Recaps

Jiang Lu and Shen Meier discovered that the elves' Sacred Tree had stopped circulating spiritual power, just like the Tree of Life. As the Elf Queen feared the Sacred Tree would soon wither, it suddenly pulled Jiang Lu inside, leaving everyone uncertain but hopeful that she could help it.

• Jiang Lu and Shen Meier entered the elves' Ancestral Lands, where they met Lüwu.
• Lüwu told Shen Meier that the spiritual power around the elves' Sacred Tree had stopped flowing.
• Shen Meier and Lüwu brought Jiang Lu to the Sacred Tree, where Jiang Lu heard its plea for help.
• The Elf Queen warned that the Sacred Tree's decline could bring disaster to the elves and the Hundred Blossoms Sacred Ground.
• The Sacred Tree sucked Jiang Lu inside, and the Elf Queen assured Shen Meier that it would not harm her.

Jiang Lu entered the Sacred Tree’s realm and learned that the Tree of Life’s disappearance had weakened it. The Sacred Tree promised her one tenth of its Wood Heart in exchange for investigating the Tree of Life, and Jiang Lu secured the payment before agreeing to help.

• Jiang Lu arrived in the Sacred Tree’s silent space and found that the white fruits dissolved when she touched them.
• Jiang Lu questioned the Sacred Tree, which said it had sensed the Tree of Life’s essence being plundered before its aura vanished.
• The Sacred Tree asked Jiang Lu to investigate the Tree of Life’s condition and offered one tenth of its Wood Heart.
• Jiang Lu bargained for the Wood Heart in advance, arguing that investigating the Tree of Life would be dangerous and uncertain.
• The Sacred Tree agreed and gave Jiang Lu a green Wood Heart bead, which she placed in her Sea of Consciousness.

Jiang Lu followed the Tree of Life’s beckoning voice into a realm of darkness and loneliness, where she discovered the voice belonged to the true Tree of Life. It blamed her for destroying its roots and asked how she felt in its isolated domain.

• The Sacred Tree sent Jiang Lu to the place where she had found the Dry Leaf Dew Grass, and she hid from two cultivators searching for a surge of spiritual energy.
• Jiang Lu approached the Tree of Life but heard a voice calling her from a dark place and learned it could hear her replies.
• The voice claimed to be the Tree of Life and offered to bring Jiang Lu past the cultivators; after divining an auspicious lot, she agreed.
• The voice carried Jiang Lu unnoticed into a cave, where she crossed a vast darkness and saw the glowing true Tree of Life.
• The Tree of Life blamed Jiang Lu for destroying its roots and asked how she felt standing in the darkness.

Jiang Lu discovered that the entity trapping her in the void was not the tree of life but a darkness-born thief stealing its energy. She confronted it and began uncovering how it had tried to reach the world of the Hundred Blossoms Sacred Ground.

• Jiang Lu heard the entity explain that it had remained in the void for over ten thousand years after the Hundred Blossoms Sacred Ground trapped the tree of life and drained the space of vitality.
• The entity enclosed Jiang Lu in a cage of branches and declared that it wanted to absorb the life essence within her.
• Jiang Lu noticed that the branches were brittle and that the entity appeared unable to leave the void, then shattered one branch to test her suspicion.
• Jiang Lu broke free, accused the entity of being a ghost born from darkness that stole the tree of life’s energy, and said it had failed to replace the real tree.
• Jiang Lu suggested that the entity had found the tree of life and tried to enter its world, but had been unable to do so.

Jiang Lu learned that the spirit haunting the secret realm had tried to possess her so it could escape the ruined Endless Domain, then captured it with the Myriad Souls Banner. The secret realm began collapsing, and Jiang Lu was swept into the chaotic void as she tried to flee.

• Jiang Lu deduced that the spirit had tried to possess her, and it revealed itself as the last surviving being of the destroyed Endless Domain.
• The spirit explained that the Five Great Domains had consumed the Endless Domain’s source energy and that it wanted to escape by taking over the Tree of Life.
• Jiang Lu realized the spirit’s escape could devastate the Tree of Life and the spiritual ecology of the Azure Tide Domain and the wider Immortal Cultivation Realm.
• Linglong advised Jiang Lu to use the Myriad Souls Banner, and Jiang Lu captured the spirit inside it.
• The secret realm began collapsing after the spirit was absorbed, and Jiang Lu flew toward the void passage before being swept into chaotic void power.

