Chapter Summaries

Xiao Yan trained with the green flames to strengthen his body and refine his Dou Qi, then broke through to become a One-Star Great Dou Master. After testing his new strength, he prepared to return to Wutan City with Hai Bodong.

• Hai Bodong found a sheltered cave, and Bodhi began guiding Xiao Yan as he tempered his body with the green flames.
• Over the following days, Xiao Yan adapted to the fiery energy, grew physically stronger, and advanced to Seven-Star Dou Shi while practicing swordplay and alchemy.
• Xiao Yan refined an Earth Fire Lotus Seed and filled his Qi vortex with Dou Qi as he prepared to break through.
• Xiao Yan condensed a Dou Crystal and became a One-Star Great Dou Master, drawing Hai Bodong's attention.
• Xiao Yan tested his Origin-Returning Sword on a rock wall, then packed his belongings and told Hai Bodong they were going home to Wutan City.

Xiao Ding and Xiao Li returned to the Xiao Clan with Xiao Yi Xian, and Xiao Zhan welcomed them after advancing to One-Star Dou Ling with a pill Xiao Yan had given him. The family settled into new roles and shared stories from the journey, while Xiao Zhan waited for Xiao Yan to return.

• Xiao Ding and Xiao Li arrived in Wutan City with Xiao Yi Xian and their mercenaries, and they reunited with Xiao Zhan at the clan gates.
• Xiao Zhan revealed that he had advanced to One-Star Dou Ling after taking a pill from Xiao Yan, then welcomed Xiao Yi Xian into the clan.
• Xiao Ding and Xiao Li told Xiao Zhan about Xiao Yan's strength and the Heaven-rank techniques the Grandmaster had given them, and Xiao Zhan urged them to keep the techniques secret.
• Xun'er showed Xiao Yi Xian around the guest courtyard, and Xiao Ding delivered Xiao Yan's Sand Crystal Lamp gift to Xun'er.
• At the family banquet, Xiao Ding and Xiao Li discussed taking charge of the clan's businesses and guards, while Xiao Zhan reflected on his sons' return and hoped Xiao Yan would come home.

Xiao Yan returned to Wutan City with Hai Bodong, a Two-Star Dou Emperor, and reunited with his family and friends. He left the chapter arranging medicinal supplies with Ya Fei while Hai Bodong announced his return to the Mittel clan.

• Xiao Yan returned to the Xiao Clan with Hai Bodong, and Xiao Zhan learned that Hai Bodong was a Two-Star Dou Emperor.
• Xiao Yan reunited with Xun'er and Xiao Yi Xian, while Ling Ying recognized Hai Bodong as the Ice Emperor and grew wary of Xiao Yan's mysterious teacher.
• Xiao Yan shared a meal with his family and Hai Bodong, feeling that his arrangements had finally fallen into place.
• Xiao Yan and Hai Bodong visited Ya Fei at the Mittel Auction House to review medicinal supplies and discuss obtaining rare ingredients.
• Hai Bodong gave Ya Fei his jade token and asked her to inform Teng Shan that he had returned; Xiao Yan also requested ingredients that might help Hai Bodong recover.

Xiao Yi Xian discovered that her Woeful Poison Body was awakening and feared its poison power might harm others. Bodhi taught her the Myriad Poisons Return to the Source Art, giving her control over the poison, and she decided to stay at the Xiao Clan to help in the apothecary.

• Xiao Yi Xian showed Xiao Yan the Seven-Colored Poison Scripture and revealed that poison Qi had begun appearing in her body.
• Xiao Yan summoned Bodhi, who examined Xiao Yi Xian and said her Woeful Poison Body could be controlled rather than cured in the usual sense.
• Bodhi taught Xiao Yi Xian the Myriad Poisons Return to the Source Art, and she learned to draw in and retract her poison Qi.
• Xiao Yi Xian tested her control by poisoning a withered leaf and then reabsorbing the poison without difficulty.
• Xiao Yi Xian asked to stay at the Xiao Clan and help organize medicinal herbs and formulas in the apothecary.

Yao Chen awakened in the Soul-Nurturing Lamp and gave Xiao Yan the formula for a pill that could repair Hai Bodong’s seal. After Bodhi refined it and Hai Bodong regained his strength as a Five-Star Dou Huang, Hai Bodong showed renewed commitment to helping Xiao Yan.

