Chapter Summaries

Xiao Yan and Old Yao traveled to the Pill Tower to persuade it to join their alliance against Soul Hall. The Pill Tower’s leaders revealed that their elusive Ancestor, whose approval could decide the matter, was actually a medicinal pill.

• Xiao Yan learned that the Flower Sect and Blazing Flame Valley had agreed to join the alliance, while Old Yao stressed that the Pill Tower was still essential.
• Xiao Yan and Old Yao decided to visit the Pill Tower in person and left Starfall Pavilion, leaving Cai Lin and the others to guard it.
• Xiao Yan and Old Yao reached Sacred Pill City and met Xuan Kongzi, Tian Lei Zi, and Xuan Yi at the Pill Tower.
• Old Yao explained the alliance’s purpose, but the three Pill Tower leaders said their elders were unlikely to agree without their missing Ancestor’s approval.
• Xuan Kongzi explained that the Ancestor searched for lifeless unborn fetuses to experience a full human life, then revealed that the Ancestor’s true body was a medicinal pill.

Xiao Yan learned of the Pill Tower Ancestor’s origins and traveled with Old Yao to the Lesser Pill Tower to help secure support for an alliance against Soul Hall. The vote’s outcome depended on a coming Grand Elder Council election, and Xuan Yi proposed that Xiao Yan compete against Old Monster Hou for the new elder seat.

• Xuan Kongzi explained that the missing Pill Tower Ancestor was a mutated Nine-Rank Profound Pill created by one of Pill Tower’s founders.
• Xuan Kongzi said the alliance needed approval from the Grand Elder Council, and the Three Giants could not secure enough votes alone.
• Xiao Yan and Old Yao followed Xuan Kongzi and Xuan Yi through a spatial passage into the Lesser Pill Tower, where they waited for news about the alliance.
• Xuan Kongzi reported that five elders would support the alliance, but Old Monster Hou was favored to win a new council seat and would likely vote against it.
• Xuan Yi said Xiao Yan qualified to compete for the seat and suggested he challenge Old Monster Hou.

Xiao Yan revealed that he had concealed a pill inside a fire dragon, and its refinement summoned the terrifying Black Demon Thunder. He destroyed the lightning’s first strike with a punch, leaving the clash unresolved as a storm of destruction shattered the surrounding space.

• Xiao Yan stood up and revealed pill fluctuations concealed inside his fire cauldron, then expanded the fire dragon until it shattered the cauldron.
• Xiao Yan silenced Old Monster Hou and used the Object-Infused Pill Refinement method to condense the pill within the fire dragon.
• Xiao Yan’s pill summoned pitch-black clouds that the Grand Elder identified as Black Demon Thunder, while the Nine-Colored Pill Thunder above Old Monster Hou vanished.
• Black Demon Thunder destroyed all five of Xiao Yan’s Heavenly Demon Puppets, forcing him to face the next strike himself.
• Xiao Yan struck the black lightning with a fist charged by the energy of the region, unleashing a destructive storm that shattered space and erased Old Monster Hou’s Seven-Colored Pill Thunder.

The Lesser Pill Tower began its elder selection, and Xiao Yan entered the contest despite the elders’ doubts about his experience. He formed a Medicine Cauldron from his Heavenly Flame and revealed a Bodhi Seed, leaving Old Yao and the others unsure how he planned to defeat Old Monster Hou.

• The Grand Elder appeared with six other elders, announced the selection rules, and invited qualified alchemists to compete.
• Xiao Yan stepped forward as Yao Chen’s disciple and the Pill Gathering’s Alchemist Competition Champion.
• The contestants brought out their Medicine Cauldrons and ignited their flames, while Xiao Yan formed a cauldron from his purple-brown Heavenly Flame.
• Xiao Yan opened a fire dragon inside the flaming cauldron, then paused before beginning his pill refinement.
• Xiao Yan produced a Bodhi Seed, prompting Old Yao and the others to recognize that he intended to refine a Bodhi Pill.
• Xiao Yan smiled at their concern, confident that his experience from enlightenment beneath the Bodhi Tree gave him an advantage.