Jiang Lu arrived in the Ling Shuo Domain after the Endless Domain collapsed, then traveled to the Illusory Forest to cultivate. She refined the Wood Heart to Great Perfection of the Golden Core and prepared to break through to the Nascent Soul stage.

• Linglong explained that the Divine Soul Banner had absorbed the Endless Domain's final living presence, causing the domain to collapse.
• The Hundred Blossoms Sacred Master found the passage severed and learned from Shen Meier that the elves' Sacred Tree had recovered its vitality.
• The consciousness within the Tree of Life recognized that Jiang Lu had severed the draining connection, while the elves' Sacred Tree sensed her success.
• Shen Meier told Le Ziyan that Jiang Lu had disappeared after accompanying her to the elves' territory, while Jiang Lu sent her own master an update on her travels.
• Jiang Lu identified her arrival point as the Reclusive Lü Clan's territory, avoided visiting them, and flew toward the approaching secret realm trial.
• Jiang Lu refined the Wood Heart in the Illusory Forest until she reached Great Perfection of the Golden Core, then had Chi Li and the other spirit beasts guard her as she prepared for her breakthrough.

Jiang Lu underwent a perilous breakthrough from the fifth layer of the Golden Core to Nascent Soul, enduring the Fifty-Four Heavenly Tribulation as her Nascent Soul of the Way of All Beings took shape. With the fifty-third bolt descending to strike her Nascent Soul, she still faced the final test.

• Jiang Lu began her breakthrough in the Illusory Forest, while Chi Li, Mingyue, Cangchen, and Qiming guarded the formation in four directions.
• Black clouds gathered over the forest, and the Fifty-Four Heavenly Tribulation began as Qianming shielded Jiang Lu from the early lightning bolts.
• Jiang Lu's Nascent Soul formed with visions of beings suffering throughout the world, embodying the Way of All Beings.
• Jiang Lu manifested a towering compassionate figure, causing cultivators gathered nearby to fear her and stay back.
• Qianming withdrew so Jiang Lu could face the final two bolts herself, and the fifty-third bolt descended toward her Nascent Soul.

Jiang Lu survived the Fifty-Four Heavenly Tribulation, formed her Nascent Soul, and received a heavenly Dao blessing. After celebrating with her spirit beasts, she left the Illusory Forest and avoided Cen Aotian, a Foundation Establishment cultivator who wanted her help and company.

• Jiang Lu endured the final golden lightning bolt as her Nascent Soul and Dharma Form drew its power into her dantian, completing her tribulation.
• Golden clouds bestowed a heavenly Dao blessing on Jiang Lu, restoring her spiritual power and establishing her Dao foundation.
• The watching cultivators feared Jiang Lu after witnessing her survive the tribulation and receive the blessing, while her spirit beasts congratulated her on forming her Nascent Soul.
• Jiang Lu prepared to leave with her spirit beasts, and You Meng tested a new ability while sensing someone nearby.
• Cen Aotian introduced himself and offered to protect Jiang Lu, but she recognized him as the male lead of a Long Aotian storyline and refused to travel with him.
• Jiang Lu flew away on her Spirit Boat, leaving Cen Aotian behind.

Jiang Lu traveled toward Sun-Chasing City, where a secret realm trial was due to open, while You Meng revealed that it had planted a nonfatal gu on Cen Aotian. After cultivating near the city, Jiang Lu arrived and learned that Cen Aotian and cultivators from several major clans would enter the secret realm.

