Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• As the Fire-Energy Hunting Competition reaches its first day, the White Baleful Squad waits at the forest’s edge. Elder Liu reveals that all nine veteran teams sent into the forest—including the Black Baleful Squad—have been defeated by the new students.
• The elders credit the unusually united newcomers and identify Xiao Yan as their organizer. Captain Lu Bai, confident in his own strength, resolves to defeat him.
• Xiao Yan arrives riding a Fire Cloud Wolf, with Xiao Xun’er and Xiao Yi Xian alongside him. He surprises both squads by announcing that he will challenge the five members of the White Baleful Squad with only three people.
• Lin Xiuyan and Liu Qing volunteer to help, but two White Baleful Squad members overwhelm them almost immediately. One outpaces Lin Xiuyan before he can attack; the other defeats Liu Qing’s practiced claw technique through superior mastery.
• Xiao Yan calmly has the two injured students step back, then jumps down with Xun’er and Yi Xian. The two victorious seniors, angered by his confidence, attack him.

Character developments

• Xiao Yan displays composure and boldness, choosing a three-person challenge despite the White Baleful Squad’s reputation and the newcomers’ obvious disadvantage.
• Lu Bai moves from curiosity to confidence and rivalry, deciding he will personally defeat Xiao Yan.
• Lin Xiuyan and Liu Qing learn how great the gap is between them and the squad: speed alone cannot save Lin, while Liu’s years of training cannot compensate for his opponent’s greater technique mastery.
• The White Baleful Squad shifts from boredom and disbelief to anger as Xiao Yan’s challenge appears to dismiss their strength.

Significant themes

• Unity versus pride: The newcomers’ unusual cooperation has allowed them to defeat every veteran team so far.
• Skill beyond strength: Liu Qing’s loss shows that technical mastery can decide a fight even when opponents seem evenly matched.
• Confidence and reputation: The White Baleful Squad’s fearsome standing contrasts with Xiao Yan’s willingness to confront it directly.
• Underestimating opponents: Both sides make judgments based on appearances and reputation, setting up the coming clash.

Character interactions

• Elder Liu explains the newcomers’ victories to the White Baleful Squad, prompting Lu Bai to challenge Xiao Yan.
• Xiao Yan’s theatrical arrival with his companions provokes surprise and resentment among the veterans.
• Lin Xiuyan and Liu Qing try to stand with Xiao Yan, but their rapid defeats demonstrate the squad’s strength.
• Xiao Yan takes charge after their losses, protecting them from further engagement and preparing to face the attackers with Xun’er and Yi Xian.

Plot points and events

• Watching a veteran’s efficient fighting style, Lin Xiuyan realizes that experience and real combat practice can make a decisive difference even between fighters of similar strength.
• Xiao Xun’er defeats Qin Feng, a fast White Baleful Squad member, by piercing his mithril shield and body with the Radiant Holy Sword, a rare weapon forged around a Sixth-tier Magic Core.
• Xiao Yan overwhelms another squad member with First Sun Scorching Sky. He reveals remarkable control over the technique, shrinking its sphere before expanding it at the moment of impact.
• Xiao Yi Xian sends a shield-bearing opponent flying with projected Dou Qi. When two more veterans rush to help their injured companion, they suddenly lose the ability to use Dou Qi: Xiao Yi Xian has poisoned them.
• Lu Bai concludes that his squad has lost the Fire-Energy Hunting Competition, but refuses to concede without fighting the three newcomers. He unleashes his full aura—and reveals that he has become a Dou Ling.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Xiuyan and Liu Qing recognize that practical combat experience, not just strength, is essential to survival in the Inner Academy.
• Xiao Xun’er stays composed under pressure and uses her exceptional weapon to end Qin Feng’s charge. Qin Feng misreads the danger and pays for it.
• Xiao Yan displays extraordinary technique control and flame mastery. Observers realize that his medicinal refining has also given him extensive practice manipulating flames.
• Xiao Yi Xian demonstrates two formidable abilities—projected Dou Qi and near-instant poisoning—leaving both newcomers and veterans stunned.
• Lu Bai shifts from confident commander to grim last challenger, while Luo Yue’s warning to Qin Feng is misunderstood until too late.

Significant themes

• Experience matters: Efficient technique and battlefield tempering can outweigh comparable raw strength.
• Skill and preparation: Xiao Yan’s refining experience and Xiao Yi Xian’s expertise show how practice and specialized knowledge translate into combat advantages.
• Appearances deceive: A small sphere hides immense power; a shield cannot guarantee safety; and a seemingly defeated squad still has a powerful leader.
• Competition’s brutality: The fight is treated as a serious test in which hesitation and misjudgment can bring severe consequences.

Plot points and events

• Lu Bai dismisses Xiao Yan’s chances, arguing that a genuine Dou Ling is stronger than borrowed power. Xiao Yan and Xiao Xun’er respond by using the Unity Return Art, combining her golden Dou Qi with Xiao Yan’s own.
• The art gives Xiao Yan the temporary strength of a one-star Dou Ling and forms ornate golden Dou Qi Armor around him. He attacks Lu Bai with his Crimson Flame Berserk Blade, empowered by the Golden Emperor Incinerating Flame, a powerful Heavenly Flame.
• Xiao Yan’s first flame attack nearly melts Lu Bai’s wooden Dou Qi shield. He follows with the Advanced Profound Rank technique Mad Lion Roar, but Lu Bai destroys the energy lion with his Thousand-Jin Throw hammer technique.
• Lu Bai’s second hammer threatens the crowd behind Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan intercepts it with a golden blast, then takes to the air—revealing Dou Qi Wings. The observers mistake them for proof that he is a Dou Wang, but the elders recognize them as a rare Flying Dou Technique.