Xiao Yan refined an unknown pill while Old Monster Hou prepared a Blazing Demon Pure Profound Pill, and the competition continued for days. When Old Monster Hou summoned Nine-Colored Pill Thunder and declared victory, Xiao Yan opened his eyes and said, "Not necessarily."

• Xiao Yan fed more than a thousand medicinal ingredients into his cauldron, puzzling Xuan Kongzi, Old Yao, and the others.
• Old Monster Hou displayed his skill as the elders and contestants continued refining pills, while the Grand Elder suspected Xiao Yan might be a dark horse.
• After five days and several failed refinements, Xiao Yan improved his process, but his cauldron still showed no signs of a pill as others began producing pill thunder.
• Xuan Kongzi identified Old Monster Hou's pill as a Blazing Demon Pure Profound Pill that could summon Nine-Colored Pill Thunder, while Old Yao worried Xiao Yan lacked another ninth-grade formula.
• Old Monster Hou successfully summoned Nine-Colored Pill Thunder and claimed he had defeated Old Yao, but Xiao Yan opened his eyes and answered, "Not necessarily."

Xiao Yan withstood the Black Demon Thunder and captured the intelligent Ninth-grade precious pill he had refined. After revealing that it was a Bodhi Great Restoration Pill with greatly enhanced breakthrough effects, he was declared the winner of the selection.

• Xiao Yan survived the Black Demon Thunder as the energy storm dissipated, while the Grand Elder and the other elders discussed his strength and the possibility of an alliance.
• The fire dragon exploded, and Xiao Yan stopped the Ninth-grade precious pill from escaping, overcame its beast form, and sealed it as an emerald-green pill.
• Xiao Yan descended and faced Old Monster Hou, who identified his pill as the Eighth-grade Blazing Demon Pure Profound Pill.
• Xiao Yan named his pill the Ninth-grade Bodhi Great Restoration Pill and explained that it doubled the Bodhi Pill's success rate for breaking through to Half-Saint.
• The elders accepted Xiao Yan's claim, and the Grand Elder declared him the winner because his pill was superior to Old Monster Hou's.

After Xiao Yan secured the Lesser Pill Tower’s support for an alliance against the Soul Hall, he returned to Starfall Pavilion to prepare for the alliance ceremony. The Flower Sect arrived first, followed by the formidable Old Ancestor Huoyun and his party.

• Xiao Yan became an elder of the Lesser Pill Tower after defeating Old Monster Hou in alchemy, and the Grand Elder invited him and Old Yao to discuss an alliance.
• Xiao Yan argued that the Pill Tower risked losing its standing among alchemists if it continued to leave them unprotected from the Soul Hall.
• The Grand Elder approved the alliance, and Xiao Yan announced that Starfall Pavilion, Blazing Flame Valley, the Flower Sect, and the Pill Tower would formally unite in three days.
• Xiao Yan and Old Yao returned to Starfall Pavilion, where preparations and security for the alliance ceremony occupied the following days.
• The Flower Sect arrived at Starfall Pavilion, led by Fairy Qing and Fairy Hua, and Old Yao greeted them.
• Old Ancestor Huoyun arrived with a group from Blazing Flame Valley, and his powerful aura drew Xiao Yan’s attention.

Old Yao and Xiao Yan brought the Pill Tower, Blazing Flame Valley, and Flower Sect together to form an alliance against Soul Hall, naming it the Heavenly Mansion Alliance and choosing Old Yao as its leader. As they toasted the new alliance, black mist appeared in the hall and an unknown voice threatened them.

• Old Ancestor Huoyun arrived at Starfall Pavilion with Tang Zhen and Tang Huo'er, and Xiao Yan greeted him before the Pill Tower elders joined them.
• Old Yao explained how Soul Hall had harmed the gathered factions, and Xiao Yan proposed an equal offensive and defensive alliance that would not interfere in its members' internal affairs.
• Fairy Qing and the others agreed that the alliance needed a leader, and Old Yao accepted the position after the Grand Elder of the Lesser Pill Tower declined.
• The group chose the name Heavenly Mansion for the alliance, and Xiao Yan raised a cup to celebrate its formation.
• Black mist seeped into the hall as an emotionless voice challenged whether the alliance members would live long enough to enjoy their name.

