Recaps

Zhang Yuan arrived in the Crimson Firmament Roselight Realm, where Chi Guanguan explained that the Nether Bureau’s North Gate should lie in the realm’s far north. He decided to travel there to recover his Dao Domain while gathering treasures and cultivating additional paths to strengthen himself.

• Zhang Yuan questioned how Chi Guanguan had appeared after her Divine Sense dispersed, and she explained that her Great Luo ability let her reach places she had marked.
• Chi Guanguan deduced that the Nether Bureau’s North Gate had shifted to the far north of the Crimson Firmament Roselight Realm after the Five Realms merged.
• Zhang Yuan considered avoiding a deal with [True Lord Ceased Light Punishes Thoughts] and concluded that recovering [Great Grotto Yin-Scenery Immortal Domain] himself was safer.
• Zhang Yuan planned to gather materials to restore his spirit root while cultivating the qi refining to immortality path and qi sea uniting spirit dao.
• Zhang Yuan resolved to head for the North Gate and wondered where in the realm he had arrived so he could ask someone for directions.

As a storm drove Zhang Yuan and Wei Jianxing’s group into a ruined temple, a Mountain Patrol Envoy appeared and attacked them. The Fish-Head General entered the temple and overwhelmed Pan Zhong, while Wei Jianxing and Wu Qing tried to hold it off as Wei Liu and Wei Huai prepared their killing moves.

• Zhang Yuan examined the cold wind and sensed mysterious yin death qi before noticing a towering figure outside the temple.
• Wei Jianxing and his companions recognized the figure as a Mountain Patrol Envoy, put out their fire, and prepared to fight.
• The Mountain Patrol Envoy hurled his harpoon at Wei Jianxing, but Pan Zhong deflected it before the general smashed through the doorway and entered.
• Pan Zhong attacked the Fish-Head General's neck, broke one scale, and was knocked into the temple wall by a punch.
• Wei Jianxing learned that Wei Liu needed one incense stick and Wei Huai needed two to prepare their killing moves, then joined Wu Qing in holding off the general.
• The Fish-Head General noticed Wei Liu and Wei Huai at the back and reached to recall his harpoon.

Zhang Yuan stole the Fish-Head General’s spear and tried to stop him with an improvised flame spell, but it had no effect. As the monster attacked, Wei Liu completed her killing move and transformed her arm and knife into a demonic weapon.

• Zhang Yuan picked up the Fish-Head General’s spear and kept it when it failed to return to its owner.
• The Fish-Head General charged Zhang Yuan, whose flame spell was extinguished by the monster’s yin qi.
• Zhang Yuan dodged the Fish-Head General’s hand chop and retreated beside Wei Liu and Wei Huai.
• Zhang Yuan asked Chi Guanguan for an outer dao spell, but she could not find one suitable for his cultivation.
• Wei Liu told Zhang Yuan he was noisy, then raised a knife as killing intent, yin qi, and ghostly energy gathered around her.
• Wei Liu’s arm transformed into a muscular Evil Ghost Arm, and her knife became a Giant Blade wreathed in demon flames.

Wei Liu killed the Fish-Head General with a blazing Giant Blade, and Zhang Yuan concealed his origins by claiming to be a Wandering Daoist from another realm. Wei Jianxing revealed that his household had received help from an outsider, but Wei Liu stopped him before he disclosed more, leaving Zhang Yuan to question the group's real purpose.

• Wei Liu summoned a purple-black, Giant Blade and killed the Fish-Head General, then refused to explain her technique to Zhang Yuan.
• Wei Jianxing and Wu Qing checked on Wei Liu and Zhang Yuan, and Wei Jianxing asked Zhang Yuan about his flame spell.
• Zhang Yuan claimed he was a Wandering Daoist from Heaven-Reaching City and said his spell was called Demon-Slaying Divine Fire.
• Wei Jianxing told Zhang Yuan that cultivators from other realms had visited the Wei Household and that a Great Cultivator had eased the household's longstanding affliction.
• Wei Liu stopped Wei Jianxing from revealing more, and Zhang Yuan asked whether their claimed shipment escort was real.

