Chapter Summaries

Xiao Tianci revealed his Demon God Wings to Xiao Ding and prepared to fly toward the flowing water across the magma. Qing Lin sensed another, weaker-than-before aura nearby and warned him before he set out, while Xiao Ding and Qing Lin stayed behind.

• Xiao Tianci used his Demon God Wings to explain how he planned to cross the magma, and Xiao Ding mistook them for Dou Qi wings before accepting his explanation that they were a rare flying Dou Technique.
• Xiao Tianci told Xiao Ding to take Qing Lin away and said he would investigate the flowing water alone, and Xiao Ding reluctantly agreed after warning him about the heat.
• Qing Lin grabbed Xiao Tianci and warned that another powerful aura was wandering near the flowing water, though it was weaker than the aura she had sensed half a year earlier.
• Xiao Tianci thanked Qing Lin and flew toward the flowing water, while Xiao Ding hoped he would return safely.
• As the Cold Sky Sword's aura faded, Xiao Ding began sweating and suggested that he and Qing Lin leave, but he was surprised that Qing Lin showed no signs of overheating.

Xiao Tianci faced the mysterious creature lurking in the magma after Qing Lin warned that it had been following him. He evaded its first strike and used the Cold Sky Sword to cut apart the rocks it hurled at him, as the battle began in earnest.

• Xiao Ding led Qing Lin back into the passage while Xiao Tianci continued flying over the magma and searching for the creature.
• Qing Lin spotted the creature following Xiao Tianci and urgently warned him to return.
• The creature burst from the magma and lunged at Xiao Tianci, but he dodged its tongue.
• The creature smashed a stone pillar with its tail and launched the fragments at Xiao Tianci.
• Xiao Tianci sent out the Cold Sky Sword, which sliced the incoming stones in two.

Xiao Tianci faced a rare Two-Headed Snake Beast in a magma cave and suspected it was guarding Red Water Spirit Roots left behind by Queen Medusa. As the beast unleashed a magma attack, Xiao Tianci drew the Cold Sky Sword to test its power.

• Xiao Tianci realized the Two-Headed Snake Beast could hurl stones with great force and wondered whether it guarded medicinal herbs.
• Xiao Tianci recognized the creature as a rare, unfamiliar snake-like beast and speculated that Queen Medusa had left it to protect immature Red Water Spirit Roots.
• The Two-Headed Snake Beast fired two pillars of magma flame at Xiao Tianci, while Xiao Ding and Qing Lin watched from the passage entrance in alarm.
• Qing Lin's eyes widened, revealing three tiny dots in each eye, as Xiao Tianci grasped the Cold Sky Sword and faced the incoming attack.
• Xiao Tianci released the sword's chilling power, which began turning the surrounding mist into ice crystals.

Xiao Tianci used the Cold Sky Sword to freeze the Two-Headed Snake Beast and transform the magma chamber into a world of ice. He harvested two mature Red Water Spirit Roots and left one to keep growing, then reunited with Xiao Ding and Qing Lin.

• Xiao Tianci focused on the Cold Sky Sword’s edge as the Two-Headed Snake Beast’s pillar of flame rushed toward him.
• Xiao Tianci unleashed a white flash that froze the flame, the Two-Headed Snake Beast, and the surrounding magma.
• Xiao Ding and Qing Lin watched in disbelief as Xiao Tianci crossed the ice toward the boundary between the magma and water.
• Xiao Tianci found three Red Water Spirit Roots, collected the two mature ones in prepared boxes, and left the growing root behind.
• Xiao Ding and Qing Lin reached Xiao Tianci, and Xiao Ding asked whether he was all right.

After retrieving the Red Water Spirit Root, Xiao Tianci, Xiao Ding, and Qing Lin started to leave the cave, but the thawing Two-Headed Snake Beast attacked Qing Lin. Her eyes released a strange power that marked both of its heads before she collapsed, leaving Xiao Tianci holding her.

• Xiao Tianci promised the Desert Iron Mercenary Group a share of any pills refined from the Red Water Spirit Root, then put the roots away and prepared to leave with Xiao Ding and Qing Lin.
• As the group crossed the melting ice, Qing Lin stopped beside the frozen Two-Headed Snake Beast, which thawed and dragged her toward its jaws.
• Xiao Ding tried to attack the snake but slipped on the ice, while Xiao Tianci prepared to strike with the Cold Sky Sword.
• Qing Lin screamed, and three flower-bud shapes appeared in her eyes, projecting a dim light that marked both of the Two-Headed Snake Beast’s heads with tiny green flowers.
• The flowers vanished from Qing Lin’s eyes, and she collapsed; Xiao Tianci caught her and held her in his arms.

