Recaps

Wen Ning and Feng Dema searched for Liu Dazhu and learned he had returned to Huaiyuan Town. Zhou Guangfu insisted on going along, so Wen Ning arranged for them to travel there by high-speed train and hired car the next morning.

• Wen Ning took Feng Dema to the Old Vegetable Market, where Old Zhao identified Liu Dazhu and said he had gone back to Huaiyuan Town.
• Wen Ning returned to the shop and told Zhou Guangfu about the lead and the town’s location.
• Zhou Guangfu insisted on joining the search despite Wen Ning’s concerns about his health.
• Wen Ning planned a high-speed train trip followed by a hired car ride, and Zhou Guangfu agreed to leave the next morning.
• Wen Ning decided that Lu Ming would accompany them while Feng Dema stayed behind to look after the shop.

Wen Ning and Lu Ming brought Zhou Guangfu to Huaiyuan Town to find Liu Dazhu, whom Zhou Guangfu owed for years of noodles. After Zhou Guangfu finally reunited with Liu Dazhu and offered him 2,149 yuan, Liu Dazhu refused to take the money.

• Wen Ning took Zhou Guangfu and Lu Ming from the shop to Huaiyuan Town to search for Liu Dazhu.
• An elderly man directed Wen Ning to Liu Dazhu’s home near the old supply and marketing cooperative, where a neighbor said Liu had gone to the clinic for his wife’s medicine.
• Wen Ning and Lu Ming waited with Zhou Guangfu outside Liu Dazhu’s gate until Liu returned and recognized Zhou Guangfu.
• Liu Dazhu welcomed Zhou Guangfu, Wen Ning, and Lu Ming into his courtyard and asked how Zhou had found him.
• Zhou Guangfu unpacked his savings and offered Liu Dazhu 2,149 yuan for the noodles he had eaten over the years.
• Liu Dazhu pushed the money back and firmly refused to take it.

Zhou Guangfu repaid Liu Dazhu the money he owed and revealed that he believed his life was near its end. After saying goodbye to Liu Dazhu, he returned to the shop with Wen Ning and Lu Ming, visibly frail but relieved.

• Zhou Guangfu insisted Liu Dazhu accept his savings, explaining that he wanted to settle his debt of kindness before he died.
• Liu Dazhu accepted the money and promised to donate it to people who could not afford food.
• Liu Dazhu shared tea with Zhou Guangfu, then gave the travelers apples, biscuits, and his phone number before seeing them off.
• Wen Ning found a driver, and Zhou Guangfu fell asleep on the ride back while Wen Ning covered him with her jacket.
• Wen Ning and Lu Ming returned to the shop with Zhou Guangfu, and Feng Dema welcomed him with a piece of wedding candy.

After Zhou Guangfu quietly left the shop, Wen Ning, Lu Ming, and Feng Dema went to the Underworld to learn whether he had any family. Judge Lu revealed that Zhou Guangfu had given up a daughter for adoption and spent his life longing to see her from afar; the three left the Judge’s Hall with this discovery.

• Zhou Guangfu left the shop before dawn, leaving his candy behind, and Wen Ning explained that he had departed to preserve his dignity.
• Wen Ning, Lu Ming, and Feng Dema opened a rift to the Underworld and met Xie Bi'an on the Yellow Springs Road.
• Xie Bi'an escorted the three to Judge Lu, who searched Zhou Guangfu’s records.
• Judge Lu revealed that Zhou Guangfu had given his infant daughter to an adoptive family after his wife died and had secretly saved money to see her from afar.
• Judge Lu said Zhou Guangfu’s daughter was alive and well but had never learned who her birth father was, and Wen Ning led the others out.

Wen Ning used a dream visit to let Uncle Zhou’s daughter experience a loving memory with her birth father, who had given her up so she could have a better life. After waking, she searched an old box and found a photograph of him.

• Wen Ning decided to visit Uncle Zhou’s daughter in a dream rather than tell her the truth directly.
• Wen Ning entered the woman’s dream and showed her a memory of her childhood with her young father.
• In the dream, her father bought her candied hawthorn, cared for her, and explained that he had found her a better family because he could not provide for her.
• The woman woke with tears on her pillow and told her husband she had dreamed.
• After daybreak, the woman searched an old box and found a yellowed photograph of a young man in front of a low house.

Liu Nian found Zhou Guangfu after learning in a dream that he had visited Wen Ning’s shop, and Wen Ning helped her bring her father home. Zhou Guangfu spent one night with Liu Nian before passing away peacefully, and his family and friends buried him on a sunny hillside.