Zhang Yuan learned that Wei Jianxing’s party planned to attack Nether Annihilation Heaven Palace, one of the Six Heavens Demon King Palaces, and agreed to join after discovering its treasures could help restore his Spirit Root. He left the conversation with a clearer sense of his location and learned that the palace lay along his route to the Northern Plains.

• Pan Zhong urged Wei Jianxing to tell Zhang Yuan that their party was setting out to vanquish a demon king.
• Wei Jianxing explained that the Six Heavens Demon King Palaces controlled much of the realm, and that his party planned to attack Nether Annihilation Heaven Palace.
• Wei Jianxing invited Zhang Yuan to join, but Zhang Yuan initially declined because he wanted to find treasures and pursue his own goals.
• Wei Jianxing told Zhang Yuan that the demon king palaces held most of the realm’s Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, so Zhang Yuan changed his mind and joined the party.
• Zhang Yuan questioned Wei Jianxing about the realm and learned that he was in the Central Hub and that Nether Annihilation Heaven Palace lay between there and the Northern Plains.

Zhang Yuan decided to cultivate the Great Qian Primordial Soul-Refining Scripture, using the spiritual qi and ghosts in the Crimson Firmament Roselight Realm to advance his outer dao cultivation. His ghost-devouring practice alarmed Wei Jianxing and the others, who began questioning whether he was a proper Daoist.

• Zhang Yuan assessed the Mountain Patrol Envoy's strength and concluded that Wei Jianxing's group was weak but worth traveling with because Wei Liu and Wei Huai had powerful killing methods.
• Zhang Yuan considered his improved earth-tier spiritual root and decided he needed a better outer dao cultivation technique than the Taiyi True Qi Art.
• Zhang Yuan recalled the Great Qian Primordial Soul-Refining Scripture, which he had memorized, and began cultivating it in the ruined temple.
• Zhang Yuan drew in the temple's spiritual qi and crushed nearby lonely ghosts to absorb their soul power.
• Wei Jianxing, Wei Liu, and the others watched Zhang Yuan devour the ghosts and questioned whether he was really a proper Daoist.

After advancing his cultivation overnight, Zhang Yuan left the ruined temple with Wei Jianxing’s group and concealed his celestial person status while traveling through the rain. He then asked Chi Guanguan to teach him a spatial traversal Immortal Art so he could compensate for losing his Dao Domain and its escape method.

• Zhang Yuan advanced from early to middle Foundation Establishment Realm after cultivating through the night, while Wei Jianxing and the others went without sleep.
• Zhang Yuan claimed he had spent the night delivering lonely ghosts, but Wei Liu dismissed his explanation as nonsense.
• Wei Jianxing led the group out of the ruined temple, and Zhang Yuan used a spiritual power barrier to keep the rain away while calling it the Water-Repelling Art.
• Wei Liu told Zhang Yuan not to talk to her unless he needed something, and he fell back to walk with Chi Guanguan.
• Chi Guanguan avoided traveling to the Nether Bureau because she suspected its founding Great Luo might still be hiding there.
• Zhang Yuan asked Chi Guanguan to teach him a spatial traversal Immortal Art because he had lost his Dao Domain and could no longer use Golden Carriage Luan Chariot.

Zhang Yuan received Chi Guanguan’s detailed instruction in “As Though the Emperor Walked in Person” as the group traveled toward White Tree City. Just as they neared safety, the Bone-Listening King and four Mountain Patrol Envoys surrounded them to avenge the ghost deity killed the previous night.

• Chi Guanguan transmitted the cultivation knowledge for “As Though the Emperor Walked in Person” directly into Zhang Yuan’s consciousness.
• Wei Jianxing told Zhang Yuan that White Tree City was protected by a sacred white tree and ruled by a renowned Sword Immortal lineage.
• Zhang Yuan pulled Wei Liu away from a giant axe that struck the path where she had been about to step.
• The Bone-Listening King arrived with four fish-headed Mountain Patrol Envoys and declared that he would kill the group for slaying his envoy.
• Pan Zhong tried to explain that they were from White Tree City, but the Bone-Listening King ignored him and swung his axe at Pan Zhong.

Pan Zhong and Wei Jianxing's group fought the Bone-Listening King and its Mountain Patrol Envoys while Wei Liu and Wei Huai gathered power for their killing moves. Just as the Bone-Listening King attacked Zhang Yuan, a woman arrived and sent it flying.

