crow Hall, Tang Sect Hidden Weapon, and the Black Market Soul Hunting Group, then told her to bandage her wound.

Di Yao traced a modified Soul-Breaking Crossbow and an attack on Dugu Yan to Black Crow Hall, while rumors began portraying Spirit Hall as the villain. He planned to let the rumors spread until he could expose the people behind them with gathered evidence, and prepared for a public audit despite his injuries.

• Hu Liena reported that Black Crow Hall had tried to capture Dugu Yan for someone who used an Iron Hammer Order, and Di Yao recognized Tang Sect Hidden Weapon designs in the modified crossbow.
• Di Yao ordered Hu Liena to arrest some members of Black Crow Hall but leave a trail to uncover the people directing them.
• Di Yao praised Hu Liena's escort work and entrusted her with future operations involving escorts, cutting off routes, and keeping captives alive.
• A Deacon reported rumors accusing Spirit Hall and Di Yao of exploiting the Black Market campaign and framing Tang San and Yu Xiaogang, and Hu Liena wanted to arrest those spreading them.
• Di Yao ordered an investigation into the rumors' origins and their links to the Black Market Account Ledger, while telling Seven Treasures and the Crown Prince's Mansion to watch rather than intervene.
• Di Yao decided to prepare a public audit using the account ledger, Black Crow Hall testimonies, and Hidden Weapon fragments, and agreed to conduct it sitting down because of his injuries.

Yu Xiaogang’s allies spread rumors portraying Spirit Hall and Di Yao as persecutors, while Di Yao waited for the people behind the campaign to reveal themselves. He opened a public account review at the Spirit Hall Branch and began presenting evidence of Black Market dealings as the crowd watched.

• Rumors spread across Heaven Dou Outer City that Spirit Hall had framed Tang San and persecuted Yu Xiaogang, turning public opinion against Di Yao.
• Hu Liena told Di Yao that Xue Qinghe and Ning Fengzhi had not publicly intervened, while Di Yao identified the people and businesses involved in spreading the rumors.
• Di Yao explained that he had waited for the rumor-pushers to expose themselves, then ordered an account-reviewing platform set up outside the Branch Hall.
• At dusk, Di Yao opened the public review before a crowd that included Ning Rongrong and a Crown Prince’s Mansion steward.
• A Deacon read records linking local chambers of commerce to Black Market goods and Black Crow Hall to assassinations and kidnappings, unsettling several people in the crowd.

Di Yao used a public audit to expose Black Market smuggling, evidence tied to Tang San, and Yu Xiaogang’s role in spreading rumors, then expanded investigations across Heaven Dou. The audit ended with Seven Treasures implicated and Xue Qinghe watching to see whether Di Yao’s campaign would reach the imperial family.

• Di Yao presented Seven Treasures trade accounts, and Ning Rongrong verified that the records were real.
• A Black Crow Hall survivor testified that the group had been ordered to intercept Dugu Yan and frame Spirit Hall, with Hidden Weapons linked to Tang San.
• Di Yao produced old case files showing Yu Xiaogang had used Spirit Hall resources and rumors to protect Tang San’s reputation.
• Di Yao expanded the Heaven Dou Soul Hunting United Decree to investigate anyone connected to the Black Market Soul Hunting Group, while Hu Liena took over the audit when his injuries weakened him.
• Ning Rongrong realized Seven Treasures could no longer remain uninvolved, and Xue Qinghe told Di Yao to keep pushing his campaign.