• Cen Aotian grew angry after Jiang Lu ignored him, while the old man in his spatial ring urged him to wait for another chance at the secret realm trial.
• You Meng revealed that it had planted a nonfatal gu on Cen Aotian, and Jiang Lu praised it.
• Jiang Lu traveled toward Sun-Chasing City and narrowly avoided a damaged Spirit Boat; the red figure aboard pursued her original route after she detoured.
• Jiang Lu meditated in a mountain hollow near Sun-Chasing City to refine the Wood Heart's energy before continuing toward spirit transformation.
• Jiang Lu took a Breath-Concealing Pill and overheard cultivators discussing the secret realm, the major clans, and Cen Aotian's possible status as a child of fortune.
• Jiang Lu reached the outskirts of Sun-Chasing City, where markets and villages surrounded the city walls.

Jiang Lu prepared for the secret realm, entered it, and tracked Cen Aotian through a snowy stone forest. As Cen Aotian reached a valley, a fourth-tier Flame-Armored Beast appeared, and he launched an attack.

• Jiang Lu bought talismans, magical artifacts, and supplies in Sun-Chasing City, then refined pills while Cen Aotian searched for her and consulted Mo Lao.
• The great clans opened the secret realm, and Jiang Lu entered with the rogue cultivators.
• Jiang Lu used You Meng to locate Cen Aotian and followed him through the snowy stone forest.
• Jiang Lu and her spirit beasts watched from a tree as a fourth-tier Flame-Armored Beast charged out of a pile of rocks.
• Cen Aotian drew his sword and attacked the Flame-Armored Beast.

Jiang Lu watched Cen Aotian turn an ambush into an opportunity to claim the Scarlet Flame Fruits, then escape with Mu Ling'er’s help. After they continued deeper into the secret realm together, Jiang Lu left her hiding place.

• Three cultivators ambushed Cen Aotian while he fought the Flame-Armored Beast, and the beast wounded him.
• Cen Aotian lured the Flame-Armored Beast toward the three cultivators, then slipped away and collected the Scarlet Flame Fruits.
• The three cultivators trapped Cen Aotian as he tried to escape, but Mu Ling'er arrived and fought beside him.
• Cen Aotian and Mu Ling'er drove off the cultivators and killed the Flame-Armored Beast.
• Cen Aotian shared a Scarlet Flame Fruit with Mu Ling'er, and they headed deeper into the secret realm together.
• Jiang Lu climbed down from the tree after Cen Aotian and Mu Ling'er had departed.

Jiang Lu found a hidden Moonlight Lingzhi and learned that rumors pointed to a Divine Flame in the Secret Realm’s central region, supposedly emerging in three months. She left Cen Aotian’s trail behind and joined a group of cultivators who mistook her for an easy target, while she considered how to deal with them.

• Jiang Lu discovered and collected a hidden Moonlight Lingzhi and several Scarlet Flame Fruit seedlings.
• Jiang Lu overheard cultivators say the Secret Realm would remain open for half a year and speculate that the central region held a major opportunity.
• Jiang Lu decided to stop following Cen Aotian and head toward the central region on her own.
• A group of cultivators invited Jiang Lu to travel with them, assuming she was wealthy and easy to fool.
• One cultivator told Jiang Lu that rumors said a Divine Flame would emerge in the central region in three months, and Jiang Lu resolved to hurry there.

Jiang Lu turned the would-be robbers’ ambush against them, then discovered that a cave in the middle region held a Divine Flame and entered it ahead of the other cultivators. She reached a chamber swarming with Winged Insects, which left her unharmed because she had You Meng.

• Jiang Lu trapped the cultivators who tried to rob her, took their Storage Bags, and left them unconscious after giving them pills.
• Jiang Lu followed Cutie’s directions to a cave and hid as wounded disciples emerged from it.
• Jiang Lu overheard the disciples reveal that the cave contained a Divine Flame and that their master was spreading its location to other cultivators.
• Jiang Lu entered the cave to reach the Divine Flame before the competition grew, enduring its freezing air and oppressive atmosphere.
• Jiang Lu spotted Winged Insects in the cave and continued onward when they did not attack her, protected by You Meng’s status as the King of All Gu.

Jiang Lu pushed deeper into the bug-filled cavern, reasoning that the Aristocratic Clans had sent their disciples to probe the Divine Flame rather than claim it. A strange blue-violet light drew her onward, and she approached it after sensing an aura that startled her.