Character developments

• Xiao Yan shows how effectively he and Xun’er can use their secret art, and how much his Heavenly Flame amplifies his attacks. He also prioritizes protecting the crowd rather than simply evading Lu Bai.
• Xiao Xun’er lends Xiao Yan her golden Dou Qi, enabling his transformation and temporary increase in rank.
• Lu Bai remains confident in his cultivated strength, but Xiao Yan’s flame forces him to defend seriously.
• The observers react with awe and envy. Lin Yan, in particular, struggles with the apparent gulf between his progress and Xiao Yan’s.

Themes and interactions

• The battle pits cultivated strength against borrowed power, while showing that skill, teamwork, and rare abilities can make the distinction less simple than Lu Bai claims.
• Trust and cooperation are central to the Unity Return Art: Xun’er empowers Xiao Yan, who then fights on behalf of those behind him.
• The elders’ surprise at the Heavenly Flame and Flying Dou Technique highlights Xiao Yan’s unusual resources and the gap between what he can do and what others expect.
• Xiao Yan and Lu Bai’s exchange escalates from verbal challenge to a contest of defenses and techniques; the chapter ends with the fight still underway.

Plot points and events

• Xiao Yan uses Twin Suns Burning Wind, empowered by the Golden Emperor Incinerating Flame, against the senior students. The two golden spheres devastate the ground, but Liu Elder’s enormous Flame Curtain contains the blast.
• Liu Elder declares the new students the winners of the Fire-Energy Hunting Competition. Their rewards include Fire Energy; Xiao Yan and his two companions also receive Azure Fire Crystal Cards.
• Xiao Yan collects more than five hundred days of Fire Energy from Lu Bai’s White Baleful Squad in exchange for an antidote. He explains that Xiao Yi Xian’s poison has no antidote, but Dou Qi can expel it, and gives them Qi-Restoring Pills to help.
• Hao Elder leads Xiao Yan and his companions into the Inner Academy, a vast settlement hidden in a mountain basin. He warns them that surviving there alone is difficult and its competition is far fiercer than the outer competition.
• Xiao Yan asks Hao Elder about obtaining a Sixth Tier Beast Flame. Hao Elder reveals that Liu Elder owns one and suggests that a cultivation-enhancing treasure might persuade the miserly elder to part with it. Xiao Yan considers offering Earth Core Tempering Milk.

Character developments and interactions

• Xiao Yan demonstrates the overwhelming power of his flame-enhanced technique, then returns to his usual Seven-Star Da Dou Shi strength as the Unity Return Art fades. He stays focused on acquiring a Beast Flame and thinks strategically about what could entice Liu Elder.
• Lu Bai reluctantly surrenders his squad’s Fire Energy and becomes more cautious about Xiao Yi Xian after seeing how effectively her poison incapacitated his teammates.
• Hao Elder protects the poisoned seniors while maintaining fairness by waiting until Xiao Yan has completed the Fire Energy transfer. He also advises the newcomers and helps Xiao Yan pursue his goal.
• Liu Elder proves capable of blocking Xiao Yan’s powerful attack and offers the new students protection. His reputation as a miser—and his devotion to cultivation—suggests a possible way to negotiate with him.
• Xiao Yan’s companions share the victory and rewards, then enter the Inner Academy with him; they are assigned a pavilion together.

Significant themes

• Power and restraint: Xiao Yan’s attack is devastating, but the elders’ intervention prevents the victory from becoming a massacre.
• Competition and survival: Fire Energy is a valuable cultivation resource, and the Inner Academy promises harsher rivalries than the contest just completed.
• Pragmatism and negotiation: Xiao Yan secures resources through both strength and bargaining, while identifying Earth Core Tempering Milk as potential leverage for obtaining the Beast Flame.

Key plot points and events

• After settling into the Inner Academy, Xiao Yan wakes to find more than forty new students gathered outside his lodging. Several have been beaten by older students demanding tribute from their Fire Energy.
• The newcomers ask Xiao Yan to lead them in forming a faction. He declines to run a single faction but proposes an alliance so their separate groups can support one another.
• Bai Cheng forms the White Gang; Lin Xiuyan forms Wolf Fang; Liu Qing forms the Mountain-Splitting Gang; Lin Yan reorganizes his team; and Han Yue establishes Spirit.
• At Xun’er’s suggestion, the alliance is named the Flame Alliance, with Xiao Yan as its leader. He distributes Rejuvenation Powder to injured students.
• Several older-student factions arrive to collect tribute. Xiao Yan declares that the Flame Alliance will surrender no Fire Energy and invites the older students to join them.
• Their leader, Wu Feng of the Cloud Gang, dismisses Xiao Yan’s challenge and reveals himself as a powerful Three-Star Dou Ling—stronger than Lu Bai. He prepares to teach the newcomers the Inner Academy’s “rules.”

Character developments

• Xiao Yan shows strategic leadership: he turns the newcomers’ need for protection into an alliance that also serves his own plans, while refusing to take on the direct management of one faction. He also demonstrates care by tending to the injured.
• The new students move from being isolated and bullied to organizing into several groups under a shared banner.
• Xun’er contributes the alliance’s name, while Bai Cheng confidently takes charge of establishing his own group and publicly recognizes Xiao Yan as leader.
• Wu Feng emerges as a confident, intimidating antagonist whose strength poses a serious threat to the newcomers.

Significant themes

• Unity as protection: Separate factions can resist exploitation by cooperating.
• Power and institutional cruelty: The Inner Academy’s competitive culture permits older students to prey on newcomers.
• Leadership and responsibility: Xiao Yan accepts a leadership role without seeking control over every member or faction.
• Confidence tested by strength: The alliance’s defiance is immediately challenged by an opponent far more powerful than expected.

Character interactions

• The injured newcomers appeal to Xiao Yan for help, and he answers with a collective alliance rather than a single faction.
• The faction leaders rally beside Xiao Yan, while Xun’er helps shape the alliance’s identity.
• Xiao Yan confronts the older students on behalf of the newcomers, attempting to deter them—and even recruit them—before Wu Feng responds with mockery and a display of force.

