Recaps

Yu Ci killed Si Long, Lu Ding, and the rest of Bai Ri Mansion’s party, then left the valley as witnesses spread word of the massacre. The next morning, Cheng Rong arrived at the scene with the Shi family’s ninth miss, where several powerful figures had gathered to inspect the corpses.

• Yu Ci used the Pure Yang Talisman Sword, Innate Qi, and atomized sword intent to fatally wound Si Long, then killed Lu Ding and the remaining personal guards.
• Yu Ci confirmed Si Long still had a faint breath and finished him after Si Long recognized the role of Innate Qi in his defeat.
• Yu Ci reflected that his victory depended on keeping control of the fight, then left while the herb-gatherers watched in fear and reverence.
• News of Yu Ci’s slaughter of Bai Ri Mansion’s party spread through Sky Valley during the night.
• Cheng Rong arrived at the valley the next morning with the Shi family’s ninth miss and found Master Ming, Steward Huang, Monk Zhengyan, and others examining the bodies.

Cheng Rong and Monk Zhengyan examined the nine Bai Ri Mansion corpses and realized Yu Ci had defeated them with extraordinary swordsmanship and destructive power. As Liu Siwei used Bai Ri Mansion’s Soul Searching Mirror to locate the killer, Yu Ci’s strength and background remained a mystery.

• Cheng Rong inspected the corpses with Monk Zhengyan while Ninth Girl watched from behind him.
• Zhengyan explained that Yu Ci had killed three guards with a single, exceptionally fierce sword strike that penetrated their bodies from within.
• Cheng Rong and Zhengyan concluded that Yu Ci had also destroyed Si Long’s powerful armor with a devastating attack.
• Cheng Rong reconsidered his earlier low estimate of Yu Ci after comparing his skill with Juebi City’s renowned swordsmen.
• Ninth Girl noticed Liu Siwei using Bai Ri Mansion’s Soul Searching Mirror, which could track a killer by sensing a dead person’s resentment.

Shi Xin spotted Yu Ci while he evaded the Bai Ri Mansion’s search and went to meet him, claiming she had come to fish. Yu Ci realized her cliffside fishing was a Wanling Sect method for training true qi with dangerous creatures, leaving him watching her unusual practice.

• Minglan explained that Lu Ding’s strong lingering grievance made him the Bai Ri Mansion’s best lead, while Zhengyan mocked the dead man and provoked Steward Huang.
• The Bai Ri Mansion searched for Yu Ci without success as Shi Xin watched from a blood vulture and wondered whether he would be found.
• Shi Xin saw Yu Ci emerge near the searchers, directed the blood vulture toward him, and secretly watched him after it landed beside him.
• Yu Ci teased Shi Xin about coming to collect a debt, and she denied it before claiming she had come to fish.
• Shi Xin cast a scented hook over the cliff, and Yu Ci recognized her fishing as a method for sensing and training true qi with dangerous creatures.

Yu Ci rescued Shi Xin from a flying ape and spent time talking with her as Bai Ri Mansion forces approached Sky Rift Valley. He sent her away safely and leaped into the valley to face the approaching pursuers.

• Yu Ci saved Shi Xin from a flying ape and killed the two creatures following it.
• Yu Ci and Shi Xin sat together, and she admitted she had recklessly used the Spirit Fishing Technique before telling him about Wanling Sect and Bai Ri Mansion.
• Shi Xin warned Yu Ci that Bai Ri Mansion was hunting him and described the feud between Jin Huan and Hu Dan.
• As Wanling Sect guards and Bai Ri Mansion forces approached, Yu Ci put Shi Xin on her blood vulture and sent her away.
• Shi Xin urged Yu Ci to give it his all, and Yu Ci leaped from the cliff as Bai Ri Mansion forces appeared nearby.

Yu Ci watched Bai Ri Mansion use the Soul Searching Mirror and Liu Siwei’s One Breath Three Calls technique to track him through Sky Valley, while learning more about their strength and tactics. With their pursuit still close behind, Yu Ci prepared to put his own plan into action.