• Yao Chen awakened in the Soul-Nurturing Lamp, thanked Bodhi for protecting him, and gave Xiao Yan the formula for a Tier Five Purple Spirit Recovery Pill.
• Xiao Yan and Hai Bodong gathered the required herbs with Ya Fei’s help, while the Mittel Family sent supplies and a letter acknowledging Hai Bodong’s status.
• Bodhi guided Xiao Yan through refining some ingredients, then demonstrated how he prepared the pill and handed it to Xiao Yan.
• Hai Bodong took the pill and recovered his former strength as a Five-Star Dou Huang by daybreak.
• Hai Bodong thanked Xiao Yan and said he would help with Xiao Yan’s family matters and remain available beyond their original one-year agreement.

Xiao Yan met Qing Lin in the medicine room, where she was learning to sort herbs and helping Xiao Yi Xian. After Qing Lin’s green scales were exposed, Xiao Yan and Xun'er reassured her and welcomed her to breakfast; the chapter ended when a restless snake calmed at Qing Lin’s quiet command and tiny lights flashed in her eyes.

• Xiao Yan entered the medicine room, met Qing Lin, and learned she had come back with Xiao Ding’s caravan and was helping Xiao Yi Xian sort herbs.
• Xiao Yan praised Qing Lin’s herb drawings and learned how she distinguished similar plants.
• When Qing Lin’s sleeve caught on a splinter and revealed her green scales, Xiao Yan removed the splinter and told her he thought the scales looked nice.
• Xun'er and Xiao Yi Xian invited Qing Lin to eat breakfast, and Xiao Yan shared the osmanthus cake with her.
• A restless snake in a bamboo cage calmed when Qing Lin spoke to it, and tiny points of light flashed in her emerald eyes.

Yun Shan learned that the Xiao Clan had gained strength and might be protected by a Dou Huang, then accepted Protector Wu’s help in pursuing a breakthrough to Dou Zong. He planned to use Nalan Yanran’s Three-Year Agreement to bring the Xiao family together in Wutan City, while Yun Yun helped Nalan Yanran focus on learning rather than simply winning.

• Yun Leng reported to Yun Shan that Xiao Zhan had advanced to Dou Ling, the Xiao Clan was selling well-refined medicinal pills, and an Elder Hai at the Mittel Auction House might be a Dou Huang.
• Yun Shan decided not to confront the Xiao Clan immediately and agreed to cooperate with Protector Wu, who supplied a cultivation method and medicinal liquid in exchange for help with his investigations and soul collection.
• Yun Shan planned to use Nalan Yanran’s Three-Year Agreement as a reason to gather the Xiao family in Wutan City, while keeping his intentions from Yun Yun.
• Yun Yun trained Nalan Yanran to avoid rushing into attacks and reminded her that the agreement’s outcome did not determine the Misty Cloud Sect’s future; Nalan Yanran resolved to handle the challenge herself.
• Yun Shan ordered Yun Leng to send people to Wutan City to discreetly observe the Xiao Clan, its medicinal supplies, and Elder Hai without trespassing or provoking anyone.
• Yun Shan began using Protector Wu’s medicinal liquid, with the paper recording the Three-Year Agreement held beneath the jade bottle.

Xiao Yan confronted the Xiao Clan’s medicine shortages and helped Xiao Zhan and his brothers establish clearer rules for supplies, trade, and training. After Bodhi improved the clan’s cultivation manuals, Xiao Yan arranged for Teacher to examine Qing Lin’s sore eyes the next morning.

• Xiao Yan discovered that the pharmacy’s medicine had been promised to several parties and taken by a clan elder, while medicinal ingredients and outstanding orders strained the supply.
• Xiao Zhan reprimanded the elder and the pharmacy steward, enforced rules for medicine distribution and pricing, and assigned Xiao Ding to manage medicinal-material procurement and Xiao Li to train the guards.
• Xiao Yan watched Xiao Li train the guards and encouraged three disciples who were learning to refine medicine to prioritize careful work over speed.
• Bodhi revised two of the clan’s cultivation manuals with additional guidance, and Xiao Yan gathered old reference books with Xun’er, Xiao Yi Xian, and Qing Lin to help organize herb knowledge.
• After noticing Qing Lin’s eyes were sore, Xiao Yan stopped her copying and said he would take her to Teacher the next morning for an examination.

Bodhi identified Qing Lin’s eyes as the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils and began teaching her to use them through the Azure Spirit Soul-Nourishing Manual. After an anxious first attempt, Qing Lin learned to sense and guide a small snake, briefly created an illusion for Xiao Yan, and left carrying both the snake and her new booklet.

