Recaps

After six months of cultivation, Xiao Yan left the underground world and headed toward Jia Nan Academy, where he came upon an old man fighting a Sky Winged Tiger over an injured little girl. He learned the girl was a magical beast transformed by eating the tiger’s Form Transformation Grass, and the battle continued as he watched.

• Xiao Yan discussed his progress and his good fortune with the newly awakened Old Yao, then left the underground world.
• Xiao Mei, Xiao Yu, and Xun Er wondered how Xiao Yan was doing and talked about their own cultivation progress.
• While traveling through the Magical Beast Forest, Xiao Yan heard fighting and went to investigate.
• Xiao Yan saw an old man from Jia Nan Academy battling a nine-star Dou Huang Sky Winged Tiger while protecting an injured little girl.
• Sky Winged Tiger explained that the girl had eaten its Form Transformation Grass and become human, but the old man refused to hand her over, and they fought again.

Xiao Yan rescued Su Qian and the newly transformed Zi Yan from a Sky Winged Tiger, then joined Su Qian on the journey to Jia Nan Academy’s Inner Academy. He named the girl Zi Yan and continued teasing her as they traveled.

• Xiao Yan killed the Sky Winged Tiger with his Drawing Sword Technique just as it was about to kill Su Qian.
• Su Qian offered to serve Xiao Yan, but Xiao Yan exposed his reluctance and accepted him as a steward in jest.
• Xiao Yan revealed his identity, gave healing pills to Su Qian and the little girl, and asked how they had encountered the beast.
• Su Qian explained that he had found the transformed girl alone and intervened when the Sky Winged Tiger attacked her.
• Xiao Yan insisted on accompanying Su Qian and the girl to Jia Nan Academy’s Inner Academy, then named the girl Zi Yan.

Xiao Yan persuaded Su Qian to bring him into Jia Nan Academy’s hidden Inner Academy, where he and little Zi Yan were welcomed and given a place to stay. The chapter left them settling in as guests at the Academy.

• Xiao Yan told Su Qian that his deceased master had passed his Dou Qi to him, while Old Yao complained about being called dead.
• Su Qian stopped at a bare hill and hesitated to bring Xiao Yan into the Inner Academy, but Xiao Yan insisted on accompanying him.
• Su Qian opened the hidden spatial gate and led Xiao Yan and little Zi Yan into the Inner Academy.
• Su Qian brought Xiao Yan and little Zi Yan to his residence, where they ate dinner and chatted.
• Su Qian arranged a nearby courtyard for Xiao Yan and Zi Yan and provided them with clothes and daily necessities.

Xiao Yan cared for Little Zi Yan after she clung to him, then shared a room and bed with her. The next morning, he carried her out of bed and prepared to find Su Qian for breakfast.

• Xiao Yan heated a bath for Little Zi Yan and helped her wash when she did not understand how to bathe herself.
• Xiao Yan dressed Little Zi Yan in new clothes, and she clung to him and fell asleep in his arms.
• Xiao Yan carried Little Zi Yan to bed and promised to protect her from now on.
• The next morning, Little Zi Yan tickled Xiao Yan awake, and he playfully tickled her in return.
• Xiao Yan carried Little Zi Yan out of bed and prepared to find Su Qian for breakfast.

Xiao Yan took little Zi Yan to breakfast, where he crippled a wastrel who harassed her and discovered that Jia Nan Academy’s Inner Academy used Fire Energy as currency. He informed Su Qian about the incident, and Su Qian asked whether Xiao Yan planned to stay with him.

• Xiao Yan took little Zi Yan to the cafeteria after failing to find Su Qian, then ordered breakfast in the second-floor hall.
• A wastrel harassed little Zi Yan, so Xiao Yan kicked him between the legs and drove off his two lackeys with his killing intent.
• Xiao Yan learned that breakfast cost two Fire Energy, paid with a third-tier Demonic Core, and asked a student where Su Qian worked.
• Xiao Yan found Su Qian and told him about the cafeteria incident after Su Qian apologized for being unable to show him around.
• Su Qian said Xiao Yan was not at fault and asked whether he planned to stay, leaving Xiao Yan annoyed by the question.

Xiao Yan persuaded Su Qian to make him an elder of Jia Nan Academy by demonstrating his alchemy, then received his academy credentials and chose a part-time job maintaining the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower. He settled into the academy with little Zi Yan, unaware that Su Qian had a deeper hope tied to his future.