Plot points and events

• Wu Feng, a Three-Star Dou Ling, challenges Xiao Yan and threatens to make the freshmen pay tribute. Xiao Yan accepts and raises the stakes: if he loses, the watching seniors must each send five faction members to join the Flame Alliance.
• The seniors agree, assuming Wu Feng will win. Some privately see the wager as an opportunity to gain influence inside the Flame Alliance.
• Xiao Yan refuses Han Yue’s suggestion that Xiao Xun’er use the Unity Return Art to boost him, insisting on facing Wu Feng himself.
• He takes a Fourth-Rank Beast-Strength Pill he refined, greatly increasing his strength. The seniors are shocked to learn he may be a young Fourth-Rank Alchemist, while the freshmen’s confidence in him rises.
• Xiao Yan’s first clash with Wu Feng cracks the latter’s halberd and drives him back. Wu Feng then uses his Dou Qi Armor to block Xiao Yan’s next strike and deflect some of its force. The fight continues, with Xiao Yan promising to break through the armor.

Character developments and interactions

• Xiao Yan asserts his authority as the Flame Alliance’s leader, showing confidence in both his combat ability and alchemy. He rejects outside assistance and relies on his own refined pill.
• Wu Feng begins assured of his superiority, but Xiao Yan’s enhanced strength surprises him. He adapts by relying on his Dou Qi Armor and halberd.
• Xiao Xun’er expresses unwavering faith in Xiao Yan and supports his desire to fight independently. Han Yue is more cautious and suggests a way to strengthen him.
• The seniors’ contempt for freshmen—and their political calculations—contrasts with the freshmen’s growing solidarity behind Xiao Yan.

Significant themes

• Leadership and self-reliance: Xiao Yan chooses to prove himself without borrowing another’s strength.
• Strength through skill and preparation: His alchemy and careful pill-making become as important as raw combat power.
• Pride, status, and faction politics: The wager exposes the seniors’ assumptions and their plans to exploit the Flame Alliance.
• Collective spirit: The freshmen rally behind their leader despite the disparity in rank.

Key plot points and events

• Xiao Yan fights Wu Feng, a Three-Star Dou Ling, using a feint with the Crimson Flame Berserk Blade and a pair of compressed, multicolored Dou Qi orbs. The combined blast badly damages Wu Feng and nearly destroys his armor.
• Wu Feng tries to recover, but Xiao Yan’s command—“Shatter!”—disrupts his Dou Qi and breaks the weakened armor. Wu Feng’s injuries overwhelm him, and he collapses.
• The Flame Alliance’s new students cheer their leader’s victory. Veteran students honor their agreement to send five members from each faction to join the alliance, though some doubt the newcomers’ strength.
• Lin Xiuyan and Liu Qing swiftly subdue veterans who test them, demonstrating how much they have improved through earlier battles.
• Xiao Yan stops the remaining veterans from leaving—not to demand Fire Energy, but to demonstrate his alchemy. He effortlessly refines a Beast-Strength Pill, revealing himself as a Fourth-Rank Alchemist and impressing both veterans and newcomers. He then lets the veterans go.

Character developments

• Xiao Yan shows tactical cunning, controlling his attack’s power to make Wu Feng underestimate the damage. His display of alchemy also establishes him as a leader with extraordinary talent and value to the alliance.
• Wu Feng goes from confident in his defensive advantage to gravely injured and defeated.
• Lin Xiuyan and Liu Qing prove that experience against the White Baleful Squad has sharpened their combat skills, even without raising their cultivation levels.
• The veteran students shift from dismissing the new alliance to respecting Xiao Yan and regretting that they did not join it.

Significant themes

• Strategy can overcome raw strength: Xiao Yan wins partly by manipulating Wu Feng’s expectations.
• Growth through adversity: Earlier clashes have made Lin Xiuyan and Liu Qing more capable.
• Respect follows demonstrated ability: Xiao Yan’s victory and alchemy transform the veterans’ view of the Flame Alliance.
• Leadership through more than force: Xiao Yan secures the alliance’s standing through both combat strength and the practical promise of his alchemy.

Character interactions

• Xiao Yan taunts and outmaneuvers Wu Feng, whose defeat rallies the new students.
• Lin Xiuyan and Liu Qing confront veterans who question the newcomers’ authority, reinforcing the alliance’s confidence.
• Xiao Yan addresses the veterans calmly, then uses his pill-making demonstration to replace their hostility and skepticism with admiration.

Plot points

• After defeating senior students who tried to provoke them, Xiao Yan meets with the Flame Alliance. He lays out a plan to earn Fire Energy through alchemy, recruit experienced senior students, and establish a Medicinal Field for a steady supply of ingredients. Bai Cheng and the others agree to follow his lead.
• News of the newcomers’ victory—and Xiao Yan’s reputation as a Fourth-Rank Alchemist—discourages further harassment for the time being.
• The next day, Xiao Yan, Xiao Xun’er, Xiao Yi Xian, and Han Yue fly to the Burning Heaven Qi Refining Tower to use their recently earned Fire Energy and improve quickly.
• Inside the tower, Xiao Yan encounters the Fallen Heart Flame’s invisible projection. He uses his Dou Qi to extinguish it, finding that the process consumes much of his energy but leaves what remains purer and stronger. Xun’er finishes quickly, while Xiao Yi Xian and Han Yue also undergo the tempering.
• As the group seeks a cultivation room, they meet Elder Liu. He praises their achievements and offers to guide them to a better room, but hints at an unstated concern about Han Yue.

Character developments and interactions

• Xiao Yan shows himself to be a strategic leader, planning the Flame Alliance’s long-term growth as well as its immediate income. He also treats the Heart Flame as a useful tool for refining his Dou Qi rather than merely a threat.
• Xun’er remains confident and composed; her Golden Emperor Incinerating Flame lets her overcome the Heart Flame especially quickly. Xiao Yan affectionately strokes her head, making her blush.
• Xiao Yi Xian sees less value in the tower’s cultivation boost than in its ability to refine her Poison Dou Qi.
• Han Yue initially worries that senior students may retaliate, but is reassured by Xiao Yan and impressed by Xun’er’s speed. She also welcomes Elder Liu, a family acquaintance who once guided someone in her family.
• Elder Liu recognizes Xiao Yan’s influence and offers help, while his unfinished remark about Han Yue suggests a concern he does not explain.