• Huang Tai ordered Bai Ri Mansion’s men to search the valley after Liu Siwei found blood at the cliff and suggested it could help extend the Soul Searching Mirror’s range.
• Yu Ci used the Zhaoshen Map to observe the search and learned that Tu Du was on his way to Sky Valley.
• Liu Siwei used vital blood and One Breath Three Calls to lock onto Yu Ci fifteen miles away, prompting Huang Tai to lead the group after him.
• Yu Ci realized One Breath Three Calls was a distinct technique for activating a Dharma artifact and considered testing it with his Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror.
• During the ensuing pursuit, Yu Ci assessed the guards’ formations and Huang Tai’s Thousand Mouth Bees, then began moving stealthily at dusk to carry out his plan.

Huang Tai’s pursuit of Yu Ci faltered as Liu Siwei urged the group to withdraw, but Yu Ci exploited their argument to kill Liu and steal the Soul Searching Mirror and his Storage Ring. Huang Tai’s men were left scattered and shaken, while Huang Tai abandoned the chase and climbed away.

• Liu Siwei argued that the group should return to Bai Ri Mansion and use Elder Tu’s Soul Locking Technique, but Huang Tai insisted they continue pursuing Yu Ci.
• Yu Ci appeared during the argument, killed a guard, and escaped into the clouds before the Soul Searching Mirror could be used again.
• Liu Siwei followed with two subordinates, and Yu Ci ambushed and killed him with a sword strike through the throat.
• Yu Ci killed another guard while fleeing and took Liu Siwei’s Soul Searching Mirror and Storage Ring.
• Huang Tai rushed back, found Liu Siwei dead and the Mirror missing, then killed a warrior with his Thousand Mouth Bees after the man shouted that Yu Ci was nearby.
• Huang Tai dismissed the remaining warriors and climbed away without continuing the pursuit.

After escaping with Manager Liu’s Storage Ring, Yu Ci broke its restriction and learned the One Breath Three Calls technique, then tested it on his Pure Yang Talisman Sword and recovered while watching Huang Tai’s group struggle through Sky Rift Valley. The Zhaoshen Map suddenly began to distort and lose much of its range, leaving Yu Ci alarmed by whatever was happening below.

• Yu Ci used his refined divine intent to break the restriction on Manager Liu’s Storage Ring, damaging it but retrieving its contents.
• Yu Ci found the One Breath Three Calls technique among Manager Liu’s jade slips and learned that it could temporarily raise a magical implement’s refinement at great cost.
• Yu Ci tested the technique on his Pure Yang Talisman Sword, but its accumulated Killing Intent nearly broke the seal, so he stopped after losing a third of his vital essence.
• Yu Ci recovered while refining the Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror and watched Huang Tai and his group continue fighting through Sky Rift Valley.
• The Zhaoshen Map jolted and began losing its range to spreading distortions, prompting Yu Ci to stand and wonder what had happened below.

Yu Ci used the Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror with the Zhaoshen Map to reveal a swarm of demons pouring from what he believed was the entrance to Blood Prison Ghost Manor. He followed the demons into the depths of Sky Rift and watched from hiding as a powerful disturbance approached the entrance.

• Yu Ci amplified the Zhaoshen Map with One Breath Three Calls and saw tens of thousands of demons trapped around a void entrance deep in Sky Rift.
• He watched some demons break through the barrier and fly north, then pursued them down into the dark region below forty miles.
• Yu Ci sheltered in a rocky crevice and found five or six hundred demons gathered ahead, including thirteen or fourteen with Core Formation cultivation.
• After more powerful Core Formation demons escaped the entrance, Yu Ci realized the threat could endanger Juebi City and resolved that the Li Chen Sect and Sunset Valley needed to be warned.
• Distorted ripples battered the edge of the Zhaoshen Map, and Yu Ci glimpsed two shadows racing toward the entrance.

Yu Ci watched the wounded ghost beast flee from a powerful two-headed demon, using the Heart-Pulling Horn to resist its Rakshasa Illusory Power. The two monsters began a brutal fight, and Yu Ci noticed that the ghost beast’s festering old wounds might have been inflicted by Ye Bin.

