Chapter Summaries

Zhang Yuan gained the Indestructible Heavenly Thunder Emperor Art, strengthened Xiao Yi Xian and Xiao Yu, and broke through to Nine-star Dou Ling. He returned to Yun Yun at the Mittel Auction House and hinted that Yun Shan and the Misty Cloud Sect faced danger.

• Zhang Yuan merged the lightning cultivation methods he knew into the Thunder God Visualization Diagram and received the Mid-tier Earthly Grade Indestructible Heavenly Thunder Emperor Art at greater mastery.
• Zhang Yuan gave Xiao Yi Xian poisons to consume after removing the poison power from her Dou Qi, then used the Five Dragon Thunder Gang Fire to improve Xiao Yu's aptitude.
• Zhang Yuan helped Xiao Yan refine a Three-pattern Green Spirit Pill, consumed it, and advanced to Dou Ling Peak.
• Zhang Yuan tested his Dou Qi Wings at Gravity Peak and increased his flight speed by fusing them with the Five Dragon Thunder Gang Fire.
• Zhang Yuan visited Yun Yun at the Mittel Auction House, revealed his Nine-star Dou Ling strength, and warned her that Yun Shan could be used and the Misty Cloud Sect destroyed.

Zhang Yuan revealed that Yun Shan had reached the Dou Zong realm but was being used, then recruited Yun Yun into his Divine Court as a Divine General. Yun Yun learned that a Dou Saint stood behind the faction, and Zhang Yuan left her wondering why such a powerful force was targeting the Misty Cloud Sect.

• Yun Yun reacted with alarm when Zhang Yuan said Yun Shan was being used and the Misty Cloud Sect could be destroyed.
• Zhang Yuan told Yun Yun that Yun Shan had successfully broken through to Dou Zong, then confirmed the breakthrough was connected to someone using him.
• Zhang Yuan teased Yun Yun by asking her to become his woman, then clarified that he wanted her to join the Divine Court as a Divine General.
• Zhang Yuan explained the Divine Court's ranks, Divine Tokens, missions, and Divine Points, while promising Yun Yun could keep leading the Misty Cloud Sect.
• Yun Yun asked whether the Divine Court had a Dou Saint, and Zhang Yuan confirmed it and said he needed that backing to protect Yun Shan and the sect.
• Yun Yun feared that a faction with a Dou Saint was targeting the Misty Cloud Sect.

Zhang Yuan explained how the Soul Hall planned to manipulate Yun Shan and draw the Misty Cloud Sect into its schemes, prompting Yun Yun to join the Divine Court. He gave her a token that could cleanse Yun Shan’s soul, and the chapter ended with Zhang Yuan asking Yun Yun for a reward.

• Zhang Yuan described the powerful Central Region factions and explained that the Soul Hall had selected the Misty Cloud Sect as a Northwest stronghold.
• Zhang Yuan told Yun Yun that the Soul Hall planned to alter Yun Shan’s soul and personality while helping him break through to Dou Zong.
• Yun Yun’s anger restored her Dou Emperor strength, and she agreed to join the Divine Court by binding herself to a Yellow-Tier Divine Token.
• Zhang Yuan gave Yun Yun a second token that could remove the Soul Hall’s influence from Yun Shan, though she planned to test her master before using it.
• Zhang Yuan approached Yun Yun and asked her to give him a reward for helping her.

Zhang Yuan kissed Yun Yun before Ya Fei interrupted them, then renewed Ya Fei’s Heavenly Flame infusion. Yun Yun later messaged Zhang Yuan, who warned her to investigate Soul Hall carefully and suggested starting with Yun Leng.

• Yun Yun leaned into Zhang Yuan’s kiss, but Ya Fei entered and interrupted them; Yun Yun tossed Ya Fei a Misty Cloud Sect token and flew away.
• Ya Fei returned to Zhang Yuan, and he infused her with more Five Dragon Thunder Gang Fire to strengthen her cultivation.
• Yun Yun waited above Wutan City for Zhang Yuan, then received his message and exchanged teasing replies with him through the Divine Token.
• Zhang Yuan warned Yun Yun that Soul Hall’s methods were dangerous and that Soul Hall’s Protector and Yun Shan were Dou Zongs in the Misty Cloud Sect.
• Zhang Yuan advised Yun Yun to investigate Yun Leng first, and she asked why.