Significant themes

• Leadership and institution-building: The Flame Alliance’s success depends on organization, resources, experienced allies, and sustainable supplies—not simply winning fights.
• Growth through hardship: The tower’s painful Heart Flame both challenges cultivators and improves their energy.
• Reputation as protection: The newcomers’ victory and Xiao Yan’s alchemy skills alter how senior students treat them.
• Different paths to strength: Each character benefits from the tower in a way suited to their own abilities and needs.

Plot points and events

• Elder Liu guides Xiao Yan, Xiao Xun’er, Xiao Yi Xian, and Han Yue to an intermediate cultivation room, advising them not to compete for high-grade rooms as newcomers.
• He explains the tower’s main danger: prolonged exposure to its Heart Flame can cause lethal Fire Poison. Heavenly Flames, Xiao Yi Xian’s Calamity Poison Physique, or an Ice Spirit Pill can provide protection. Since Xiao Yan lacks the first two, he hopes to develop and test a “Pseudo-Ice Spirit Pill.”
• Elder Liu warns the group to cultivate for only half a day at first, then rest overnight; they can gradually extend their sessions as they grow stronger.
• The group enters the room and pays one Fire Energy for a day of cultivation. Xiao Yan has 1,128 left on his Azure Fire Crystal Card, having shared most of his winnings with Xiao Xun’er and Xiao Yi Xian.
• Xiao Yan cultivates without his usual medicinal aids. The tower’s heat and dense energy help his fire-based method, while the projected Heart Flame burns through his body and refines his Dou Qi.
• He realizes that repeated Heart Flame tempering might prepare a person to become a vessel for the Fallen Heart Flame itself.

Character developments

• Xiao Yan is cautious about Fire Poison and focused on finding a way to overcome it. He also recognizes the tower’s potential to strengthen him and possibly help him prepare to subdue the Fallen Heart Flame.
• Han Yue is initially surprised that rooms of the same grade can differ in quality. Seeing Xiao Yan’s superior Fire Energy inspires her to work toward earning an Azure Fire Crystal Card herself.
• Elder Liu shows practical concern for the newcomers and admiration for Xiao Yan’s unusual combination of alchemy and cultivation talent.

Themes

• Power comes with risk: the tower greatly accelerates cultivation, but its Heart Flame can cause dangerous Fire Poison.
• Preparation and discipline: safe progress requires restraint, rest, and the right protection—not simply prolonged cultivation.
• Opportunity through hardship: the same flame that threatens cultivators can refine their bodies and potentially help them prepare for greater power.

Character interactions

• Elder Liu advises and protects the group, sharing his knowledge of the tower and assigning them a suitable room.
• Xiao Yan thanks Elder Liu and listens carefully to his warning; the others acknowledge the danger and agree to proceed cautiously.
• Han Yue compares her modest resources with Xiao Yan’s and turns the difference into motivation rather than resentment.
• Xiao Yan’s sharing of Fire Energy with Xiao Xun’er and Xiao Yi Xian reflects his generosity toward his companions.

Key plot points and events

• Xiao Yan cultivates in the Burning Heaven Qi Refining Tower, repeatedly tempering his Dou Qi with the Heart Flame. The process rapidly consumes his energy, but the surrounding Fire-Attribute Energy replenishes it and refines his Dou Crystal.
• When the tower’s bell ends the session, Xiao Yan notices faint red in his and Han Yue’s eyes—a sign of the Heart Flame’s violent influence. He is less affected than most thanks to his strength, Beast Flame, and fire-based cultivation technique; Xiao Xun’er shows no visible effect.
• The Heart Flame also benefits Xiao Yi Xian: it refines the toxins within her Calamity Poison Physique, making them purer and more potent.
• After leaving the tower, Xiao Yan takes a Pseudo-Ice Spirit Pill he developed to counter Fire Poison. It clears the fiery redness from his eyes and convinces him the pill can remove even severe Fire Poison.
• Xiao Yan plans to reach the depths beneath the tower rather than wait for the Fallen Heart Flame to erupt. He hopes Zi Yan can bypass the academy’s defenses, Xun’er can use her Golden Emperor Incinerating Flame against the Flame Lizardmen, and Xiao Yi Xian can help contain the Fallen Heart Flame.
• He shows Xun’er an ancient parchment bearing a strange lotus. She recognizes it as possibly depicting the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame, the third-ranked Heavenly Flame, and wonders whether it lies beneath the tower.

Character developments and interactions

• Xiao Yan grows stronger and more deliberate: he studies the Heart Flame’s effects, devises a remedy for Fire Poison, and begins organizing a risky expedition below the tower.
• Xiao Xun’er remains unaffected by the Heart Flame’s violent influence. She shares Xiao Yan’s suspicion about the danger beneath the tower and is astonished by the parchment’s possible connection to a powerful Heavenly Flame.
• Xiao Yi Xian benefits in a way unique to her, as the Heart Flame purifies her accumulated toxins.
• Han Yue advises the group to leave and rest, recognizing that prolonged Heart Flame cultivation carries risks.
• Xiao Yan and Xun’er discuss what they sensed in the tower, and he takes her hand as they go somewhere private to talk.

Significant themes

• Power through discipline and risk: The Heart Flame accelerates cultivation but carries harmful side effects.
• Refinement and transformation: It improves Xiao Yan’s Dou Qi and Xiao Yi Xian’s poison, while Xiao Yan’s pill counters the damage caused by excess fire.
• Ambition and danger: Xiao Yan is willing to bypass the academy’s protections to pursue what lies beneath the tower, potentially including the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame.