• Xiao Yan convinced Su Qian to appoint him an elder after showing off his control of Evil Flame and agreeing to refine pills for him when asked.
• Su Qian called an elder council meeting, and Xiao Yan’s strength and alchemist status won approval for his membership.
• Xiao Yan and little Zi Yan headed toward the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower, but an elder stopped him for lacking student identification.
• Su Qian brought Xiao Yan and Zi Yan their identification and Fire Energy cards, and Xiao Yan agreed to maintain the tower’s fourth floor a few days each month.
• After Su Qian left, Xiao Yan continued playing with Zi Yan in his courtyard.

After spending the night with Little Ziyan, Xiao Yan entered the Burning Heaven Qi Training Tower and endured the Fallen Heart Flame’s heartfire for two hours. He woke safely to find Su Qian and Little Ziyan worried about him.

• Xiao Yan took Little Ziyan out for a meal after she devoured the pills he had given her.
• Xiao Yan and Little Ziyan spent a restless night together, then slept until noon.
• Xiao Yan carried Little Ziyan into the Burning Heaven Qi Training Tower and began resisting the Fallen Heart Flame’s heartfire.
• Su Qian and the onlookers grew worried as Xiao Yan remained unconscious for nearly two hours, while Little Ziyan waited quietly beside him.
• Xiao Yan woke just as Su Qian was preparing to use external force, and he reassured Su Qian and Little Ziyan that he was fine.

Xiao Yan met Inner Academy elders Liu and Huo, then explored the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower and planned how to prepare for safely devouring the Fallen Heart Flame. He ended the day relaxing with little Zi Yan, while his peaceful life remained far from lasting.

• Elders Liu and Huo introduced themselves to Xiao Yan and invited him to visit the Herbal Hall and Alchemy Hall.
• Xiao Yan explored the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower and noticed that the Fire attribute energy grew denser and more violent on its lower floors.
• Xiao Yan decided he needed to consult Old Yao and find more medicinal ingredients before attempting to devour the Fallen Heart Flame.
• Little Zi Yan massaged Xiao Yan as he considered his plans, and he later took her for a walk around the grass.
• Xiao Yan returned to his room with little Zi Yan, and they fell asleep together after an intimate evening.

Xiao Yan visited the trading district to find medicinal herbs for his pill refining, then came across a group of men harassing a young woman. He intervened just as they were closing in on her.

• Xiao Yan went to the trading district with Zi Yan and bought her candied hawthorn while browsing the stalls.
• Xiao Yan found Blood Lotus Essence and agreed to buy it from Wang Biao for three hundred Fire Energy.
• Xiao Yan asked Wang Biao to find medicinal herbs for him and promised a high price plus a finder's fee.
• Xiao Yan and Zi Yan approached a crowd and saw four or five men surrounding a young woman.
• Xiao Yan shouted at the men to stop bullying the girl.

Xiao Yan rescued Ruolin from a spoiled brat and his four lackeys, then learned she was the academy mentor he remembered from the original story. He and Zi Yan followed Ruolin to her dormitory, where she began preparing them a meal.

• Xiao Yan defeated the spoiled brat and his four Da Dou Shi lackeys while holding Zi Yan, then kicked the brat unconscious.
• Xiao Yan teased Ruolin, who blushed and offered to cook for him because she had little Fire Energy.
• Ruolin introduced herself, and Xiao Yan revealed that he was an academy elder and introduced Zi Yan as his little sister.
• Xiao Yan recognized Ruolin as a mentor from the original story and wondered why her strength differed from what he remembered.
• Xiao Yan and Zi Yan followed Ruolin to her dormitory, where she poured them tea and went to cook.

Xiao Yan grew closer to Ruolin over a meal and invited her to live with him, offering her work and a chance to care for Zi Yan. Ruolin accepted and moved into his courtyard, though both she and Xiao Yan struggled to sleep as they thought about their new relationship.

• Ruolin cooked for Xiao Yan and Zi Yan, and Xiao Yan praised her food while flirting with her.
• Ruolin told Xiao Yan about her difficult upbringing and how she had entered the Inner Academy through her own efforts.
• Xiao Yan invited Ruolin to live with him, offered to pay people she gathered one Fire Energy point a day, and asked her to look after Zi Yan.
• Ruolin accepted Xiao Yan's offer, packed her belongings, and moved into his courtyard.
• Xiao Yan arranged a room for Ruolin, and after dinner she retired while he returned to his room with Zi Yan.
• Xiao Yan and Ruolin both lay awake thinking about the day's events before eventually falling asleep near dawn.