Xiao Yan arrived at East Dragon Island as the three dragon islands besieged it and found Zi Yan fighting their three Dragon Kings. He broke through the attackers and reached Dragon Hall, where he faced Xuan Mo while sending his companions to safety.

• Xiao Yan and Hei Qing arrived at East Dragon Island and drove off the guards surrounding it.
• Xiao Yan saw that the three dragon islands had occupied most of East Dragon Island and spotted Zi Yan battling the three Dragon Kings.
• Xiao Yan killed a guard who tried to send a signal, then led his companions toward Dragon Hall through the enemy forces.
• Xiao Yan sent his companions into Dragon Hall and met Xuan Mo's attack with a punch.

Old Yao told Xiao Yan to obtain the Yellow Springs Blood Crystal from the Nine Nether Yellow Springs and refine the Nine Yin Yellow Springs Pill to improve his chances of subduing the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame. Xiao Yan traveled there with Cai Lin, Xiao Yi Xian, and Qing Lin, then spotted Ancient Void Dragon Clan members near the Nine Nether Abyss and began listening to their conversation.

• Old Yao explained that the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame was too dangerous for Xiao Yan to subdue without preparation and gave him the Nine Yin Yellow Springs Pill formula.
• Old Yao said Xiao Yan needed to retrieve a Yellow Springs Blood Crystal from the Nine Nether Yellow Springs, which could also help Cai Lin evolve.
• Xiao Yan decided to set out the next day and left Starfall Pavilion with Cai Lin, Xiao Yi Xian, and Qing Lin for the Beast Region.
• Xiao Yan's group reached the Nine Nether Abyss, where Xiao Yan noticed several Ancient Void Dragon Clan members and used spatial power to listen to them.

Xiao Yan and the gathered factions faced a warning from Soul Hall’s Deputy Master, who appeared as a projection to threaten them and disrupt their alliance. The factions remained committed, and they prepared to announce the alliance and establish spatial wormholes as conflict with Soul Hall loomed.

• Soul Hall’s Deputy Master appeared as a black-mist projection and threatened Xiao Yan, the Pill Tower, the Flower Sect, and Blazing Flame Valley.
• Xiao Yan destroyed the projection and vowed to kill Soul Hall and Hun Clan members one by one.
• Old Yao and the others concluded that Soul Hall had learned of the alliance and had sent the projection to intimidate its members.
• Xiao Yan confirmed that the factions still supported the alliance and said they would join forces against Soul Hall if necessary.
• Xiao Yan set the alliance’s announcement for the next day and asked each faction to establish spatial wormholes for rapid support.

The Heavenly Mansion Alliance grew stronger as Xiao Yan and the others prepared for the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame’s arrival nine months later. Old Yao revealed that the Nine Nether Yellow Springs could help Cai Lin advance and was also a necessary place for Xiao Yan to visit before subduing the flame.

• The Starfall Pavilion received many factions seeking to join the Heavenly Mansion Alliance, but Old Yao and Xiao Yan accepted only those that passed careful selection.
• Venerable Wind returned to manage the alliance’s affairs, while the four factions completed connecting spatial wormholes and established an intelligence hall to locate Soul Hall strongholds.
• The alliance discovered two Soul Hall branch halls, but Xiao Yan restrained himself from attacking because he feared a costly war with the Soul Hall and the Hun Clan.
• Old Yao told Xiao Yan that the Soul Hall likely knew the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame would emerge in nine months and urged the alliance to strengthen its forces.
• Old Yao said Cai Lin could advance rapidly if she gained enough energy and identified the Nine Nether Yellow Springs as a place that could help her temper her body and possibly evolve.
• Old Yao revealed that Xiao Yan also needed to visit the Nine Nether Yellow Springs if he wanted to subdue the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame.

Xiao Yan and his companions reached the Nine Nether Yellow Springs hidden beneath the Nine Nether Nether Python Clan’s headquarters. He plunged into the frigid lake to retrieve a Yellow Springs Blood Crystal while Cai Lin, Xiao Yi Xian, and Qing Lin hid and waited.