• Two shadows tore through a gathering of demons, and Yu Ci hid in a rock fissure as the ghost beast and its pursuer raced past.
• Yu Ci recognized the fleeing ghost beast as the creature whose horn he had severed and which Ye Bin had wounded.
• The ghost beast’s roar drove demons into madness, while Yu Ci used the Heart-Pulling Horn to keep his mind clear.
• The two-headed demon countered the ghost beast’s illusory power, restored the demons’ wits with its shriek, and caught the fleeing creature.
• The two-headed demon battered the ghost beast in a bloody fight, and Yu Ci spotted festering old wounds that he suspected Ye Bin had caused.

Yu Ci watched the wounded ghost beast battle a host of Core Restoration demons, then saw it kill their two-headed leader with a terrifying Illusionary Art. After the ghost beast escaped a second wave of demons, Yu Ci sensed an unfamiliar, icy scent and suspected a mysterious visitor connected to its illusion power.

• Yu Ci observed the ghost beast charge through the demons’ formation, killing several demons despite its severe wounds.
• The two-headed demon gathered power for a talismanic attack, but a sudden, overwhelming Illusionary Art shook the valley and shattered the Zhaoshen Map’s image.
• The ghost beast tore off half the two-headed demon’s body, severed both of its heads with its tail, and sent the remaining demons fleeing.
• A new force of demons approached, so the wounded ghost beast fled into the clouds while the demons searched for it.
• Yu Ci climbed from his hiding place and detected a clean, bitterly cold scent, leading him to suspect that a visitor connected to the ghost beast’s illusion power had appeared.

Yu Ci escaped the demon-infested depths of the Zhaoshen Map, while the people waiting in the Sky Rift Valley learned that the Bai Ri Mansion’s expedition had returned battered and missing members. Old Monster Tu appeared and attacked Cheng Rong after Xiao Jiu fainted, leaving Cheng Rong’s divine soul in grave danger.

• Yu Ci saw demons overwhelm the bottom of the Zhaoshen Map and climbed away, wondering what had rallied them and how to warn the Li Chen Sect.
• As winter worsened, Xiao Jiu repeatedly flew over the Sky Rift Valley searching for Yu Ci while Cheng Rong tried to keep her occupied.
• Cheng Rong, Minglan, Zhengyan, and Xiao Jiu encountered Huang Tai’s returning entourage and noticed that several people, including Liu Siwei, were missing.
• Xiao Jiu guessed that Yu Ci had defeated Huang Tai’s group, but Old Monster Tu appeared behind her and frightened her unconscious with his illusory hand.
• Cheng Rong attacked Old Monster Tu, but his fist struck only a phantom, and Old Monster Tu used the Soul Grabbing Yin Claw to assault Cheng Rong’s divine soul.

Minglan confronted Tu Du and then delivered a mysterious divine decree through Zhengyan, leaving the monk shaken and wary. At the Wanling Sect camp, Cheng Rong awakened and recognized Zhengyan’s companion as Mr. Yu.

• Minglan and Zhengyan traded barbs with Tu Du, who departed after the Wanling Sect disciples carried away the unconscious Cheng Rong and Xiao Jiu.
• Minglan and Zhengyan suspected Tu Du had brought the Sun Soul Banner and was pursuing the True Form Immortal Molt because his lifespan was nearly exhausted.
• Minglan invoked Master Yixin through Zhengyan and passed on the decree to come less often and stop causing trouble; Zhengyan respectfully agreed to obey.
• Minglan patted Zhengyan’s cheek before leaving, and he stood stunned until someone called out to him.
• At the Wanling Sect camp, Elder Yu Xuan struggled to manage the leaders’ arguments until news came that Cheng Rong had awakened.
• Cheng Rong received Zhengyan and his companion, then recognized the companion as Mr. Yu.

Yu Ci found Xiao Jiu suffering from a divine soul injury caused by Tu Du and stayed with her until she calmed and fell asleep. As the Wanling Sect broke camp to retreat, Cheng Rong offered Yu Ci two Ghost Appearance Flowers and promised future cooperation against the Bai Ri Mansion, while Yu Ci questioned Tu Du’s attack on a child.