After Qing Lin fainted from exhaustion, Xiao Tianci confirmed that her unusual pupils had linked her to the Two-Headed Snake Beast. The snake obeyed her, and Xiao Tianci recognized that she possessed the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils.

• Xiao Tianci gave Qing Lin a medicinal pill and assured Xiao Ding that she was unharmed.
• Xiao Tianci warned the Two-Headed Snake Beast away, and it retreated into the lava rather than attack.
• Qing Lin woke in Xiao Tianci's arms, then called the Two-Headed Snake Beast back from the lava.
• Qing Lin sensed a strange connection with the snake and said she could feel its thoughts.
• Xiao Tianci recognized Qing Lin's Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils and realized they had compelled the snake into a contract.

After Qing Lin gained control of the Two-Headed Snake, Xiao Tianci used a system lottery and won a medicinal cauldron. He spent the following days preparing practical pills for the Desert Iron Mercenary Group before leaving Stone Desert City for training in the depths of the Tagor Desert, while Qing Lin stayed close to him.

• Xiao Tianci praised Qing Lin for gaining the Dou Ling-level Two-Headed Snake, and she commanded the beast before storing it in her sleeve.
• Xiao Ding drank heavily with Xiao Li and Xiao Tianci after their dangerous encounter, and Xiao Tianci sobered himself with his cultivation technique.
• Xiao Tianci spent one thousand experience points on a system lottery and won the Flying Dragon Cauldron, which could improve pill-refining success and medicinal effects.
• Xiao Tianci stayed at the Desert Iron Mercenary Group for several days, refining practical pills from herbs supplied by Xiao Ding and Xiao Li.
• Qing Lin stayed by Xiao Tianci and helped care for him as he prepared to leave for training in the deepest reaches of the Tagor Desert.

Xiao Tianci prepared to leave Stone Desert City after refining a large supply of pills for the Desert Iron Mercenary Group. He departed alone for the depths of the Tagor Desert to search for the Azure Cloud Sacred Ice and Sand Mandala, with the Alchemist Conference deadline still approaching.

• Xiao Tianci finished refining pills and left healing, antidote, and other pills around his room with notes for Xiao Ding and Xiao Li.
• Qing Lin met Xiao Tianci before he left, and he comforted her, told her to be herself, and asked her to apologize to his two elder brothers.
• Xiao Ding and his companion watched Xiao Tianci leave and hoped he would achieve his goal, while deciding they needed to work harder themselves.
• After leaving Stone Desert City, Xiao Tianci checked Hai Bodong's map and headed toward the deepest part of the Tagor Desert.
• Xiao Tianci traveled alone, leaving Green Ox in Stone Desert City, and planned to retrieve it when he left the desert.

Xiao Tianci crossed the Tagor Desert, relying on Hai Bodong’s map and his divine sense to gather supplies and avoid the Snake-People Tribe. He reached a route blocked by one of the tribe’s major settlements, then discovered his waterskin had broken and was empty.

• Xiao Tianci examined Hai Bodong’s map and confirmed he had reached the deepest part of the Tagor Desert after traveling from Stone Desert City for half a month.
• Xiao Tianci gathered rare medicinal ingredients and supplies along the route, using his divine sense to detect Snake-People and either trade with them or kill those who attacked.
• Xiao Tianci found that his chosen route led through one of the eight large Snake-People Tribe settlements and decided to proceed cautiously to avoid being discovered.
• Xiao Tianci opened his waterskin to drink and discovered it was empty because it had cracked.

Xiao Tianci reached an oasis in the Tagor Desert to refill his waterskin and discovered Snake-People guards posted near its water source. As he approached a clear lake, a voice sounded nearby, interrupting his attempt to fetch water.