• Xiao Yan sealed Commander Qin and his men, then cast them into a fissure before leading his companions toward the Nine Nether Yellow Springs.
• Xiao Yan’s group traveled through the underground world and infiltrated the Nether Snake Earth Vein while concealing their auras from its experts.
• Xiao Yan found the Nine Nether Yellow Springs at the bottom of a deep chasm and confirmed its freezing power could be countered with his Heavenly Flames.
• Xiao Yan told Cai Lin he would retrieve the Yellow Springs Blood Crystal so she could cultivate, then plunged into the lake.
• Cai Lin dispersed the smoke rising from the lake and hid with Xiao Yi Xian and Qing Lin as they waited for Xiao Yan.

Xiao Yan discovered that the three Dragon Islands were seeking outside allies to defeat Zi Yan’s East Dragon Island, and he interrogated a North Dragon Island commander about their plans. He learned that the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan had agreed to help in exchange for capturing the new Dragon Emperor, leaving Zi Yan in grave danger.

• Xiao Yan recognized that the Ancient Void Dragon Clan’s visitors came from one of the three Dragon Islands and decided to investigate the clan’s civil war.
• Xiao Yan stopped Commander Qin and his group in the abyss and subdued them with his control over space.
• Xiao Yan wounded Commander Qin until he admitted that he served North Dragon Island and explained that the three Dragon Islands were fighting East Dragon Island.
• Commander Qin told Xiao Yan that the North Dragon Island delegation had come to secure an alliance with the Nine Nether Underworld Python Clan.
• Commander Qin revealed that the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan had also agreed to aid the three Dragon Islands in exchange for the captured Dragon Emperor.
• Xiao Yan grew furious upon learning that the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan and the Nine Nether Underworld Python Clan could help the three Dragon Islands threaten Zi Yan’s East Dragon Island.

Xiao Yan descended to the bottom of the Nine Nether Yellow Springs, fighting off strange snakes and searching unsuccessfully for Yellow Springs Blood Crystals. There he uncovered a chained skeletal Dou Sheng who begged him for help and promised to make the Nine Nether Nether Python Clan acknowledge Xiao Yan as its master.

• Xiao Yan encountered a swarm of strange black snakes that attacked him with concentrated icy water arrows.
• Xiao Yan spread a sea of Heavenly Flames behind him, forcing the snakes to retreat while he continued downward.
• Xiao Yan reached the glowing sandy bottom of the springs but found no Yellow Springs Blood Crystals.
• Xiao Yan heard a faint plea for help and uncovered four massive chains buried beneath the sand.
• Xiao Yan revealed a skeletal figure bound by the chains, who begged to be freed and promised him the Nine Nether Nether Python Clan's allegiance.

Xiao Yan found Yao Ming, the former Nine Nether Nether Python Clan chief, imprisoned beneath the Nine Nether Yellow Springs and agreed to help him reclaim his position after placing a soul seal on him. Yao Ming gave Xiao Yan the Yellow Springs Blood Crystal he had collected, leaving Xiao Yan with an ally who could disrupt the Dragon Islands’ plan to recruit the clan.

• Xiao Yan learned that Yao Ming was Yao Xiaotian’s elder brother, poisoned and imprisoned for hundreds of years after Yao Xiaotian seized the clan leadership.
• Yao Ming told Xiao Yan that he had reached two-star Dou Sheng and possessed the Nine Nether Underworld Staff, while Yao Xiaotian and the Grand Elder were his main obstacles.
• Xiao Yan considered how Yao Ming’s rise could undermine the Dragon Islands’ alliance against Zi Yan’s East Dragon Island.
• Xiao Yan said he would rescue and help Yao Ming only if Yao Ming allowed him to place a soul seal on his soul, and Yao Ming agreed.
• Xiao Yan placed the soul seal on Yao Ming, then asked him about Yellow Springs Blood Crystal.
• Yao Ming gave Xiao Yan a fist-sized Yellow Springs Blood Crystal, explaining that he had devoured the rest accumulated during his imprisonment.