Zhang Yuan warned Yun Yun that Yun Shan had secretly contacted Yun Leng, prompting her to investigate the Misty Cloud Sect. Three days later, Zhang Yuan accompanied Xiao Yu and the Xiao Clan juniors to Jia Nan Academy’s recruitment in Wutan City, where they entered through Ruo Lin’s back door and faced a daunting military gauntlet.

• Zhang Yuan told Yun Yun that Yun Shan had broken through to Dou Zong and secretly contacted Yun Leng, and Yun Yun set out to investigate.
• Zhang Yuan considered recruiting powerful allies and expanding his forces before returning to cultivation.
• Three days later, Xiao Zhan and the Xiao Clan juniors left the Ancient Void Realm for Jia Nan Academy’s recruitment in Wutan City.
• Xiao Yu led the group to the recruitment site, while Zhang Yuan reminded the juniors to stay humble and work hard at the academy.
• Xiao Yu used her connection to Ruo Lin to bring the Xiao Clan through a guarded back entrance, where the soldiers’ pressure tested them.

The Xiao Clan arrived at Jia Nan Academy’s entrance assessment, where Xiao Yu’s friends teased her about Zhang Yuan and Rob tried to humiliate Xiao Yan and the other newcomers. Zhang Yuan condemned the students’ conduct and threatened that the Xiao Clan might withdraw from the assessment and Xiao Yu might leave the academy.

• Xiao Yu reunited with Xue Ni, who teased her about her feelings for Zhang Yuan in front of the Xiao Clan members.
• Xue Ni and other female students drew attention to Zhang Yuan, while Xiao Yu became embarrassed by their remarks.
• Rob greeted Xiao Yu and offered the newcomers a preliminary test, but Zhang Yuan declined to participate.
• After Xiao Yan and the others laughed at Rob’s condescending remark, Rob tried to send Xiao Yan to stand in the sun as punishment.
• Zhang Yuan called the students’ behavior disgraceful and said the Xiao Clan might withdraw from the assessment and Xiao Yu might leave Jia Nan Academy.

Zhang Yuan defended Xiao Yu and the Xiao Clan after Rob’s group mistreated them, and Instructor Ruo Lin made the senior students apologize. During registration, the Xiao Clan’s juniors revealed extraordinary cultivation levels, leaving Ruo Lin to realize she might have found a group of exceptionally talented recruits.

• Zhang Yuan rejected Jia Nan Academy’s importance, and Xiao Yu said she would withdraw if that was what he wanted.
• Ruo Lin confronted Rob and the senior students, ordered them to apologize, and welcomed Xiao Yu and the other prospective students into the tent.
• Ruo Lin explained Jia Nan Academy’s potential ratings and began recording the new students’ names, ages, and cultivation levels.
• Xiao Qingqing registered as a sixteen-year-old Three-stage Dou Zhe, prompting Ruo Lin to classify her as B-class and consider reporting her for S-class resources.
• Xiao Liang registered as a seventeen-year-old Four-star Dou Zhe, and Ruo Lin realized the Xiao Clan’s other juniors might all possess A-class or S-class potential.

Ruo Lin discovered that the Xiao Clan’s juniors included more than twenty exceptional talents, and Xiao Yan revealed that he had reached Two-star Dou Shi after Zhang Yuan helped him overcome years of stagnation. Xiao Yan and Xiao Yu requested a year and a half of leave to remain with Zhang Yuan, leaving Ruo Lin astonished by how much influence and ability he might possess.

• More than twenty Xiao Clan juniors reported their names and cultivation levels, stunning Ruo Lin and the Jia Nan Academy students with their exceptional potential.
• Xiao Yan announced that he was seventeen and a Two-star Dou Shi, causing Rob to collapse in fear and Ruo Lin to eagerly claim him as a student.
• Xiao Yan asked Ruo Lin for a year and a half of leave, explaining that he needed to finish matters before attending Jia Nan Academy.
• Zhang Yuan asked Ruo Lin to approve Xiao Yan’s leave, and Xiao Yu also requested leave so she could return with him later.
• Xiao Yu revealed that Zhang Yuan’s guidance had helped her become a One-star Dou Shi and helped Xiao Yan recover from Three-stage Dou Qi to reach his current strength.
• Ruo Lin learned that Zhang Yuan had enabled the Xiao Clan youths’ rapid progress and wondered how powerful he was himself.