• Yao Chen recognized the emerald lights in Qing Lin’s eyes as the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils and explained their abilities and risks.
• Bodhi gave Qing Lin the Azure Spirit Soul-Nourishing Manual and taught her to calm and strengthen her mind before using her eyes.
• Qing Lin’s first attempt to command the gray-backed snake caused it to recoil and left her with pain, so Bodhi stopped her and helped her regain her composure.
• Qing Lin listened for the snake’s wariness, guided it into shade, and successfully told it to stop and return to its cage.
• Qing Lin briefly made a phantom outline appear around a pebble in Xiao Yan’s vision, then received a booklet and carried the snake back with Xiao Yi Xian and Xun'er.

Xiao Yan guided Xiao Mao, Xiao Qin, and Xiao Heng through their first independent attempts at refining Qi-Replenishing Pills, adjusting his teaching after realizing that his vague instructions had confused them. With the Medicine Hall operating steadily and its medicines in demand, the chapter ended with several ingredients running short, prompting Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian to consider searching the mountains for more.

• Xiao Yan taught the three apprentices to refine Qi-Replenishing Pills, but their first attempts faltered when Xiao Mao overheated his cauldron, Xiao Qin added an herb too soon, and Xiao Heng used too little heat.
• Xiao Yan recognized that his instructions were vague and showed the apprentices how to judge the medicinal liquid by its color, scent, and changes rather than relying on memorized timings.
• Xiao Mao, Xiao Qin, and Xiao Heng successfully refined Grade 1 Qi-Replenishing Pills, and Xiao Zhan unveiled the plaque naming the Xiao Clan's new Medicine Hall.
• Over the following days, the three apprentices helped produce pills and other medicines for the Guard Team and Marketplace, gradually taking over the Medicine Hall's routine work.
• Xiao Yan learned that several ingredients were nearly depleted, and Xiao Yi Xian suggested finding them in the mountains while Xiao Ding reported that replenishment would not arrive in time.

Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian led a group into the mountains to find medicinal herbs, where Qing Lin used her snake-sensing ability to help them avoid danger and they fought an Iron-Armed Demon Ape. They returned with herbs and living plants to start a Herb Garden at home, while Xiao Yan considered combining a future trip to Stone Desert City with another visit to the desert.

• Xiao Yan chose a mountain herb-gathering trip while Xiao Ding pursued distant shipments, and Qing Lin joined after Xiao Yi Xian agreed to keep her close.
• The group found accessible herb patches stripped bare, then Qing Lin sensed Green-Spotted Snakes and helped them avoid disturbing the nest.
• At a rocky gully, Xiao Yan used his Purple Cloud Wings and Origin-Returning Sword to defeat a third-tier Iron-Armed Demon Ape without damaging the herbs.
• Xiao Yi Xian taught Qing Lin to identify herbs and proposed bringing back living plants and seeds to establish a Herb Garden, while the group left many seedlings and mother plants behind.
• The group returned to the Xiao Clan, where Xiao Ding prepared garden beds and adjusted medicine production as Xiao Yi Xian and Qing Lin planted and recorded the herbs.
• Xiao Ding told Xiao Yan that a shipment would arrive from the old trade route and that he might send someone to Stone Desert City, prompting Xiao Yan to consider going to the desert himself.

Xiao Yan took Qing Lin to the magma cavern, where she used her emerald Pupillary Art to place a seal on the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake and bring it under her command. After they housed the snake in a spirit-beast ring and returned to Wutan City with medicinal herbs, Xiao Yan spotted a large Mittel caravan outside the gates.

• Xiao Yan and Qing Lin left Wutan City with a caravan bound for Stone Desert City, where Xiao Yan inspected herb shops and bought medicinal plants.
• Xiao Yan led Qing Lin into the magma cavern, where the Two-Headed Fire Spirit Snake attacked them and Bodhi stopped it from advancing.
• With Bodhi protecting her mind, Qing Lin found the connection between the snake's two heads and placed an emerald seal in its soul, gaining its obedience.
• Bodhi gave Qing Lin a spirit-beast ring, and Xiao Yan gathered fire-attribute herbs while Qing Lin learned to care for the snake.
• Xiao Yan, Qing Lin, and the caravan returned to Wutan City after nearly a month, where Xiao Yan noticed a large caravan bearing the Mittel emblem.