• After running low on water, Xiao Tianci chose the only nearby oasis on his map, despite its proximity to a Snake-People Tribe settlement.
• Xiao Tianci walked for nearly three hours and entered the oasis under the cover of dusk.
• Xiao Tianci searched the oasis for water and noticed several armed snake-women guarding a path, including four Da Dou Shi experts.
• Xiao Tianci followed the sound of flowing water and found a clear lake.
• As Xiao Tianci stepped toward the lake to fill his waterskin, a voice sounded from the side.

Xiao Tianci encountered a beautiful Dou Wang-level snake-woman bathing in a lake and fended off her poisoned attack. After she beckoned him closer, he detected and killed a venomous snake she had sent to ambush him.

• Xiao Tianci spotted a snake-woman bathing in a lake and recognized her as a Dou Wang-level expert.
• The snake-woman noticed Xiao Tianci and shot a venomous water arrow at him, but he destroyed it with Dou Qi.
• Xiao Tianci stepped out and exchanged flirtatious remarks with the snake-woman, who invited him closer.
• The snake-woman sent a poisonous snake toward Xiao Tianci from behind, and he cut it in two with the Cold Sky Sword.

Xiao Tianci encountered Yue Mei and her snake-people guards at a desert oasis while trying to refill his water. After he crippled a guard who attacked him, he filled five water pouches as Yue Mei watched.

• Yue Mei summoned the venomous snakes around Xiao Tianci and asked whether he planned to kill them all.
• Yue Mei's guards appeared, and she questioned Xiao Tianci about entering the oasis alone and whether he was a spy for the Jia Ma Empire.
• Xiao Tianci said he only wanted water, then insulted Yue Mei by calling her an old female snake.
• A Da Dou Shi snake-woman attacked Xiao Tianci, and he crippled her with a light slap.
• Xiao Tianci filled five water pouches at the lakeside while Yue Mei and the other snake-people watched.

Xiao Tianci slaughtered Yue Mei’s guards with a single sword strike after she ordered them to kill him. He then overwhelmed Yue Mei herself, leaving her furious and humiliated as he struck her repeatedly.

• Xiao Tianci dismissed Yue Mei’s threats and continued to leave her territory.
• Yue Mei ordered her guards to attack Xiao Tianci, and he killed them all with a single burst of sword-light.
• Yue Mei realized Xiao Tianci was at least as powerful as a Dou Wang and suspected he belonged to a powerful faction outside the Jia Ma Empire.
• Xiao Tianci suddenly appeared beside Yue Mei and sliced apart the five energy snakes she launched at him.
• Xiao Tianci slapped Yue Mei twice, caught her wrist when she struck back, and hit her again as she fell toward him.

Xiao Tianci subdued Yue Mei, who reluctantly begged him to stop before escaping his grasp. Their confrontation was interrupted by two hostile experts and six more newcomers arriving in the desert, leaving Xiao Tianci and Yue Mei facing a group of unknown visitors.

• Yue Mei tried to strike Xiao Tianci, but her attack turned feeble, and he continued slapping her despite her protests.
• Yue Mei begged Xiao Tianci for mercy and apologized, so he released her; she fled a short distance away, humiliated and flustered.
• Xiao Tianci and Yue Mei sensed figures approaching from the eastern sky and turned to face them.
• Two experts around the Dou Wang level arrived, and Yue Mei sensed their hostility toward the snake-people.
• A huge green magical beast arrived with six figures, who landed on a nearby sand dune, and Xiao Tianci recognized none of the newcomers.

Xiao Tianci watched as a powerful group of human experts arrived in the Tagor Desert and confronted Yue Mei. He recognized the black-robed Dou Emperor as likely Yun Yun, while the group's leader asked Yue Mei to take them to meet the Snake-People Tribe's queen.

• Six people arrived on a magical beast, including five Dou Ling experts, three Dou Wang experts, and a black-robed Dou Emperor whom Xiao Tianci found familiar.
• Yue Mei recognized some of the newcomers and grew wary, while Xiao Tianci watched without intervening.
• The middle-aged leader identified Yue Mei as a leader of one of the Snake-People Tribe's eight great tribes and asked who she was.
• Xiao Tianci suspected the black-robed Dou Emperor was Yun Yun, but stayed silent because she seemed unable to greet him openly.
• Yue Mei demanded to know why the humans had entered her people's territory, and the leader asked her to guide them to the queen.