Key plot points and events

• Xiao Xun’er identifies Xiao Yan’s map fragment as part of the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame Remnant Map. The flame once lay beneath the Burning Heaven Qi Refining Tower, and finding the remaining pieces could help Xiao Yan refine it.
• Xiao Yan considers two routes to gaining the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame: gather all map fragments by building a powerful organization, or grow strong enough to subdue the flame without them. He also believes refining it may unlock the inheritance inside Tou She Ancient God’s stone statue.
• Xiao Yan tells Xun’er about a record describing an expert who subdued the Fallen Heart Flame and disappeared in the magma beneath the tower. They speculate that the expert’s inheritance may be hidden there, though the account could be unreliable and the depths are dangerous.
• The next morning, the recovered Flame Alliance members join Xiao Yan and his companions to cultivate in the tower. The large group draws attention, especially Xiao Yan, whose strength, alchemy, and looks impress the older students.
• An instructor sent by Elder Liu offers the group an intermediate cultivation room with better results.

Character developments

• Xiao Yan is increasingly focused on long-term power and inheritance, weighing organization-building against personal strength. He remains cautious about the risks beneath the tower.
• Xun’er shows both sharp insight and concern for Xiao Yan’s safety, while also expressing confidence in his future as an alchemist.
• Han Yue grows flustered by the older students’ attention toward Xiao Yan and considers protecting him.
• The Flame Alliance members’ recovery and cultivation demonstrate their growing unity and commitment to Xiao Yan.

Significant themes

• Power and inheritance: Heavenly Flames and hidden legacies offer great rewards, but require strength, resources, and risk.
• Ambition balanced by caution: Xiao Yan is tempted by discoveries beneath the tower, while Xun’er emphasizes the danger.
• Leadership and loyalty: The Alliance follows Xiao Yan, and his connections help secure advantages for the group.
• Attraction and reputation: Xiao Yan’s appearance and abilities draw admiration, adding a light comic note to the chapter.

Character interactions

• Xiao Yan and Xun’er discuss the map, the Fallen Heart Flame, and the possible inheritance; their exchange reflects trust, intimacy, and mutual understanding.
• Xun’er encourages Xiao Yan’s ambitions, and he draws her into his arms.
• Xiao Yi Xian and Xun’er tease Xiao Yan silently about the attention he attracts, while Han Yue worries about him.
• Elder Liu’s instructor approaches Xiao Yan and arranges better cultivation conditions for the Alliance.

Key plot points and events

• Instructor Ye Chi leads Xiao Yan’s united freshman group to a large cultivation room on the first floor of the Burning Heaven Qi Refining Tower.
• Xiao Yan gives Ye Chi an Ice Spirit Pill he has created to counter the tower’s Fire Poison. Ye Chi takes it and immediately feels its cooling, restorative effect.
• The freshmen cultivate, and several advance during their first session.
• Xiao Yan, Xiao Xun’er, and Xiao Yi Xian decide the first floor is too mild for their cultivation level and seek to descend to the second floor. Han Yue remains behind.
• Ye Chi initially warns that movement through the tower is restricted, but, after confirming the trio is unaffected by Fire Poison and experiencing the pill’s benefits himself, he agrees to help.
• In exchange for refining more Ice Spirit Pills, Xiao Yan asks Ye Chi to supply the materials. Ye Chi opens the Spatial Boundary Mirror that guards the spiral staircase, allowing the trio to enter the second floor, where the Heart Flame is more intense.

Character developments

• Xiao Yan demonstrates leadership, generosity, and practical ambition: he supports the freshmen’s cultivation, treats Ye Chi’s Fire Poison, and seeks stronger training for himself and his companions. His knowledge of medicinal ingredients gives him a very high success rate with his new pill formula.
• Ye Chi shifts from cautious rule-enforcer to willing ally. The pill’s immediate effect eases his long-standing discomfort, and he agrees to help Xiao Yan descend.
• The freshmen show early progress, with some advancing during their first tower session.
• Xiao Xun’er and Xiao Yi Xian accompany Xiao Yan into the deeper, more dangerous part of the tower; all three appear resistant to the first floor’s Fire Poison.

Significant themes

• Mutual aid and exchange: Xiao Yan helps Ye Chi with a rare remedy; Ye Chi repays him with access and materials.
• Talent joined with ingenuity: Xiao Yan’s alchemy is as valuable as his strength, allowing him to solve a problem that affects even the tower’s staff.
• Ambition and measured risk: The group seeks more powerful training, while Ye Chi warns them to retreat if the second floor’s Heart Flame proves too much.
• Collective advancement: The freshmen’s unity and shared cultivation contrast with the competitive pressures of the Inner Academy.

Character interactions

• Xiao Yan encourages the freshmen and gives them room to cultivate while entrusting their supervision to Ye Chi.
• His gift of the Ice Spirit Pill earns Ye Chi’s gratitude and trust; Ye Chi’s firsthand relief prompts him to request more pills.
• Xiao Yan and Ye Chi negotiate a practical arrangement: Ye Chi supplies ingredients, and Xiao Yan will refine the pills.
• Ye Chi guides Xiao Yan, Xiao Xun’er, and Xiao Yi Xian to the guarded staircase and warns them about the second floor’s dangers.

Plot points and events

• Xiao Yan, Xiao Xun’er, and Xiao Yi Xian enter a high-grade training room on the Burning Heaven Qi Refining Tower’s second floor, where the Heart Flame is significantly stronger.
• The Heart Flame draws accumulated medicinal power out of Xiao Yan’s body and refines it alongside the energy he absorbs. This greatly accelerates his cultivation.
• After five days, Xiao Yan advances from Seven-Star to Nine-Star Da Dou Shi. Xiao Xun’er and Xiao Yi Xian both reach Five-Star Great Dou Master.
• Xiao Yan concludes that the tower’s benefits lessen as his strength rises. To reach Dou Ling quickly, he may need to find the rare Earth Core Tempering Milk.
• Once the group leaves the tower, Ye Chi marvels at Xiao Yan’s progress and asks him to refine twelve sets of medicinal ingredients. Xiao Yan agrees.
• Back at their residence, Flame Alliance members deliver medicinal herbs and Magic Cores. Xiao Yan assigns Xiao Xun’er and Xiao Yi Xian to manage the materials, pill sales, and Fire Energy distribution, while he focuses on refining medicine.