• The Bone-Listening King wounded Pan Zhong and ordered its Mountain Patrol Envoys to capture the others.
• Pan Zhong fought off three Mountain Patrol Envoys while Wei Jianxing and Wu Qing tried to hold back the Bone-Listening King.
• Zhang Yuan used the Purple-Gold Gourd to knock away a Mountain Patrol Envoy threatening Wei Liu and Wei Huai, then promised to handle the remaining threats.
• The Bone-Listening King knocked Wei Jianxing and Wu Qing aside and charged at Zhang Yuan as Wei Liu and Wei Huai gathered power.
• A woman cried, “Do not harm my lord!”, shattered the Bone-Listening King's axe, cut through its armor, and sent it flying.

Bai Fu appeared in the Central Hub of the Crimson Firmament Roselight Realm and rescued Zhang Yuan and the Wei Household from the Bone-Listening King and its Mountain Patrol Envoys. After driving the ghosts away, she called Zhang Yuan her master, leaving him puzzled by how much she had changed.

• Bai Fu blasted the Bone-Listening King with the One-Breath Light of Reversal and Severance, stopping its attack on the Wei Household.
• Wei Jianxing thanked Bai Fu, but she ignored him and knelt before Zhang Yuan, calling him Master.
• Zhang Yuan recognized Bai Fu as Lu Zhiming, whose soul had been forced into a female body, and told her to rise and stop calling him Master.
• The Bone-Listening King charged Zhang Yuan, but Bai Fu struck it again and forced it to flee with the Mountain Patrol Envoys.
• Bai Fu pursued the fleeing ghosts with her sword qi, then asked Zhang Yuan if he was all right.
• Zhang Yuan wondered whether Old Ghost Jiguang was responsible for Bai Fu's new, deferential behavior.

Zhang Yuan and Bai Fu led Wei Jianxing and the others to safety in White Tree City after driving off the Mountain Patrol Envoys. There, Bai Fu told Zhang Yuan she had abandoned her revenge against the Hengyang Lu Clan after learning that the clan uncle who saved her had acted to spare her life.

• Bai Fu arrived in time to drive back the Bone-Listening King and save Zhang Yuan's group from the Mountain Patrol Envoys.
• Zhang Yuan introduced Bai Fu as his friend, steadied the exhausted Wei Liu, and the group set out for White Tree City.
• Bai Fu led the group through White Tree City's gates, where the guards recognized and respected her.
• Zhang Yuan asked Bai Fu why she had come to the Crimson Firmament Roselight Realm and whether she still sought revenge.
• Bai Fu explained that the Celestial Person who had wanted to refine her into a pill was dead, and that Lu Jianqing had saved her by helping her survive in a female body.
• Bai Fu said she had given up revenge because she did not want to punish the whole Hengyang Lu Clan for one person's actions.

After Bai Fu explained how she had come to protect White Tree City, she offered to follow Zhang Yuan, who agreed to consider it after resting. Zhang Yuan learned that the White Saint Tree’s fruit could improve his spiritual root and that Bai Fu already had one.

• Bai Fu told Zhang Yuan that she had traveled to the Crimson Firmament Roselight Realm to slay evil ghosts and savage gods, and said she would follow him from then on.
• Zhang Yuan considered Bai Fu’s strength useful but said they would discuss her offer after resting in White Tree City.
• The group decided to stay at an inn, with Wei Jianxing covering Zhang Yuan’s lodging expenses.
• Zhang Yuan asked about the White Saint Tree, and Bai Fu explained that it dispelled ghostly energy and produced valuable White Saint Fruits.
• Bai Fu told Zhang Yuan that Bai Chong had given her a White Saint Fruit and offered to fetch it for him.

Zhang Yuan settled into an inn in White Tree City and resumed cultivating while Chi Guanguan offered to teach him formation arts after he reached the outer dao golden core realm. He found the city’s abundant spiritual qi would help him cultivate faster, while Bai Fu promised to bring him the White Saint Fruit before sunset.