Zhang Yuan left Jia Nan Academy’s enrollment team, arranged for Xun Er to send a letter to Venerable Feng, and traveled with Xiao Yan and Xiao Yu to Stone Desert City. There, he discovered that the Xiao brothers and Qin Hai were being pressured by Qian Yishan and the Mo Family, and appeared before Xiao Ding and Xiao Li.

• Zhang Yuan left the enrollment tent after helping Xiao Yan request leave, and Xiao Yu told Ruo Lin and the others that he was a Peak Dou Ling before he turned eighteen.
• Zhang Yuan asked Xun Er to send Old Yao’s letter to Venerable Feng, while Xun Er secretly decided to ask her father to send a Dou Zun as a safeguard.
• After the enrollment team left Wutan City, Zhang Yuan, Xiao Yan, and Xiao Yu traveled to Stone Desert City, where Zhang Yuan noticed that the city’s power struggle had not gone as he had arranged.
• Xiao Ding and Xiao Li discussed how Qian Yishan was suppressing their Stone Desert Mercenary Corps, likely with the Mo Family’s support, and worried that they could not help Zhang Yuan.
• Zhang Yuan appeared in the discussion hall, surprising Xiao Ding and Xiao Li.

Zhang Yuan reunited with Xiao Ding and Xiao Li, brought them together with Xiao Zhan and Xiao Yan, and laid out plans to strengthen the Xiao Clan and reclaim the Zhang Family’s legacy. He moved to consolidate control of Stone Desert City and asked Xiao Ding to find unmarried women of mixed Snake People and human descent, setting up Qing Lin’s debut.

• Zhang Yuan reunited Xiao Ding and Xiao Li with Xiao Zhan and Xiao Yan, then hosted a family meal in the Ancient Void Realm.
• Xiao Ding and Xiao Li described the Iron Mercenary Group, while Xiao Yan and Xiao Zhan shared their progress and the Xiao Clan’s history with the Soul Hall.
• Zhang Yuan learned that the Mo Family and Misty Cloud Sect radicals controlled Desert City’s army and decided to take control of Stone Desert City through the City Lord’s Manor.
• Zhang Yuan gave Xiao Ding and Xiao Li cultivation methods and discussed their retirement from the Iron Mercenary Group so they could train in the Ancient Void Realm.
• Zhang Yuan revealed his plan to avenge the Zhang Family and reclaim its former standing, then sent Xiao Zhan and Xiao Li to prepare to disband the Iron Mercenary Group.
• Zhang Yuan asked Xiao Ding to find unmarried women of mixed Snake People and human descent in Stone Desert City and buy them for him.

Zhang Yuan explained his plan to seek cooperation with the Snake People tribe and find human-Snake People mixed-blood children, partly to show Medusa goodwill and partly because he wanted Qing Lin, who possessed the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils. When Qing Lin revealed her scales, Zhang Yuan praised them and accepted her, causing her pupils to begin awakening.

• Zhang Yuan told Xiao Ding that he intended to settle the score with the Mulan Empire and win over the Snake People tribe.
• Xiao Ding reasoned that the Jia Ma Empire and Snake People tribe could cooperate against shared threats and agreed to help Zhang Yuan find mixed-blood children.
• Xiao Ding revealed that Qing Lin, a mixed-blood girl in the Iron Mercenary Group, could be introduced to Zhang Yuan.
• Xiao Ding assigned Qing Lin to attend to Zhang Yuan, and Zhang Yuan asked to see the scales on her arm.
• Zhang Yuan called Qing Lin’s scales pretty and told her she could show them openly around him.
• Qing Lin’s eyes flickered as three jade-green dots appeared in her pupils, beginning the awakening of her Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils.

Zhang Yuan brought Qing Lin into the Ancient Void Realm and made her his maid, planning to protect her while she awakened her Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils. The next day, he took the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King to confront Deputy City Lord Qian Yishan, whose orders against the Iron Mercenary Group were interrupted by an unexpected arrival.