Xiao Yan began his shift at the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower and tested the tower’s cultivation benefits while monitoring the students. He sensed the Fallen Heart Flame beneath the tower, where his Evil Flame confronted it, and learned that the seal was weakening and the Heavenly Flame had developed intelligence.

• Ruolin prepared breakfast for Xiao Yan, and he thanked her, asked her to care for Zi Yan, and kissed her forehead before leaving.
• Elder Liu explained Xiao Yan’s duties at the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower and handed over the shift.
• Xiao Yan cultivated with his Purple Fire Crystal Card, filtering out Fire poison and feeling his Dou Qi grow slightly more refined.
• Xiao Yan extended his soul power through the weakening seal and saw the Fallen Heart Flame in the underground Magma World.
• The Fallen Heart Flame ignited Xiao Yan’s heartfire, but his Evil Flame swallowed it and confronted the Heavenly Flame, which seemed wary.
• Xiao Yan withdrew his soul power and used the Evil Flame to recover, concluding that the seal was weakening and the Fallen Heart Flame had gained intelligence.

Xiao Yan began recruiting students to sell his pills and gather medicinal ingredients, while preparing to refine a large batch with Evil Flame. After hiring Ruolin’s recruits and reassuring Gu Yue that he would treat Ruolin well, he spent most of the night learning to refine pills with guidance from Old Yao.

• Xiao Yan shared a warm dinner with Ruolin and Zi Yan, and explained that Zi Yan’s pill eating was normal for her special constitution.
• Ruolin gathered more than a dozen students, and Xiao Yan hired them to sell his pills and collect ingredients for one Fire Energy per day, paying fifteen Fire Energy in advance.
• Gu Yue warned Xiao Yan to treat Ruolin well, and Xiao Yan promised that he would.
• Xiao Yan told Ruolin and Zi Yan not to wait up, then began refining pills with Evil Flame in his alchemy room.
• Old Yao guided Xiao Yan as he learned to refine with Evil Flame, improving his speed and success rate while he made pills for more than half the night.

After emerging from the alchemy room, Xiao Yan kissed Ruolin and told her about the Fire poison medicines he had refined for her to sell. He gave Ruolin a Marrow Cleansing Pill, guarded her as she refined it, and left her to bathe after it expelled impurities from her body.

• Xiao Yan found Ruolin asleep on the sofa, kissed her when she woke, and teased her by calling her his future wife.
• Xiao Yan asked Ruolin to arrange the sale of 1,270 Ice Spirit Pills and 980 bottles of Marrow Cleansing Cold Spirit Liquid and to collect medicinal ingredients.
• Xiao Yan gave Ruolin a peak sixth-grade Marrow Cleansing Pill and had her swallow it in the cultivation room.
• Ruolin endured the pill's painful effects for about two hours as Xiao Yan guarded her while she refined its medicinal power.
• Ruolin discovered black grime on her skin, and Xiao Yan explained that the pill had expelled impurities before sending her to bathe.

After a year of carefree days in the Inner Academy, Xiao Yan struggled through a dangerous breakthrough inside the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower. He finally broke through to Dou Zong by discovering the heart of a powerhouse, then emerged before the anxious academy members with a transformed aura.

• Ruolin bathed after her strength improved, then covered sleeping Xiao Yan with a blanket and kissed his forehead.
• Xiao Yan spent a year cultivating and enjoying time with Ruolin and Zi Yan before breaking through to Dou Zong at the peak of Dou Huang.
• Xiao Yan struggled to break through as the heavenly phenomenon lingered, and Old Yao told him he was missing a heart.
• Su Qian, the elders, Ruolin, and Zi Yan waited anxiously outside the tower while Xiao Yan made his final attempt.
• Xiao Yan shattered his bottleneck after embracing the heart of a powerhouse and emerged through a spatial crack as a Dou Zong.

After breaking through to Dou Zong, Xiao Yan reassured Ruolin, little Zi Yan, and the elders, then agreed to oversee the new student selection at the Outer Academy. He prepared to leave the next day while Ruolin and little Zi Yan stayed behind.