• Liu Nian came to Wen Ning’s shop and asked whether her father, Zhou Guangfu, had been there.
• Wen Ning told Liu Nian that Zhou Guangfu had left three days earlier, then traced his presence to a bridge by the Old Power Plant.
• Wen Ning, Lu Ming, Feng Dema, and Liu Nian found Zhou Guangfu sheltering beneath the bridge, and Liu Nian persuaded him to come home with her.
• Liu Nian cared for Zhou Guangfu at home, and they remembered how he had fed her porridge when she was little.
• Zhou Guangfu passed away in his sleep the next morning, and Liu Nian told Wen Ning that he had gone peacefully.
• Liu Nian buried Zhou Guangfu on a hillside, where Wen Ning, Lu Ming, Feng Dema, and Liu Dazhu paid their respects.

Feng Dema became smitten with Fang Qingqin, a university student seeking an internship, and helped persuade Lu Ming and Wen Ning to take her on. Fang Qingqin agreed to start the next morning, leaving Feng Dema excited about her return.

• Fang Qingqin visited the shop looking for temporary work, and Feng Dema immediately fell for her.
• Lu Ming turned Fang Qingqin away, while Feng Dema asked whether she might come back and learned she attended a nearby university.
• Fang Qingqin returned to ask for an unpaid internship, and Feng Dema eagerly urged Lu Ming to accept her.
• Wen Ning offered Fang Qingqin an internship with lunch but no proper wages, and she agreed to start at nine the next morning.
• Feng Dema watched Fang Qingqin leave and asked Wen Ning to order an extra lunch for her.

Fang Qingqin began her internship at the shop, where Feng Dema eagerly followed her and tried to impress her. After several days of working together, she brought him and the others homemade cookies, and Feng Dema eagerly asked whether she would return the next day.

• Fang Qingqin arrived at the shop and began learning the front-desk tasks and cleaning from Lu Ming.
• Feng Dema offered to help Fang Qingqin sweep, gave her his drumstick at lunch, and worked with her to bathe a difficult cat.
• Fang Qingqin returned to work every day, while Feng Dema followed her around and helped with her tasks.
• Fang Qingqin brought homemade cookies to the shop, and Feng Dema praised them enthusiastically.
• Feng Dema asked Fang Qingqin if she would return the next day, and she confirmed that her internship was not over.

Feng Dema rushed to find Fang Qingqin and rescued her from three thugs who had cornered her. After learning more about her past, Wen Ning grew suspicious that her arrival and influence on Dema were too coincidental, but decided not to tell him yet.

• When Fang Qingqin failed to arrive, Feng Dema ran out to look for her, followed by Lu Ming and Wen Ning.
• Feng Dema found three young men cornering Fang Qingqin near the teachers' university and fought them off, allowing them to flee.
• Feng Dema returned to the shop with Fang Qingqin, and Lu Ming tended to his injuries while she washed her face.
• Wen Ning asked Feng Dema what he knew about Fang Qingqin, and Dema described her family and childhood illnesses before running back to her.
• Wen Ning suspected that Fang Qingqin's arrival and effect on Dema might have been arranged, but chose not to warn Dema yet.

Wen Ning investigated Fang Qingqin and found that her records before high school were missing and her high school photo field was blank. When Feng Dema stopped an electric bike with an invisible force, Fang Qingqin reacted strangely and left the shop early, while Wen Ning watched her with growing suspicion.

• Wen Ning asked Xu Zhao to investigate Fang Qingqin’s background and learned that her records before high school could not be found and her high school photo field was blank.
• Fang Qingqin brought Feng Dema cookies, and he accompanied her to buy textbooks the next day.
• An electric bike nearly hit Fang Qingqin, but Feng Dema stopped it with an invisible force from his outstretched hand.
• Fang Qingqin seemed unsettled by Dema’s action, said little on the way back, and left the shop early.
• Wen Ning reviewed Xu Zhao’s message and watched the direction Fang Qingqin had gone, while Feng Dema teased Big Yellow about missing a male dog.

Howling Celestial Dog visited Wen Ning’s shop and detected lingering Yao Qi mixed with heavy baleful aura near the chair Fang Qingqin had used. He concluded that Fang Qingqin was not a monster herself but had spent considerable time with one, leaving Wen Ning to watch her and wait for him to investigate further.