• Jiang Lu avoided hidden crevices filled with bone-piercing cold as she traveled through the cavern.
• Jiang Lu concluded that the Aristocratic Clans were testing the dangers around the Divine Flame before retrieving it themselves.
• Jiang Lu pressed deeper underground with Mingyue and Qiming helping her withstand the oppressive aura.
• Jiang Lu sensed something calling to her and followed a faint blue-violet light at the end of the cavern.
• Jiang Lu asked Mingyue and Qiming if they sensed anything unusual, then continued toward the light while keeping the surrounding aura in place to stay alert.

Jiang Lu was lured through the cave by a divine flame and fell into a pitch-black abyss filled with thorny black-red flowers. When she called out, the flame finally revealed itself as Chaos Fire.

• Chi Li saw the strange light, then fainted and fell from Jiang Lu’s shoulder, so Jiang Lu put her into the space.
• Mingyue and Cangchen stayed close to Jiang Lu as the cave’s aura shifted and laughter echoed around her.
• Jiang Lu sealed her senses against the divine flame’s laughter and hurried toward its aura.
• Mingyue warned Jiang Lu, but Jiang Lu fell into an abyss after the flame deliberately altered the surroundings to distract her.
• Jiang Lu landed near where she had fallen and called out to the divine flame, asking whether it was Chaos Fire and why it had lured her there.
• Chaos Fire finally appeared as a faint light and confirmed its identity to Jiang Lu.

Jiang Lu encountered the Chaos Fire in its cave and persuaded it to leave with her by describing the outside world. Linglong told her that her Chaos Body could form a soul contract with the flame, and the Chaos Fire agreed before Jiang Lu could suggest another option.

• Jiang Lu guessed that the flame was the Chaos Fire, and it excitedly asked her to stay and keep it company.
• Jiang Lu calmed the Chaos Fire after it reacted coldly to her hesitation, then persuaded it to go outside with her.
• Jiang Lu realized she did not know how to get the Chaos Fire out and asked Linglong for advice.
• Linglong told Jiang Lu that her Chaos Body could form an undying soul contract with the Chaos Fire.
• Jiang Lu offered a contract, and the Chaos Fire immediately agreed, leaving her stunned.

Jiang Lu formed a soul contract with the Chaos Fire, which named itself Yuanjin and entered her sea of consciousness. She escaped the cave through a hidden passage while cultivators gathered at the main entrance, where the Wen Family’s group began entering.

• The Chaos Fire persuaded Jiang Lu to form a soul contract, confident that their shared source and her Chaos Body made them a perfect match.
• Jiang Lu and the Chaos Fire completed the contract, and the flame introduced itself as Yuanjin while calling her Lulu.
• Jiang Lu drew Yuanjin into her sea of consciousness and followed its directions toward a hidden side passage to avoid cultivators waiting at the cave entrance.
• Cultivators gathered outside the cave after rumors of a divine flame spread, though a badly injured survivor’s account of deadly danger made them hesitate.
• The Wen Family’s leader brought his group and allied clan disciples into the dark cave after receiving orders from their lineage.

Senior Brother Gong and the other cultivators found the cavern empty of the Divine Flame and reported its disappearance, prompting widespread searches and suspicion. Jiang Lu had already escaped through a hidden passage, which Yuanjin concealed beneath a shifting pile of bones, while a frustrated cultivator prepared to burn another bone pile.

• Senior Brother Gong led the Wen Family disciples through a cavern where the venomous insects and freezing chill had vanished, then found only bones and no trace of the Divine Flame.
• Senior Brother Gong reported the empty cavern to the waiting cultivators and elders, who suspected someone had taken the Divine Flame as groups rushed inside to search for themselves.
• The searching cultivators found no hidden exit or Divine Flame and gradually gave up, while Jiang Lu had already left with Yuanjin through a concealed branch passage.
• Yuanjin used the remnants of chaos power to pile bones over the hidden opening, disguising it as part of the cavern floor.
• After another half day of fruitless searching, an irritated cultivator cast a flame spell at a pile of bones.