• Xiao Yan emerged from his breakthrough and embraced Ruolin and little Zi Yan, then explained to Su Qian and the elders that he had broken through to Dou Zong.
• Xiao Yan recounted his breakthrough to the elders, who discussed the upcoming new student selection at the Outer Academy.
• Elder Wu suggested that Xiao Yan oversee the selection, and Xiao Yan agreed so he could also look into Han Feng.
• Su Qian told Xiao Yan to leave the next day and said Vice Principal Hu Gan would arrange matters at the Outer Academy.
• Ruolin and little Zi Yan asked to accompany Xiao Yan, but he told them to stay behind and promised to take care of himself.

Xiao Yan left the Inner Academy and traveled to Jia Nan Academy’s Outer Academy, where the enforcement team initially doubted his identity. After Vice Principal Hu Gan confirmed who he was, Xiao Yan prepared to enter the academy and learned who the leading contenders in the selection competition were.

• Xiao Yan departed the Inner Academy, leaving Ruolin and Zi Yan behind, and took a winding route through the Chuyun Empire toward the Outer Academy.
• At Heping Town, Li Nan and the enforcement team stopped Xiao Yan, required him to take a pill that detected murderous intent, and questioned his claim that he had come from the Inner Academy.
• Xiao Yan released a trace of his aura to convince the enforcement team, and Li Nan sent a member to report his arrival to Vice Principal Hu Gan.
• While waiting, Xiao Yan asked Li Nan about the selection competition, and Li Nan named Lin Xiuyai, Liu Qing, Lin Yan, and Han Yue as its leading contenders.
• Hu Gan arrived, confirmed Xiao Yan’s identity, apologized for the enforcement team, and escorted him toward the academy.

Xiao Yan visited Hu Gan’s home, where he met Hu Gan’s granddaughter Hu Jia and praised the tea she made. Hu Gan quietly hoped Xiao Yan would become Hu Jia’s future husband, then left them alone together, leaving Xiao Yan and Hu Jia awkwardly standing in the sitting room.

• Hu Gan brought Xiao Yan to his home in the Outer Academy and introduced him to his granddaughter, Hu Jia.
• Hu Jia greeted Xiao Yan shyly, and Hu Gan asked her to make tea while he and Xiao Yan talked.
• Hu Gan asked whether Xiao Yan had really broken through to Dou Zong, and Xiao Yan modestly credited his success to luck.
• Hu Jia served Xiao Yan tea, and he praised its flavor, making her happy and embarrassed by Hu Gan’s teasing.
• Hu Gan decided Xiao Yan was a suitable match for Hu Jia and left them alone so Hu Jia could show him around.

Xiao Yan took Hu Jia for a walk, teased her about Hu Gan’s remark, and decided he would pursue her despite her different personality from the original novel. At a lakeside pavilion, he met Han Yue, whose beauty and status as an Outer Academy student surprised him.

• Hu Jia invited Xiao Yan to walk with her, and he teased her about Hu Gan’s comment until she blushed and ran ahead.
• Xiao Yan caught up with Hu Jia, took her hand, and went with her to rest at a pavilion by a lake.
• Hu Jia greeted Han Yue at the pavilion and introduced her to Xiao Yan as the academy’s Moon Fairy.
• Xiao Yan complimented Han Yue, and Hu Jia revealed that he was an Inner Academy elder supervising the selection tournament.
• Han Yue was shocked to learn that the young-looking Xiao Yan was an elder from the Inner Academy.

Xiao Yan made a wager with Han Yue about whether he was an Inner Academy elder, then went with Hu Jia to the room Hu Gan had arranged for him beside hers. After teasing Hu Jia, he persuaded her to join him for some fun, though he did not reveal what he had planned.

• Xiao Yan proposed a wager to Han Yue, who agreed to grant him one request if he proved he was an Inner Academy elder during the selection competition.
• Han Yue left, troubled by the wager, while Hu Jia teased Xiao Yan for watching her go and then ran off after he called her jealous.
• After dinner, Hu Gan arranged for Xiao Yan to stay in a room beside Hu Jia's, and Xiao Yan followed her to the rear courtyard.
• Xiao Yan teased Hu Jia by saying he needed someone to warm his bed, making her blush and flee to her room.
• Xiao Yan coaxed Hu Jia into coming along to do something fun, and she eagerly asked him to take her with him.

Xiao Yan surprised Hu Jia with heart-shaped fireworks and a guitar performance, then confessed that he wanted to protect her for life. Hu Jia returned his feelings, and the two kissed before Xiao Yan sang “Fairy Tale” again; they left together late at night.