• Howling Celestial Dog arrived from the Celestial Realm to visit Big Yellow, and Wen Ning introduced him to Feng Dema.
• Howling Celestial Dog detected Yao Qi and heavy baleful aura near the chair Fang Qingqin had occupied.
• Howling Celestial Dog explained that Fang Qingqin carried a monster’s scent but showed no signs of being a monster herself.
• Howling Celestial Dog said the nearby monster’s baleful aura seemed acquired and offered to examine Fang Qingqin directly when she next visited.
• Wen Ning agreed to watch Fang Qingqin and wait for Howling Celestial Dog to return.

The Howling Celestial Dog detected a dangerous southern Yao Qi on Fang Qingqin, and Wen Ning realized she knew he was investigating her. Fang Qingqin returned to the shop as usual, and Wen Ning decided to stop investigating her for now.

• The Howling Celestial Dog sniffed Fang Qingqin's jacket and told Wen Ning that she carried traces of a vicious creature once sealed in the south.
• Fang Qingqin noticed Wen Ning and the Howling Celestial Dog speaking privately, then stopped coming to the shop for several days.
• Fang Qingqin asked Dema whether Wen Ning had been investigating her and told him to say she was an ordinary person.
• Dema relayed Fang Qingqin's message to Wen Ning, who wondered whether she was afraid of him and why she had sent the message through Dema.
• Fang Qingqin returned to the shop and behaved as usual, and Wen Ning decided to hold off on investigating her.

Fang Qingqin told Wen Ning how a desperate wish at a mountain temple preceded her worsening health, violent outbursts, and nightmares. Wen Ning agreed to help and said they might need to travel to her hometown.

• Fang Qingqin revealed that she had grown up poor in Yunxi County, studied hard to escape her family, and wished at a temple for a chance to attend university.
• Fang Qingqin explained that after getting into university, she began suffering fevers, uncontrollable anger, memory lapses, and nightmares in which the temple statue asked whether her promise still stood.
• Fang Qingqin told Wen Ning she had delayed asking for help because she feared the shop might be fraudulent or dismiss her, but she trusted the people there.
• Fang Qingqin asked Wen Ning to help her, and Feng Dema rushed in to promise that the shop would help.
• Wen Ning agreed to help Fang Qingqin and said they might need to visit her hometown.

Wen Ning, Lu Ming, Feng Dema, and the Howling Celestial Dog traveled to Fang Qingqin’s village to investigate the temple where she had made her wish. They discovered a statue of the Five-Power God and summoned a figure from it, who claimed he had done nothing wrong.

• Wen Ning told Lu Ming and Feng Dema how Fang Qingqin’s wish had bound her to the temple, and the three decided to visit it in Yunxi County.
• The Howling Celestial Dog joined them on the journey, and Wen Ning allowed him to come along as long as he did not cause trouble.
• At the village temple, the Howling Celestial Dog recognized the statue as belonging to the Five-Power God, whose temples he and his master had supposedly destroyed.
• The Howling Celestial Dog explained that the Five-Power God granted wishes to people seeking to change their lives, then demanded repayment once the wishes came true.
• Wen Ning prepared to clear the temple, but gray-black smoke emerged from the statue and formed a human figure.
• Wen Ning threatened the figure with the Five Thunder Righteous Method, and it raised its hands and insisted that it had done nothing bad.

Wen Ning and the others learned that the spirit in the shrine was Wang Jin, who had spent years watching over his lost daughter, Wang Mingzhu. Wang Jin revealed that the Five-Power God beneath the shrine granted Mingzhu’s wish to enter university in exchange for Wang Jin serving him for a hundred years.

• Wen Ning challenged the shrine’s spirit, and Feng Dema asked whether he had helped a girl named Mingzhu get into university.
• When Wen Ning called the girl Fang Zhaodi, the spirit erupted in anger and declared that her name was Wang Mingzhu and that she was his daughter.
• Wang Jin recounted how his daughter was abducted, renamed by the Fang family, and lost to him after villagers beat him and left him for dead.
• Wang Jin explained that he had stayed in the shrine to watch Mingzhu grow up and had recognized her when she came to pray before her university entrance exam.
• Wen Ning learned that the weak Five-Power God beneath the shrine had granted Mingzhu’s wish because Wang Jin had promised to serve him for a hundred years.

Wen Ning and the Howling Celestial Dog destroyed the Five-Power God's remains beneath the temple, freeing Wang Jin from his burden. Fang Qingqin returned to the temple to fulfill her vow, and Wen Ning confirmed that her ordeal was over.