Character developments and interactions

• Xiao Yan demonstrates exceptional talent, using the tower’s Heart Flame to refine his stored medicinal power and make rapid progress. He remains practical about the limits of his training and delegates the alliance’s business rather than managing it himself.
• Xiao Xun’er congratulates Xiao Yan, notes his remarkable speed, and is eager to leave the tower. She takes on management duties with Xiao Yi Xian.
• Xiao Yi Xian is impressed that Xiao Yan has advanced so quickly despite her own progress through the Calamity Poison Physique and the Seven-Colored Poison Classic. She is eager to collect herbs for making poisons.
• Ye Chi is astonished by Xiao Yan’s achievement, thanks him for accepting the lower-floor training opportunity, and requests his help refining medicine.
• Lin Xiuyan and the other alliance members support the group by supplying more herbs and Magic Cores than Xiao Yan expected.

Significant themes

• Talent, effort, and opportunity: Xiao Yan’s ability combines unusual talent with the tower’s powerful training environment and the medicinal energy accumulated in his body.
• The limits of advancement: The tower’s boost diminishes as Xiao Yan grows stronger, prompting him to seek rarer resources.
• Cooperation and delegation: The alliance’s progress depends on members gathering materials and on Xiao Yan, Xiao Xun’er, and Xiao Yi Xian dividing responsibilities.

Plot points and events

• Xiao Yan rapidly produces large quantities of medicine using two cauldrons, then studies a Flame Alliance map to identify powerful Magical Beasts and possible ingredients for preparing Earth Core Tempering Milk.
• He distributes the medicines through the Alliance and tells its leaders to prepare for a hunt. The following morning, he leads them into the mountains.
• Rather than fight dangerous beasts directly, Xiao Yan uses poisons from the Seven-Colored Poison Classic. He kills a Fourth-Order Wood-Swallowing Fox with a Death God Candle, and continues taking down formidable beasts with prepared poisons while the Alliance members collect their remains.
• The group reaches the Snow Demon Sky Ape’s territory and hears a fierce battle. Expecting two beasts to be fighting, they climb into the trees to watch.
• They discover that the Snow Demon Sky Ape is battling a young girl in white, whose small fists meet the enormous beast’s blows with astonishing force.

Character developments

• Xiao Yan demonstrates exceptional alchemy, strategic planning, and confidence in his poison-making. He is now a Nine-Star Great Dou Master, a startling rise from Seven-Star in only a few days.
• Xiao Xun’er and Xiao Yi Xian have also advanced to Five-Star Great Dou Masters. Xiao Yi Xian’s poisonous blood is powerful enough to threaten even high-level fighters, making the Snow Demon Sky Ape vulnerable to Xiao Yan’s plans.
• Lin Xiuyan, Liu Qing, Han Yue, Bai Cheng, and Lin Yan are impressed by Xiao Yan’s methods and rapid growth, and begin to recognize how far his talent surpasses their own.
• The mysterious white-haired girl is introduced as a child with strength seemingly comparable to the Snow Demon Sky Ape.

Significant themes

• Ingenuity over brute force: Xiao Yan relies on preparation, specialized poisons, and knowledge rather than engaging every powerful beast in direct combat.
• Rapid growth and unequal talent: The Alliance members’ amazement at Xiao Yan’s and the women’s advancement highlights the gap between extraordinary talent and ordinary progress.
• Cooperation and shared rewards: Alliance members gather intelligence, support the hunt, and divide the value of the beasts’ remains.
• Power in unexpected forms: The chapter’s final reveal contrasts the young girl’s slight appearance with her ability to fight a massive Magical Beast.

Character interactions

• Xiao Yan briefs the Alliance leaders and relies on them to distribute medicine and coordinate the expedition.
• Xiao Xun’er explains how the Alliance assigns work to its members, while the group reacts with growing admiration—and some disbelief—to Xiao Yan’s and the women’s strength.
• Han Yue suggests exploiting the apparent battle between beasts, but the group’s expectation is overturned when they find the girl fighting the Snow Demon Sky Ape herself.

Plot points and events

• Xiao Yan explains that the Snow Demon Sky Ape has a powerful Violent Bloodline that can awaken and greatly increase its strength. The ape awakens it while fighting Zi Yan, overwhelming her and knocking her backward.
• Xiao Yan rescues Zi Yan with his Dou Qi wings. She responds by licking him, mistaking his medicinal scent for that of a human-shaped ingredient, then proposes they join forces to take the ape’s Earth Core Tempering Milk.
• Instead of fighting head-on, Xiao Yan hurls a series of boulders at the ape. The final one is coated with a potent Sleep Powder, which puts the ape to sleep.
• Xiao Yan considers taking the ape’s valuable Magic Core, but Zi Yan persuades him to spare it. She reveals she is the Inner Academy’s mysterious number-one Strong Ranking student and gets the ape to agree to follow Xiao Yan.
• Xiao Yan introduces himself as a member of the Flame Alliance.

Character developments and interactions

• Xiao Yan shows composure and tactical ingenuity, defeating a stronger opponent through preparation rather than brute force. He is amused by Zi Yan’s behavior but remains practical about keeping the ape under control.
• Zi Yan is revealed to be exceptionally powerful, though not invincible against the awakened ape. Her bold, playful nature is clear, and she shows sympathy for the defeated beast.
• Xiao Xun’er reacts jealously when Zi Yan licks Xiao Yan; Xiao Yi Xian notices but stays quiet. Han Yue and the others are also startled by Zi Yan’s forwardness.
• The Snow Demon Sky Ape shifts from a confident guardian to a subdued captive, agreeing to obey Xiao Yan after being defeated.