• Zhang Yuan promised Qing Lin a peaceful life as his head maid and brought her to live in the Ancient Void Realm.
• Zhang Yuan introduced Qing Lin to Xun Er, Qing Yanjing, Xiao Yi Xian, and Xiao Yu, who accepted his plan to recruit other mixed-blood children as maids.
• Zhang Yuan decided to keep Qing Lin's awakening hidden from the Heavenly Snake Mansion to avoid provoking the powerful faction.
• The next morning, Zhang Yuan took the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King to Stone Desert City's City Lord's Manor to kill someone.
• Qian Yishan ordered the Sand Mercenary Group and Storm Mercenary Group to follow the Iron Mercenary Group's actions, but a middle-aged man barged in and challenged his authority.

Zhang Yuan arrived at Stone Desert City atop the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King and took command after Qin Hai reported Qian Yishan’s obstruction. He executed Qian Yishan for three crimes, then called out to Yun Feng, who was nearby.

• Qin Hai confronted Qian Yishan over suppressing the Iron Mercenary Group and refusing to follow Zhang Yuan’s orders.
• Zhang Yuan announced his arrival and ordered the Stone Desert Army and Black Armored Guard officers to report to the City Lord’s Manor.
• Qian Yishan recognized the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King, knelt before Zhang Yuan, and joined the gathered officers.
• Qin Hai explained Qian Yishan’s disobedience, and Zhang Yuan declared that Qian Yishan’s three offenses warranted death.
• The Purple Crystal Winged Lion King incinerated Qian Yishan, and Zhang Yuan called for Yun Feng to come meet him.

Zhang Yuan used his Royal Supreme Guest status to justify executing Qian Yishan and ordered Yun Feng to extract resources from the Three Great Families of Desert City. After taking control of Stone Desert City’s army and mercenaries, Zhang Yuan met Medusa and revealed that his evolved Heavenly Flame could help her transform and survive her lightning tribulation; she agreed to forgive his delay and pressed him to join her in attacking the Mulan Empire.

• Yun Feng confronted Zhang Yuan over executing Qian Yishan, but Zhang Yuan showed him a Royal Supreme Guest Token, and Yun Feng saluted him.
• Zhang Yuan ordered Yun Feng to demand half of the Three Great Families’ resources for Stone Desert City as payment for their past schemes against the Zhang Family.
• After Yun Feng left, Zhang Yuan ordered Qin Hai to infiltrate and rename the Stone Desert Army as the Divine Soldier Guard, then banned mercenary groups and offered their members army enlistment.
• Zhang Yuan sensed Medusa approaching and summoned her from the clouds north of Stone Desert City.
• Zhang Yuan showed Medusa his evolved Five Dragon Thunder Gang Fire and explained how it could aid her transformation, heal her injuries, and help her withstand her lightning tribulation.
• Medusa forgave Zhang Yuan for his delay and urged him to join forces with her against the Mulan Empire.

Medusa revealed that the Snake People tribe had secretly cultivated powerful elders and agreed to cooperate with Zhang Yuan against the Mulan Empire. Zhang Yuan brought her to Desert City, where she used a magic pearl to take human form and explored the city with him.

• Medusa explained her plans for the tribe's future to its four elders and agreed to work with Zhang Yuan against the Mulan Empire.
• Zhang Yuan offered to gather allies for the campaign and asked Medusa to accompany him to Desert City for a small favor.
• Zhang Yuan gave Medusa the Phantom Moon Pearl, which concealed her aura and let her change her snake tail into human legs.
• Medusa accepted Zhang Yuan's undergarments and red Dou Artifact shoes, then followed him into Desert City.
• Zhang Yuan bought candied hawthorn skewers and gave one to Medusa, who claimed not to like human food while continuing to eat.

Zhang Yuan negotiated with Hai Bodong over a map fragment, offering to remove Queen Medusa’s seal and restore his strength in exchange for his service. Medusa arrived and recognized Hai Bodong, leaving his fate uncertain as she refused to promise to remove the seal.

• Zhang Yuan found a map fragment in Hai Bodong’s shop and offered to recruit him into Divine Court in exchange for restoring his strength.
• Hai Bodong proposed trading the fragment for help, and Zhang Yuan offered to remove the seal first and have him work for three years before deciding whether to join.
• Zhang Yuan revealed Ling Ying as a Dou Zong to discourage Hai Bodong from reneging on their deal.
• Medusa entered the shop, and Hai Bodong recognized the queen who had sealed him decades earlier.
• Zhang Yuan asked Medusa to remove Hai Bodong’s seal, but she said she had killed everyone she found pleasing to the eye except him.