• Bai Fu agreed to return to the White Family and deliver the White Saint Fruit to Zhang Yuan before sunset.
• Wei Jianxing gave Zhang Yuan a room key and asked how he had met Bai Fu, but Zhang Yuan offered a vague explanation before they went to rest.
• Wei Liu mistook Zhang Yuan for someone seeking her out when he arrived at the room beside hers, and he corrected her before entering his own room.
• Chi Guanguan explained the room’s talismans and offered to teach Zhang Yuan Primordial Era formation arts once he reached the outer dao golden core realm.
• Zhang Yuan asked Chi Guanguan to find him offensive and defensive spells, then resumed cultivating with the help of White Tree City’s abundant spiritual qi.

Zhang Yuan advanced his cultivation, restored his spirit root with the White Saint Fruit, and sensed a treasure in White Tree City. He followed the sensation and discovered a Nether Bureau Ghost Deity confronting two people and a ghost.

• Zhang Yuan cultivated until the Zi Hour and reached perfection in the middle stage of his Qi Refining to Immortality Path, drawing nearer to the Outer Dao Golden Core realm.
• Zhang Yuan refined Bai Fu's White Saint Fruit and restored his spirit root to a mid-grade earth-tier five-element spirit root.
• Zhang Yuan sensed a treasure in White Tree City and left to investigate, intending to test As Though the Emperor Walked in Person.
• Wei Liu knocked on Zhang Yuan's door to complain about the noise, and Wei Jianxing found her there after Zhang Yuan had already left.
• Zhang Yuan traversed space toward the treasure's source and saw a Nether Bureau Ghost Deity facing two people and a ghost.

Zhang Yuan watched Bai Fu, Bai Chong, and the Purple-Furred Evil Ghost fight the increasingly powerful Iron Whip Yin Soldier over the White Saint Tree. When the Yin Soldier nearly killed Bai Fu, Zhang Yuan intervened and sent it flying with his Palace and Gourd.

• Zhang Yuan observed the Iron Whip Yin Soldier confronting Bai Fu, Bai Chong, and the Purple-Furred Evil Ghost, then realized the treasures he sought were on the ghost.
• Bai Fu and Bai Chong attacked the Yin Soldier, while Bai Chong explained that it had repeatedly grown stronger as it tried to take the White Saint Tree to the Nether Bureau.
• The Purple-Furred Evil Ghost charged into close combat as Bai Fu and Bai Chong attacked from the flanks, but the Yin Soldier absorbed Yin and Death Qi from the paving stones and struck the ghost with its burning whip.
• The Yin Soldier lashed at Bai Fu and Bai Chong, and Bai Fu was unable to evade the blow approaching her.
• Zhang Yuan appeared and used a yellow-and-black Palace and a purple-gold Gourd to knock the whip aside and send the Iron Whip Yin Soldier flying.

Zhang Yuan tested the Iron Whip Yin Soldier’s behavior by driving him toward a family of four, confirming that the yin deity would protect innocent people. Bai Chong mistook Zhang Yuan’s actions and feigned callousness for proof that he was a dangerous demon fiend, while Zhang Yuan warned that White Tree City remained at risk.

• Zhang Yuan struck the Iron Whip Yin Soldier with the [Demon King Sun-Eroding Palace] and noticed that the yin deity protected the family of four behind him.
• Bai Chong accused Zhang Yuan of endangering the family, and the family recognized and trusted their city lord.
• Zhang Yuan pretended to consider the mortals expendable, deepening Bai Chong’s anger and suspicion.
• Zhang Yuan told Bai Chong to focus on destroying the Iron Whip Yin Soldier before the pre-heaven spirit plant fell and White Tree City vanished.
• Bai Chong recognized the threat but grew more wary of Zhang Yuan’s apparent attempt to manipulate him.

Zhang Yuan restrained the Iron Whip Yin Soldier by forcing it to protect a family of four, then helped destroy it alongside Bai Chong, Bai Fu, and the Purple-Furred Evil Ghost. He obtained the golden-blood myriad-spirit grass from the Purple-Furred Evil Ghost and vanished, leaving Bai Fu and Bai Chong wary of him.