Yue Mei confronted three powerful Jia Ma Empire experts, who abandoned negotiations and prepared to capture her before she could disrupt their plans. Xiao Tianci recognized Yan Shi and Feng Li as renowned empire experts, confirming his suspicions about the middle-aged man as the group closed in on Yue Mei.

• Yue Mei rejected the middle-aged man's offer to negotiate and warned that the Snake-People Tribe's chiefs could threaten the empire's experts.
• Yan Shi identified Yue Mei as the Charm Snake Tribe's chief and recalled her past fight with Lei Na, whose poison she had caused.
• The middle-aged man agreed with Yan Shi to attack Yue Mei, and Feng Li joined Yan Shi in surrounding her.
• Yue Mei searched for someone to take hostage but found no opportunity and avoided provoking Xiao Tianci.
• Yan Shi and Feng Li introduced themselves, and Xiao Tianci recognized them as two of the Jia Ma Empire's top ten experts.

Yue Mei recognized that Gu He and his allies posed a threat and fled the oasis to report their presence to Queen Majesty. After Gu He’s group discovered the slain Snake-People guards, Xiao Tianci left the oasis and continued his journey.

• Yue Mei judged that she could not safely fight Feng Li and Yan Shi while other powerful figures watched, so she sent a wave of sand at them and fled.
• Feng Li and Yan Shi pursued Yue Mei, while Gu He followed the black-robed person's signal and told his group to wait in the oasis.
• A Dou Ling expert reported that Snake-People guards had been killed, and Gu He inspected the frozen corpses and concluded an unknown swordsman had slain them shortly before his arrival.
• The black-robed person looked toward Xiao Tianci, but Gu He dismissed the thought that someone so young could have killed the guards.
• Xiao Tianci decided he could not stay in the oasis after the disturbance and left to continue traveling.

Xiao Tianci left the oasis after refusing to answer Gu He's questions and rebuffing one of Gu He's subordinates. As Gu He speculated that Xiao Tianci might be a foreign expert with goals that could conflict with his own, Yue Mei used a technique to escape Yan Shi and Feng Li.

• Yue Mei fell behind Yan Shi and Feng Li but declared she could still escape, then began forming seals as they tried to stop her.
• Gu He asked Xiao Tianci whether he had killed the Snake-People Tribe guards, and Xiao Tianci refused to answer.
• A Dou Ling expert rebuked Xiao Tianci, who challenged him to attack; Gu He stopped the confrontation and let Xiao Tianci leave.
• Gu He warned his companions that Xiao Tianci might be a powerful expert from outside the Jia Ma Empire and urged them to hurry toward their goal.
• Yue Mei's body burst apart and released countless enormous dark-green energy snakes.

After Yue Mei escaped into the desert as energy serpents, Yun Yun left Gu He’s group and revealed herself to Xiao Tianci. They reunited affectionately, but Yun Yun stopped him from going further because her companions were waiting, then asked why he had come to the Tagor Desert.

• Yue Mei escaped by scattering into numerous energy serpents, and Gu He’s group destroyed most of them while some burrowed into the sand.
• The Black-Robed Mysterious Person announced she was leaving, then vanished before Gu He could respond.
• The black-robed figure appeared before Xiao Tianci, revealed herself as Yun Yun, and embraced him.
• Xiao Tianci kissed Yun Yun and tried to go further, but she firmly refused because Gu He and the others were waiting.
• Yun Yun asked why Xiao Tianci had come to the Tagor Desert, and he said he was training and searching for medicinal ingredients.

Xiao Tianci and Yun Yun discussed Gu He's expedition into the Tagor Desert and learned that he sought the Green Lotus Core Flame from Queen Medusa. Xiao Tianci showed Yun Yun his Samadhi True Fire and gave her a Taiping Golden Pill, leaving her surprised by its benefits.

• Yun Yun warned Xiao Tianci about the danger of facing Queen Medusa, and he reassured her that he would be cautious.
• Xiao Tianci guessed Gu He had come to seek a Heavenly Flame, and Yun Yun confirmed his target was the Green Lotus Core Flame reportedly held by Queen Medusa.
• Yun Yun suspected Xiao Tianci had come for the Heavenly Flame too, but he showed her his Samadhi True Fire and explained he was not seeking another flame.
• Xiao Tianci gave Yun Yun a Taiping Golden Pill and explained that it could strengthen her foundation and remove hidden problems from her previous breakthroughs.