• Yu Ci and Monk Zhengyan entered Xiao Jiu’s tent and learned from Zhengyan that Tu Du’s dark spirit had injured her divine soul.
• Xiao Jiu woke in a delirium, clung to Yu Ci, and called him “Brother Fishbone” before recognizing him as Mr. Yu.
• Elder Yu Xuan used mind-pacifying incantations to help Xiao Jiu fall asleep, while Cheng Rong learned his own divine soul injury was more severe.
• Cheng Rong told Yu Ci that the Wanling Sect would retreat and leave two Ghost Appearance Flowers for him, then pledged that they would fight the Bai Ri Mansion together in the future.
• Yu Ci reflected that the Wanling Sect and Bai Ri Mansion were alike, and asked why Tu Du had targeted a child; Zhengyan replied that Tu Du was a madman.

Yu Ci learned more about Tu Du and the strange connection between Jingshui Altar and Xuan Yin Sect, then collected the Ghost Appearance Flowers and was ambushed by Huang Tai’s forces. He fought his way west toward Sky Rending Rift as Huang Tai waited to intercept him.

• Monk Zhengyan told Yu Ci about Tu Du and discussed Juebi City's changing circumstances before leaving.
• Yu Ci realized Monk Yi Xin had possessed Zhengyan during his conversation with Minglan and suspected a major plan involving Tu Du and the True Form Immortal Molt.
• After the other sects withdrew from Sky Rending Rift, Yu Ci appeared at night to collect two Ghost Appearance Flowers from Wanling Sect cultivators.
• Huang Tai's men ambushed Yu Ci, and Yu Ci sprinted west toward Sky Rending Rift after killing three Bai Ri Mansion guards with a Great Sun Talisman and his sword.
• Huang Tai led his elite subordinates toward the planned interception point, and fog rose in the forest.

Yu Ci escaped Huang Tai through the fog, but Huang Tai used a tracking talisman to summon Tu Du. As Yu Ci prepared for their pursuit, a blazing crimson object descended from the sky toward him.

• Huang Tai sensed Yu Ci’s mist-concealed soul, spotted his escape route, and crushed Tu Du’s Jade Talisman to summon help.
• Yu Ci used mist-transforming sword intent to flee, recovered with Innate Qi, and identified the pursuing smoke crane as a Flying Goose Soul Talisman.
• Yu Ci reflected on the kind of immortality he wanted while preparing three talisman Record Books.
• Yu Ci spotted an immense force racing across the Zhaoshen Map and saw a blazing crimson star descend toward him.

Yu Ci endured Tu Du’s long-range incantations while racing toward Sky Riff Valley, using an Exorcism Charm to resist the attacks. As Tu Du closed in and demanded the secret method for finding Fish Dragon Grass, Yu Ci reached the open meadow near the valley with a prepared spiritual talisman in hand.

• Tu Du’s Flying Star Yin Kill Method struck Yu Ci from afar, injuring his organs and trapping him in a curtain of fire.
• Yu Ci used his blood to draw an Exorcism Charm, which blocked the gloomy Qi long enough for him to escape the flames.
• Yu Ci spotted Tu Du approaching through the Zhaoshen Map and continued running toward Sky Riff Valley, knowing the Core Formation cultivator was faster.
• Tu Du’s incantations locked onto Yu Ci, struck his mind, and caused blood to seep from his nose and ears.
• Tu Du demanded the secret method for finding Fish Dragon Grass as Yu Ci neared the cliff, then Yu Ci crushed a prepared spiritual talisman in the meadow.

Yu Ci tried to slow Tu Du with a Yindu Black Law Ghost Binding Curse, but Tu Du broke free and caught up with him in Sky Rift. Their exchange over Yu Ci’s mission and the Stop Monument ended with Tu Du attacking and Yu Ci fleeing downward.