• Zhang Yuan used his three treasures to pin down the Iron Whip Yin Soldier without letting it harm the family beneath it.
• Zhang Yuan ordered Bai Chong, Bai Fu, and the Purple-Furred Evil Ghost to attack, and together they dispersed the Iron Whip Yin Soldier into yin qi.
• The Purple-Furred Evil Ghost warned Bai Chong that erasing the remaining yin qi would bring the Day Patrol God, the Night Patrol God, and countless Ghost Deities to White Tree City.
• The Purple-Furred Evil Ghost mistook Zhang Yuan for a powerful figure from the [Ninefold Calamity-Dispelling Palace] and offered him a stalk of golden-blood myriad-spirit grass as payment.
• Zhang Yuan accepted the grass and vanished through space, while Bai Fu and Bai Chong remained wary of him.

Zhang Yuan returned to the inn after taking golden-blood myriad-spirit grass from a purple-haired evil ghost, then cultivated until he was close to forming his golden core. The next morning, he joined Wei Jianxing, Wei Liu, and Wu Qing for breakfast, despite realizing he had no money.

• The purple-haired evil ghost told Bai Chong and Bai Fu he did not know Zhang Yuan, but assumed Zhang Yuan was an important figure from a Demon King Palace.
• Zhang Yuan returned to his room, examined the golden-blood myriad-spirit grass, and resolved to grow strong enough to defeat the Demon King Palaces.
• Zhang Yuan cultivated through the night and realized he was close to having enough spiritual energy to form his golden core, which he planned to attempt at night under another identity.
• Chi Guanguan woke on Zhang Yuan's shoulder, and he decided to go downstairs for breakfast.
• Zhang Yuan realized he had no spirit stones, then joined Wu Qing, Wei Jianxing, and Wei Liu at their table.
• Wei Liu mocked Zhang Yuan for being a Daoist who had no restrictions on eating meat.

Bai Chong invited Wei Jianxing’s group to the White Residence and warned them against traveling to the dangerous Demon King Palace. He also revealed that a mysterious demonic ghost deity had infiltrated White Tree City, leaving Zhang Yuan’s group to connect the warning to the previous night’s battle.

• Bai Fu invited Wei Jianxing’s group to meet City Lord Bai Chong, while the injured Pan Zhong and Wei Huai stayed behind to recover.
• Zhang Yuan followed the group to the White Residence with steamed buns and shared one with Chi Guanguan, who tried to bargain for pastries.
• Wei Jianxing introduced Zhang Yuan as a Daoist from the Boundless Southern Heaven Realm, and Zhang Yuan claimed he had come to slay the Demon Kings.
• Bai Chong warned the group that the Demon King Palace was perilous, but Zhang Yuan declared that cultivators must pursue their mission even if they died.
• Bai Chong told the group that a demonic ghost deity had infiltrated White Tree City, and Wu Qing asked whether it was the white-lit, humanlike figure residents had reported seeing.

Zhang Yuan learned that the city’s feared White Demon was his own disguised identity, while Wei Jianxing’s group planned to confront him that night. As the group prepared to leave, Zhang Yuan planned to separate from them so he could pass his lightning tribulation and advance to the Outer Dao Golden Core realm.

• Bai Chong warned Wei Jianxing and the others that the White Demon was dangerous and might use the city’s people as leverage.
• Zhang Yuan told Chi Guanguan that he knew what the White Demon looked like and promised to introduce them that night.
• Wei Jianxing proposed confronting and subduing the White Demon, and Zhang Yuan agreed despite knowing he was the target.
• Wei Liu asked whether Zhang Yuan planned to cultivate, then went to her room after learning he would only meditate.
• At Hai Hour, Wei Jianxing gave Zhang Yuan a Barrier-Breaking Talisman, and the group prepared to leave the inn.

Zhang Yuan left his companions and waited in White Tree City for the Nether Bureau Yin Deities, planning to use them to help him survive his Golden Core tribulation. After announcing himself as the Seventh Sun-Eroding Demon King, he struck one Yin Deity and summoned tribulation lightning.

• Zhang Yuan slipped away from Wei Jianxing, Wei Liu, and Wu Qing and went to the White Saint Tree to await the Nether Bureau Yin Deities.
• Zhang Yuan watched reinforcements gather and planned to use the Yin Deities’ yin and death qi to withstand his Golden Core tribulation lightning.
• At Zi Hour, two Nether Bureau Yin Deities appeared, including the Iron Whip Yin Soldier and a stronger spear-wielding Yin Deity.
• Zhang Yuan floated above the Yin Deities, revealed his identity as the Seventh Sun-Eroding Demon King, and spoke with Chi Guanguan.
• Zhang Yuan struck the spear-wielding Yin Deity with the [Sun-Eroding Demon King Palace] and called down tribulation lightning.