• Xiao Yan led Hu Jia to a meadow and revealed heart-shaped fireworks he had arranged for her.
• Xiao Yan played the guitar and sang “Fairy Tale,” moving Hu Jia to tears.
• Xiao Yan told Hu Jia he was willing to protect her for the rest of his life, and Hu Jia said she liked him too.
• Xiao Yan kissed Hu Jia to stop her crying, and she eventually returned his kiss.
• Hu Jia asked Xiao Yan to sing “Fairy Tale” again, and they returned together late at night.

Xiao Yan supervised the selection tournament and silenced students who doubted his status by releasing his overwhelming aura. As the opening matches began, Han Yue defeated Sun Qing, who secretly attacked her with a poisoned needle.

• Hu Gan introduced Xiao Yan as the tournament supervisor, but students questioned his identity until Xiao Yan released his aura and frightened the crowd into silence.
• Hu Gan officially began the elimination round, and Lin Xiuyai, Liu Qing, and Lin Yan each defeated their opponents with ease.
• Han Yue faced Sun Qing, traded hostile remarks with her, and won with her Ice Shatter technique.
• While Han Yue and the referee were distracted after the match, Sun Qing secretly threw a gleaming needle toward Han Yue.

Xiao Yan saved Han Yue from Sun Qing’s poisoned needle during the competition, then stopped Sun Qing when she attacked again and shattered her Dou Crystal. The matches resumed after Sun Qing was carried away, and the day’s competition ended with the selection rounds still unfinished.

• Sun Qing threw a Corpse-Eating Bitter Poison needle at Han Yue, but Xiao Yan appeared, caught the needle, and saved her.
• Han Yue forgave Sun Qing, but Sun Qing cursed her and charged at her with power boosted to the level of a three-star Da Dou Shi.
• Xiao Yan stopped Sun Qing’s attack and discovered that her Dou Crystal had shattered, ending her ability to cultivate.
• Xiao Yan told the referee to have Sun Qing carried away, then returned to the platform and explained what had happened to Hu Jia.
• The competition resumed, but an elder ended the day’s matches before the elimination rounds were complete.

Xiao Yan left the Outer Academy to investigate Han Feng and visited the Xiao Family’s secret stronghold in the Black Corner Region. After learning Han Feng was searching for Heavenly Flames, Xiao Yan arranged to lure Han Feng toward the Inner Academy’s Fallen Heart Flame and prepared to leave the next day.

• Xiao Yan persuaded Hu Gan to let him stop watching the selection matches and leave temporarily, promising to return before the top fifty traveled to the Inner Academy.
• Xiao Yan flew to the Black Corner Region and used the Purple Crystal Emblem to make contact with the Xiao Family’s stronghold through Xiao Cheng.
• Xiao Cheng told Xiao Yan that Han Feng was in Han Feng City and had been searching for Heavenly Flames, with some clues already in hand.
• Xiao Yan ordered Xiao Cheng to secretly tell Han Feng’s men that the Heavenly Flame was in Jia Nan Academy’s Inner Academy and to deliver a letter and pills to Xiao Yan’s father.
• Xiao Yan discussed his plan with Old Yao, who estimated an eighty percent chance of success and warned him not to underestimate Han Feng.

Xiao Yan infiltrated Han Feng's residence and learned that Han Feng was preparing to pursue the Heavenly Flame rumored to be in Jia Nan Academy's Inner Academy. After leaving Han Feng City, Xiao Yan planned to return to the Outer Academy and act once the top fifty students entered the Inner Academy.

• Xiao Yan sneaked into Han Feng's pavilion and narrowly concealed Old Yao's emotional soul fluctuation when Han Feng sensed something amiss.
• Han Feng ordered Han Beng to investigate reports of a Heavenly Flame in Jia Nan Academy's Inner Academy and prepare his allies and two invited experts.
• After Han Beng left, Han Feng revealed his grudge against Old Yao and his plan to use the half of the Burning Art he possessed to devour another Heavenly Flame.
• Xiao Yan returned to his inn and reassured Old Yao that he would avenge him, while Old Yao said he had a ninety percent chance of breaking the Fallen Heart Flame's seal in one stroke.
• Xiao Yan decided to spend two more days in Han Feng City, then return to the Outer Academy and act after the top fifty students were sent to the Inner Academy.