• Yu Ci used the Yindu Black Law Ghost Binding Curse to halt Tu Du, but Tu Du tore through the chain and continued pursuing him.
• Yu Ci descended the cliff by grabbing branches and stepping across stones, but Tu Du overtook him in the mist and blocked his path.
• Tu Du questioned Yu Ci about his confidence and his connection to Sky Rift, while Yu Ci maintained his composure and traded barbs with him.
• Yu Ci claimed Master Yu had sent him to gather medicinal ingredients and challenged Tu Du over the Stop Monument and his actions in Sky Rift.
• Tu Du realized Yu Ci was the only witness to his entry, broke through the Exorcism Charm’s barrier, and drove his divine intent at Yu Ci as Yu Ci leapt downward.

Tu Du pursued Yu Ci into the Sky Rift and summoned the Sun Soul Banner to protect his yin spirit and expand his attacks. Yu Ci raced down the sheer cliff to evade him, while Tu Du expected the dangerous descent to exhaust him or end in a fatal crash.

• Yu Ci withstood Tu Du’s soul curse and drove him back with Five Thunder lightning before disappearing into the clouds.
• Tu Du tracked Yu Ci, reasoned that the boy’s beast-horn object blocked his curse, and decided to weaken him through relentless pursuit.
• Tu Du brought out the Sun Soul Banner, the long-refined magical artifact that concealed and protected his yin spirit.
• Yu Ci ran down the near-vertical cliff as Tu Du followed overhead, confident that the speed and peril would eventually overwhelm him.
• Yu Ci cut through creatures in his path, and Tu Du noticed the skill of his swordsmanship.

Yu Ci risked a desperate plunge into Sky Rift Gorge to lure Tu Du toward a horde of demons, relying on his swordsmanship to survive the uncontrolled descent. Near forty li deep, Tu Du discovered the demons just as Yu Ci rebounded upward.

• Yu Ci deliberately provoked Tu Du and led him down Sky Rift Gorge, hoping the demons below would sense Tu Du’s aura and attack.
• As the demons remained still, Yu Ci fought to control his descent, using contained sword intent to carve a safe path through the valley’s hazards.
• Yu Ci maintained his precarious balance through the darkness and descended nearly forty li into Sky Rift Gorge.
• Tu Du accelerated after Yu Ci and began casting Ghost Domain Flame Prison, but sensed a dense swarm of demons beneath the clouds.
• Yu Ci suddenly rebounded upward beneath the Sun Soul Banner’s firelight.

Yu Ci broke through Tu Du’s Ghost Domain Flame Prison with a sudden sword strike, using the Divine Movement Talisman and a mysterious Sword Intent to soar high above the gorge. As he fell back toward the Sun Soul Banner, he unleashed a powerful Five Thunder method and revealed that the earlier Five Thunder Talisman had only been a decoy.

• Yu Ci rebounded from the cliff and charged at Tu Du’s Sun Soul Banner, while Tu Du activated Ghost Domain Flame Prison to trap him.
• Yu Ci focused his sword on the banner, broke through the flames and curse-power barrier, and vanished into the clouds with his Sword Intent.
• Tu Du recognized traces of the Li Chen Sect’s Transforming Separation Sword Mist as Yu Ci reappeared high above him and began to fall.
• Yu Ci saw the Sun Soul Banner below and prepared another strike as Tu Du dismissed the threat of his Five Thunder method.
• Yu Ci summoned a sky-filling storm of lightning and revealed that the earlier Five Thunder Talisman had been picked up, declaring that he was now using Five Thunders Crashing Down.

Yu Ci’s sword strike and Five Thunder Talismans damaged Tu Du’s Sun Soul Banner and exposed his Yin spirit to the demons gathering in Sky Rift Valley. As the demons swarmed Tu Du, Yu Ci landed on a nearby cliff and watched the fight unfold.

• Yu Ci’s powerful Five Thunder Talisman struck Tu Du while lingering sword Qi weakened his defenses and damaged his divine soul.
• Thunder sound shattered Tu Du’s defenses, and the sword Qi tore a small hole in the Sun Soul Banner before being consumed.
• More than a hundred demons spotted Tu Du’s exposed Yin spirit and rushed toward the banner, drawing an ever larger swarm from the abyss.
• Tu Du unleashed Bone-Piercing Fire, burning the demons at the front of the swarm.
• Yu Ci landed on the cliff nearby and watched Tu Du face the demons, thinking that Xiao Jiu would enjoy seeing the scene.