Xiao Yan fought Yao Xiaotian after the Nine Nether Nether Python Clan leader tried to stop him from helping Yao Ming. Xiao Yan shattered Yao Xiaotian’s powerful attacks and began beating him, but the clan’s Nether Snake Guard arrived as the fight drew the entire clan’s attention.

• Yao Ming warned Xiao Yan that Yao Xiaotian was a middle-phase One-star Dou Sheng, and Xiao Yan sent Yao Ming and Cai Lin medicine before facing him.
• Yao Xiaotian attacked Xiao Yan with the Yellow Springs Finger, but Xiao Yan swallowed the attack with his Great Heavenly Creation Palm.
• Yao Xiaotian transformed into a giant black snake and used the Yellow Springs Great Seal to smash Xiao Yan into the Nine Nether Yellow Springs.
• Xiao Yan broke free and struck Yao Xiaotian with a golden palm bearing a four-colored fire lotus, hurling him into a mountain.
• Xiao Yan stomped on Yao Xiaotian and punched him until an enraged voice summoned the Nether Snake Guard to seize him.

Xiao Yan freed Yao Ming from the Yellow Springs Yin Stones and escaped the Nine Nether Yellow Springs with him. At the surface, they found Cai Lin, Qing Lin, and Xiao Yi Xian injured by Yao Xiaotian, who threatened Xiao Yan and the women.

• Xiao Yan used a strand of Heavenly Flame to pierce the mechanisms inside the Yellow Springs Yin Stones and break Yao Ming's chains.
• Yao Xiaotian sensed that Yao Ming's seal had broken and hurried to the Yellow Springs while an elder concealed his departure from the gathered chiefs.
• Yao Ming thanked Xiao Yan for saving him, promised the Nine Nether Underworld Python Clan's help, and took Xiao Yan's medicinal pills to restore his Dou Qi.
• Xiao Yan and Yao Ming traveled through the Yellow Springs, avoided the strange snakes with Yao Ming's calls, and escaped to the surface.
• Xiao Yan caught Cai Lin as she fell and learned that Yao Xiaotian had injured her, Qing Lin, and Xiao Yi Xian.
• Yao Xiaotian confronted Xiao Yan and threatened to kill him and take the three women.

Xiao Yan helped Yao Ming defeat the clan’s traitorous leaders, and Yao Ming reclaimed control of the Nine Nether Nether Python Clan. Yao Ming then offered Xiao Yan a reward connected to the Yellow Springs Demonic Sage.

• Xiao Yan drove Grand Elder back while Yao Ming defeated Yao Xiaotian in a brutal battle.
• Yao Ming killed Yao Xiaotian and extracted his Demonic Core, ending his brother’s life and bloodline aura.
• Grand Elder used Demonic Serpent Sky Burst to destroy his body and scatter into black energy serpents, hiding his Demonic Core among them.
• Yao Ming ordered the clan to search for Grand Elder and began removing Yao Xiaotian’s remaining loyalists.
• Yao Ming thanked Xiao Yan for his help and offered a reward, asking whether he had heard of the Yellow Springs Demonic Sage.

Xiao Yan fought off the Nine Nether Nether Python Clan’s forces while Yao Ming returned and exposed Yao Xiaotian and the Grand Elder’s betrayal. The Nine Nether Underworld Staff’s appearance strengthened Yao Ming’s claim to leadership, but Yao Xiaotian and the Grand Elder attacked Xiao Yan and Yao Ming to silence them.

• Xiao Yan held Yao Xiaotian down until the clan’s elders and Nether Snake Guards surrounded him and Yao Xiaotian ordered the Ten Thousand Snake Formation.
• Yao Ming emerged from the ravine, and the elders recognized him as the clan chief who had supposedly died centuries earlier.
• Yao Ming accused Yao Xiaotian and the Grand Elder of poisoning and sealing him in the Nine Nether Yellow Springs, prompting the Grand Elder to attack him.
• Xiao Yan blocked the Grand Elder’s Withered Leaf Great Poison Palm and protected Yao Ming.
• Yao Ming revealed the Nine Nether Underworld Staff, and several elders asserted that it established his right to be clan chief.
• Yao Xiaotian and the Grand Elder attacked Xiao Yan and Yao Ming together.