Zhang Yuan formed an outer dao golden core after using the Thunder Pearl to absorb the heavenly lightning, then demonstrated his new power above White Tree City. A black-robed swordsman attacked him, and Zhang Yuan effortlessly evaded its strikes before preparing to respond.

• Heavenly lightning destroyed the spear-wielding Yin Deity, and Zhang Yuan used the Thunder Pearl to absorb the remaining lightning and complete his breakthrough to early outer dao golden core.
• Zhang Yuan used As Though the Emperor Walked in Person to appear above White Tree City on a golden staircase and assessed his greatly increased magical power.
• Two black-robed figures discussed Zhang Yuan and the White Saint Tree; one vanished to report to their lord while the other attacked Zhang Yuan with an Ominous Sword.
• Zhang Yuan evaded hundreds of the black-robed figure's sword strikes without retaliating, while the Purple-Furred Evil Ghost watched in astonishment.
• The black-robed attacker gathered baleful energy into the sword for a wide-ranging attack, and Zhang Yuan stopped traversing space and said, "Mm, that should do."

Zhang Yuan defeated the Flying Soul Messenger with a newly learned sword spell after dodging long enough to master it. He then learned that Chi Guanguan had given his spells embarrassing names and refused to use her preferred versions.

• Zhang Yuan borrowed Wei Liu's sword and struck the black-robed figure, sending it crashing into a crater.
• The wounded figure revealed itself as a Flying Corpse Plague Ghost and identified itself as the Flying Soul Messenger of the Fate-Ending Bureau in the [Nether Annihilation Heaven Palace].
• Zhang Yuan reflected that he had been dodging while learning spells Chi Guanguan sent him, and that his sword strike used one of them.
• Chi Guanguan explained that she had modified the spells and named them after the Great Luo Immortal Maiden.
• Zhang Yuan shortened the spell names to Great Luo Sword and Great Luo Fist, ignoring Chi Guanguan's insistence on keeping Immortal Maiden in them.
• Chi Guanguan pouted and punched Zhang Yuan's shoulder, vowing to teach him a lesson when her true body met him.

Zhang Yuan's fight with the Flying Soul Messenger ended when the messenger accepted his claim to be a demon king's incarnation and fled on orders from its lord. After Zhang Yuan destroyed the Iron Whip Yin Soldier, he judged White Tree City doomed and vanished before Bai Chong, whose doubts about his identity deepened.

• Zhang Yuan prepared to flee, but the Flying Soul Messenger apologized and flew north after receiving an order to return to its lord.
• Zhang Yuan used his stored Great Luo Sword strike to destroy the Iron Whip Yin Soldier, which collapsed without resisting.
• Zhang Yuan suspected the Nether Bureau had recalled the yin soldiers and feared it would send stronger ones to White Tree City.
• Zhang Yuan returned Wei Liu's shattered Waist Sword hilt, then vanished before Bai Chong could speak with him.
• Bai Chong wondered whether Zhang Yuan was truly a demon king's incarnation as he considered how quickly Zhang Yuan's abilities had grown.

After the battle in White Tree City, Zhang Yuan secretly returned to the inn before Wei Jianxing, Wei Liu, and Wu Qing, then listened as Wu Qing recounted the Seventh Sun-Eroding Demon King's victory. Zhang Yuan pretended to be surprised and claimed to know Thunder Arts, while Wei Liu offered to protect him if he ever faced a demon king.

• After Zhang Yuan disappeared, Wei Jianxing, Wei Liu, and Wu Qing searched for him and then returned to the inn.
• Zhang Yuan greeted them at the inn with hot tea, explaining that he had become separated after losing his Barrier-Breaking Talisman.
• Wu Qing told Zhang Yuan that a Seventh Sun-Eroding Demon King had defeated three ghost deities in the City Center.
• Wu Qing revealed that the demon king had borrowed and destroyed Wei Liu's Waist Sword, making her angry.
• Zhang Yuan claimed that he knew Thunder Arts and wanted to test himself against the demon king.
• Wei Liu warned Zhang Yuan not to challenge a demon king and said she might protect him instead.