Yu Ci escaped Tu Du’s desperate attack after a Core Formation fiend disrupted the fight, then reflected on how Ye Bin’s sword intent had enabled his powerful strike and left him physically exhausted. He climbed toward safety through the nether region, but the Zhaoshen Map revealed a strange one-eyed fiend blocking his path.

• Tu Du unleashed a fiery attack at Yu Ci, but a Core Formation fiend pressed him while swarms of other fiends surged toward the Sun Soul Banner.
• Yu Ci parried burning stones, descended into the clouds, and escaped as Tu Du remained surrounded by fiends.
• Yu Ci realized that Ye Bin’s sword-intent imprint had enabled his Flying Sword strike, but using it had pushed his body to the brink of collapse.
• Yu Ci used the Zhaoshen Map to navigate toward the top of the nether region while avoiding stray fiends.
• The Zhaoshen Map showed a short, broad, one-eyed fiend behaving strangely in the path Yu Ci needed to take.

Yu Ci watched Zheng De’s corpse emit black Qi and die after possessing a sick demon, then realized the demon might expose Zheng De’s connection to his past killings. The possessed demon entered a Core Formation demon’s territory and appeared to settle into a crevice, while Yu Ci remained too exhausted to pursue it.

• Yu Ci spotted a half-headed creature in a monk’s robe approaching a sick demon and recognized its familiar features.
• The creature released black fire and snake-like Qi into the demon, then died as the demon regained its strength and moved away.
• Yu Ci examined the corpse and identified it as Zheng De, whose head he had severed months earlier.
• Yu Ci suspected Zheng De had possessed the demon and worried that Zheng De might reveal Yu Ci’s killing of Lu Quan and Xu Lao Er.
• The demon entered a blurred area on the Zhaoshen Map, which shifted toward Tu Du, and Yu Ci saw the demon curled up in a rock crevice as if asleep.

Yu Ci pursued the transformed demon, became convinced that Monk Zheng De had possessed it, and followed it to a battle-scarred stretch of Sky Rift Gorge. The demon used black qi to locate and place a Chuanxiang Talisman on a cliff, revealing it had companions, just as a streak of black light crossed Yu Ci’s map.

• Yu Ci rested, recovered his strength, and saw that the demon had transformed into a figure resembling Poisonous Snake Monk Zheng De.
• Yu Ci pursued the demon north through Sky Rift Gorge and passed the scorched battlefield where Tu Du had fought the demons, finding no sign of the Sun Soul Banner.
• At a cliff shelf called the rain eave, Yu Ci noticed fresh battle damage as the demon searched the rock for something.
• The demon released a black-qi snake that sensed its surroundings, then used a Chuanxiang Talisman to mark a cliff wall beneath the rain eave.
• Yu Ci realized the possessed demon had companions when a streak of black light crossed the Zhaoshen Map.

Yu Ci watched the fish-dragon defeat the black qi venomous snake and destroy its physical body, then tried to capture the naturally born creature for its value to the Li Chen Sect. His Ghost Binding Talisman chain shattered against the fish-dragon’s tail, leaving the capture attempt unresolved.

• The fish-dragon repeatedly rammed the black qi venomous snake, resisted its soul-attacking Curse Arts, and chased it as it fled toward its physical body.
• Yu Ci cut off the demon’s head with the Pure Yang Talisman Sword, and the fish-dragon swallowed the black qi venomous snake after it lost its body.
• The fish-dragon expelled black smoke but showed no lasting signs of possession, then drifted down the cliff while Yu Ci decided to capture it.
• Yu Ci formed a Yindu Black Law Ghost Binding Talisman and activated it when he approached the fish-dragon.
• The fish-dragon flicked its tail and shattered Yu Ci’s Ghost Binding Talisman chain.