Significant themes

• Strategy over strength: Xiao Yan’s medicine and trap overcome the ape’s raw power.
• Power and humility: Zi Yan and the others discover that strength has limits.
• Practical gain versus compassion: Xiao Yan wants the ape’s Magic Core, while Zi Yan argues that a living ally is more useful.
• Hidden identities: Zi Yan’s rank and abilities emerge only after the confrontation.

Key plot points and events

• Xiao Yan asks Zi Yan to guide the group to the Earth Core Tempering Milk, promising her a share. Confident in her treasure-hunting skill, Zi Yan leads Xiao Yan, Han Yue, Lin Xiuyan, and the others through a difficult valley to a concealed cave.
• Zi Yan uncovers a hidden passage into a vast underground world. They find a hollow containing diluted Earth Core Tempering Milk, but Zi Yan points out that the true, far more potent milk lies inside an enormous stalactite.
• Xiao Xun’er explains that the real milk is delicate and can be ruined by contact with ordinary materials. Since Xiao Yan can fly and has the right tools, he carefully opens the stalactite with a jade knife and collects the milk using jade utensils.
• Xiao Yan fills three bottles and takes all of it. He reasons that the treasure can replenish itself, and that preserving and cultivating valuable natural resources is better than simply leaving them untouched.

Character developments and interactions

• Zi Yan demonstrates her exceptional treasure-hunting instincts and strength, guiding the group and revealing the hidden cave. Her confidence and eagerness for treasure make her a valuable ally.
• Xiao Yan uses tact to secure Zi Yan’s help, then shows careful skill in collecting the fragile treasure. His attitude toward natural resources is pragmatic: he favors responsible cultivation over passive conservation.
• Xiao Xun’er contributes crucial knowledge about the milk and entrusts its collection to Xiao Yan, reinforcing their trust and teamwork.
• Han Yue and the others are impressed by the underground world and by Zi Yan’s ability to find the concealed site.

Significant themes

• Knowledge and cooperation: The group’s success depends on Zi Yan’s instincts, Xiao Xun’er’s expertise, and Xiao Yan’s specialized abilities.
• Stewardship versus restraint: Xiao Yan challenges the idea that one should always leave part of a natural treasure behind, arguing that rare resources can be protected and replenished through cultivation.
• Ambition and humor: His final thought—whether he should leave the treasure for Hun Tiandi—frames his decision in the larger conflict and gives it a joking edge.

Plot points and events

• Xiao Yan and his companions collect the Earth Core Tempering Milk, which must be absorbed through medicinal baths rather than swallowed. He promises Lin Xiuyan’s group help obtaining ingredients and invites Zi Yan to join the Flame Alliance.
• They take the remaining imitation milk and the bluestone slab that held it, then leave the cave. The Snow Demon Sky Ape, now Xiao Yan’s subordinate, guards the entrance.
• Xiao Yan gives the Ape an Ice Spirit Pill, which suits its icy nature. Zi Yan asks for one too and eats it like candy, impressing Lin Xiuyan and the others.
• Back at their residence, Xiao Yan prepares a medicinal bath with more than a hundred extracts and fifteen drops of genuine Earth Core Tempering Milk. He begins cultivating in it, enduring intense pain as the medicine penetrates and tempers his body.

Character developments and interactions

• Xiao Yan strengthens his position in the Inner Academy by recruiting Zi Yan and bringing the Snow Demon Sky Ape under his authority. He also shares resources with Lin Xiuyan’s group and begins a difficult cultivation breakthrough.
• Zi Yan joins the Flame Alliance and gains a helper in the Ape for finding medicinal ingredients. Her appetite and unusual ability to consume powerful pills underline her exceptional nature.
• The Snow Demon Sky Ape becomes Xiao Yan’s loyal servant and is eager to gather ingredients in exchange for further rewards.
• Lin Xiuyan and the others show gratitude and recognize Zi Yan’s extraordinary strength.

Significant themes

• Cooperation and alliance-building: Xiao Yan uses generosity and mutual benefit to gather allies.
• Cultivation through hardship: The medicinal bath’s extreme pain reflects the cost of strengthening one’s body and power.
• The value of knowledge and resources: The group’s discoveries, ingredients, and unusual materials offer opportunities well beyond immediate combat.

Key plot points and events

• Using Earth Core Tempering Milk and his Earth Tier cultivation method, Xiao Yan absorbs a huge amount of energy, strengthens his body, and breaks through from Nine-Star Great Dou Master to One-Star Dou Ling.
• He believes his superior cultivation method and newly strengthened physique make him unusually powerful for his rank—possibly able to defeat a Six-Star Dou Ling.
• Xiao Yan asks Hao Elder to introduce him to Liu Elder, who possesses a Sixth-tier Magic Core and a Beast Flame that Xiao Yan wants for his Twin Suns Burning Wind technique.
• At Liu Elder’s residence, Xiao Yan finds Old Man Huo already negotiating for the same items, offering to refine a sixth-grade Battle Spirit Pill.
• Hao Elder recommends Xiao Yan instead. Old Man Huo explains that Xiao Yan belongs to the Alchemy Department and needs a second flame to use Twin Suns Burning Wind, an Earth Tier technique he has mastered.

Character developments

• Xiao Yan makes a major leap in strength and gains greater confidence. His breakthrough also confirms the benefits of his high-level cultivation method and the body-tempering medicine.
• Hao Elder acts as Xiao Yan’s guide and advocate, helping him approach Liu Elder and arguing that Xiao Yan is the better choice for the Beast Flame and Magic Core.
• Old Man Huo reveals his interest in the same materials and recognizes Xiao Yan’s talent and practical need for them.
• Liu Elder learns that Xiao Yan has reached Dou Ling and understands why he seeks the Beast Flame.