Zhang Yuan helped Hai Bodong remove Medusa’s seal and recover his Dou Emperor strength, then secured his service for ten years. As the group flew toward Stone Desert City, Medusa refused to return Zhang Yuan’s Phantom Moon Pearl, leaving Hai Bodong caught between them.

• Zhang Yuan persuaded Medusa to honor her agreement and let Hai Bodong recover, and Hai Bodong promised to help against the Mulan Empire and persuade the Mittel Family.
• Hai Bodong cultivated in his ice cave as Medusa’s purple energy consumed the seal, restoring his strength and youthful appearance.
• Hai Bodong handed Zhang Yuan the fragment map and agreed to serve him; under Medusa’s glare, he increased his term from three years to ten.
• Zhang Yuan offered Medusa future help for her tribe’s Peak Dou Emperors, and she accepted the arrangement.
• Zhang Yuan, Medusa, Ling Ying, and Hai Bodong flew toward Stone Desert City, where Medusa refused to return Zhang Yuan’s Phantom Moon Pearl.

Zhang Yuan, Medusa, and Hai Bodong traveled beneath the desert to find the Green Lotus Core Flame, with Hai Bodong forced to protect them from the magma. They descended deep into the lava lake, where Hai Bodong warned that his Dou Qi would soon run out.

• Zhang Yuan let Medusa keep the Phantom Moon Pearl until she reached the Dou Zong realm and gave her a Storage Ring filled with red-and-gold Dou Artifact shoes and dresses.
• Medusa led Zhang Yuan and Hai Bodong to the Green Lotus Core Flame entrance south of Stone Desert City and removed the seal blocking the underground passage.
• The three crossed the underground passages and reached a vast magma cavern, where Zhang Yuan explained that the Heavenly Flame lay beneath the lava.
• Hai Bodong formed an ice sphere around the group and carried them over the magma while Zhang Yuan sensed hidden currents and Medusa directed their route.
• Medusa identified their destination, and Hai Bodong began guiding the ice sphere down into the magma lake.
• After the descent grew more dangerous, Hai Bodong warned that they had to turn back within a quarter-hour if they did not find the Green Lotus Core Flame; Zhang Yuan and Medusa mocked his lack of endurance.

Zhang Yuan reached the Green Lotus Core Flame with Medusa and Hai Bodong, then chose to preserve and move its entire lotus foundation rather than take only the flame. He transplanted it into the Ancient Void Realm and left Xiao Yan and the others shocked as they recognized it.

• Zhang Yuan replenished Hai Bodong's energy with ice-attribute power from the Ancient Void Realm, allowing him to descend through the magma with Medusa.
• Zhang Yuan used the Five Elements Spirit Turtle Pearl to seal the space around the Green Lotus Core Flame, then entered its azure barrier with Medusa and Hai Bodong.
• Zhang Yuan examined the Green Lotus Core Flame and decided to move the whole Earth-Core Green Lotus into the Ancient Void Realm instead of harvesting only its flame.
• Zhang Yuan expanded the Ancient Void Realm, prepared a magma pit and Fire Cloud Spirit Stele, and drew the Green Lotus Core Flame into the new environment.
• Xiao Yan and the others saw the transplanted azure lotus and flame in the magma pit and recognized the Green Lotus Core Flame.

Xiao Yan learned that Zhang Yuan had brought the Green Lotus Core Flame into the Ancient Void Realm, while Queen Medusa arrived and agreed to visit Zhang Yuan’s home as a guest. When a Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake emerged from the magma, Qing Lin awakened her Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils and marked both of its heads before collapsing into Zhang Yuan’s arms.

• Xiao Yan learned about the Green Lotus Core Flame, and Old Yao said Xiao Yan could try devouring it once he was strong and prepared enough.
• Queen Medusa emerged from the azure light barrier, and Zhang Yuan asked her to leave the Ancient Void Realm unless she agreed to open the Snake People Inheritance Grounds to him in return.
• Xun Er invited Queen Medusa to Zhang Yuan’s home, and Medusa accepted.
• A Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake burst from the magma, and Zhang Yuan suspected it had sensed Qing Lin’s Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils.
• Zhang Yuan encouraged Qing Lin to control the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake, and her awakened pupils immobilized it and marked both heads before she fainted in his arms.