Significant themes

• Hard work and rare opportunities: A normally lengthy breakthrough becomes possible through Xiao Yan’s preparation, powerful cultivation method, and rare medicinal resource.
• Talent and ambition: Xiao Yan’s rapid progress sets him apart, while mastering Twin Suns Burning Wind gives him a specific reason to seek greater power.
• Competition and bargaining: Valuable resources attract multiple claimants, and obtaining them depends on negotiation as well as strength.
• Reputation and connections: Xiao Yan’s association with Hao Elder and the Alchemy Department shapes how others view his claim.

Character interactions

• Hao Elder reacts with surprise to Xiao Yan’s breakthrough, then cautions him that Liu Elder will demand a high price.
• On their way to Liu Elder, other students notice Hao Elder’s friendly manner toward Xiao Yan and infer that the newcomer has powerful connections.
• At Liu Elder’s home, Old Man Huo and Liu Elder debate the value of the items; Hao Elder interrupts to support Xiao Yan.
• Old Man Huo explains Xiao Yan’s mastery of Twin Suns Burning Wind, while Hao Elder briefly mistakes his goal for pursuing the secret technique Three Mysteries of Heavenly Flame.

Key plot points and events

• Xiao Yan offers Liu Elder a bottle of Earth Core Tempering Milk in exchange for the Azure Tide Ember Flame, a Beast Flame from a Sixth-Tier Azure Flame Demon Flood Dragon.
• Liu Elder initially demands a Battle Spirit Pill and then tries to negotiate for two bottles. Xiao Yan’s reluctance to add more, together with the elders’ praise of the milk and the prospect of involving the First Elder, persuades Liu to accept a one-bottle trade.
• Xiao Yan sees the Azure Tide Ember Flame as a way to strengthen his Twin Suns Burning Wind technique, which becomes more powerful when used with two Beast Flames. He also considers using the Earth Core Tempering Milk to help him house multiple flames safely.
• Liu mentions that he also owns the flood dragon’s Magic Core. Xiao Yan is interested in it as a possible ingredient for something beneficial to the Snow Demon Sky Ape, but says he has no more Earth Core Tempering Milk.
• Instead, Xiao Yan presents a century-old Blood Python Branch, a rare ingredient in the Battle Spirit Pill, prompting astonishment from all three elders.

Character developments and interactions

• Xiao Yan demonstrates confidence and skill as a negotiator, using the value of his treasures—and the elders’ reactions—to secure the flame. He conceals that his Earth Core Tempering Milk is counterfeit, though it still contains substantial energy.
• Liu Elder is possessive of his hard-won treasure and tries to maximize the trade, but ultimately gives in when he recognizes the spiritual milk’s value and fears losing the opportunity.
• Old Man Huo argues forcefully on Xiao Yan’s behalf, criticizing Liu’s bargaining and emphasizing the milk’s rarity and alchemical uses.
• Hao Elder supports the case for the milk’s value and points out that the First Elder could help obtain a Beast Flame, increasing the pressure on Liu.

Significant themes

• Bargaining and perceived value: Each elder weighs a treasure’s worth against its rarity, usefulness, and potential to improve cultivation.
• Scarcity and ambition: Rare materials promise breakthroughs, stronger techniques, and advantages for allies, making them objects of intense interest.
• Strategic concealment: Xiao Yan’s claim that the milk is genuine—and his denial of having more—shows how he manages information to protect his resources and control the negotiation.

Key plot points and events

• Xiao Yan trades a Century-Old Blood Python Branch to Elder Liu for a Sixth-tier Magic Core. Though the exchange favors Xiao Yan, he accepts because he cannot yet hunt a Sixth-tier Magical Beast himself.
• Elder Huo visits to check on Xiao Yan and gives him a Storage Ring containing alchemy formulas, notes, and other materials. Xiao Yan thanks both elders with bottles of Earth Core Tempering Milk: one for Elder Huo and one for Elder Hao, who helped arrange the earlier trade.
• The elders tell Xiao Yan about Medicine Emperor Han Yun: a twenty-two-year-old Peak Dou Emperor and Sixth-Rank Alchemist, trained by Han Feng, now known as Venerable Yao.
• Back at the Snow Demon Sky Ape’s cave, Xiao Yan burns stalactites into mineral-rich powder to prepare soil for medicinal plants. He studies an alchemist’s notes on combining multiple Beast Flames and considers making a separate space in his Dou Crystal to hold them safely.

Character developments

• Xiao Yan shows growing confidence as a negotiator and cultivator, while remaining practical about the limits of his strength. He is now a Dou Ling and Fourth-Rank Alchemist, but recognizes that some goals—such as killing a Sixth-tier beast—are still beyond him.
• His exchanges with the elders reveal gratitude and generosity: he shares a valuable restorative substance with those who have helped him.
• News of Han Yun’s achievements briefly unsettles Xiao Yan, but he returns to his own plans rather than dwelling on the comparison.

Significant themes

• There is always someone stronger: Han Yun’s extraordinary accomplishments remind Xiao Yan that talent and power exist on a wider scale than he has encountered.
• Mentorship and mutual support: The elders provide Xiao Yan with resources and advice, while he repays their kindness.
• Preparation and ambition: Xiao Yan steadily gathers materials, studies alchemy, and develops new ideas to advance his cultivation.
• Hidden motives and uncertainty: Han Feng’s presence in the Black-Corner Region raises questions about his plans and possible interest in Jia Nan Academy’s Fallen Heart Flame.

Character interactions

• Elder Liu reluctantly completes a valuable trade with Xiao Yan, who leaves promptly to let him pursue his own breakthrough.
• Elder Huo praises Xiao Yan, gives him alchemical materials, and offers encouragement; Xiao Yan responds with a gift of Earth Core Tempering Milk.
• Elder Hao accepts Xiao Yan’s thanks and offers future assistance.
• The elders’ discussion of Han Yun and Han Feng prompts Xiao Yan to reassess the wider world and the potential threat surrounding the Fallen Heart Flame.