• The Howling Celestial Dog uncovered a jar containing the Five-Power God's true body beneath the clay statue and destroyed it with Wen Ning's help.
• Wang Jin's red glow faded, and he asked Wen Ning to bring Mingzhu to the temple so he could see her once more.
• Wen Ning told Fang Qingqin that the threat was gone and that she only needed to return to the temple to fulfill her vow.
• Fang Qingqin returned to Fangjia Ao with Wen Ning, Feng Dema, and Lu Ming, then knelt in the ruined temple and formally fulfilled her vow.
• A faint figure appeared and faded away, and Wen Ning confirmed to Fang Qingqin that it was over.

Wen Ning took Wang Jin to the Underworld, where Judge Lu arranged for him to be reborn into a good family. Back at the shop, Wen Ning and his companions resumed their usual routine, and Fang Qingqin returned to visit Feng Dema.

• Wen Ning took Wang Jin down Yellow Springs Road after his lingering resentment had dissipated.
• Xie Bi'an led Wen Ning and Wang Jin to Judge Lu, who arranged for Wang Jin to be reborn into a good family.
• Wang Jin thanked Wen Ning and disappeared into the passage to reincarnation.
• Wen Ning returned to the village entrance, where Lu Ming and Feng Dema were waiting, and the three traveled back to the city.
• Fang Qingqin visited the shop two days later, thanked Wen Ning, and told him she was feeling better.
• Feng Dema watched Fang Qingqin leave and happily prepared for her promised visit the next day.

Feng Dema’s uncle, Feng Yi, visited the shop and questioned whether his nephew should return to the Heavenly Court or stay in the Mortal Realm. After hearing that Feng Dema was happy at the shop, Feng Yi let him decide for himself and left after dinner.

• Wen Ning explained to Feng Dema why he had kept Wang Jin’s identity as Fang Qingqin’s father secret, and Feng Dema agreed not to tell her.
• Feng Yi arrived at the shop, rebuked Feng Dema for his Mortal Realm work and rumored interest in a bird, and asked what he planned to do when his assignment ended.
• Feng Dema told Feng Yi that he liked working with Wen Ning, Lu Ming, and Fang Qingqin and had not decided whether to return to the Heavenly Court.
• Feng Yi told Wen Ning he would let Feng Dema stay if that was what he wanted, then joined the shop’s staff for dinner.
• Feng Yi left after dinner, and Feng Dema watched him go before returning to help Lu Ming wash the dishes.

Wen Ning used the merit recorded in the Jade Emperor's Golden Register to break through to Late Heavenly Immortal, a breakthrough that Sect Master Tongtian noticed. The next morning, Fang Qingqin visited the shop to say goodbye before starting a teaching job, leaving Feng Dema encouraged by how close her new workplace was.

• Wen Ning reviewed his merits and cultivated until Huang Ming appeared to watch over his breakthrough.
• Wen Ning broke through to Late Heavenly Immortal, and Sect Master Tongtian sensed his progress from Biyou Palace.
• Fang Qingqin visited the shop and told Wen Ning, Feng Dema, and Lu Ming that she had found a nearby elementary-school teaching job.
• Fang Qingqin thanked Wen Ning, brought the shop steamed buns, and told Feng Dema that her school was three bus stops away.
• Feng Dema watched Fang Qingqin leave and repeated the details of her route while Lu Ming urged him to return to work.

After Fang Qingqin left, Feng Dema began visiting the school where she taught and gradually spent time with her there and at the shop. Their visits continued at an unhurried pace, and Feng Dema happily cared for a plant she brought him.

• Feng Dema asked Wen Ning to visit the west side, found Fang Qingqin’s school, and returned pleased with the trip.
• Feng Dema visited the school every few days while keeping up with his work at the shop.
• Fang Qingqin visited the shop, invited Feng Dema to come see her at school, and he met her after classes for noodles two days later.
• Feng Dema and Fang Qingqin continued visiting each other, while Lu Ming wondered about their relationship and Wen Ning told him not to pry.
• Fang Qingqin brought a small potted plant to the shop, and Feng Dema happily tended it every day.

Wen Ning agreed to take the Sparrow Spirit to the Heavenly Court after the bird begged to come along. They passed through the South Heaven Gate undetected, and Wen Ning continued toward the Thunder Department with the Sparrow Spirit hidden in his sleeve.

• Wen Ning told Lu Ming and Feng Dema he was going to visit his godfather in the Heavenly Court and left them to mind the shop.
• The Sparrow Spirit begged Wen Ning to take him along, and Wen Ning agreed on the condition that he stay quiet and wait outside while Wen Ning met his godfather.
• Wen Ning hid the Sparrow Spirit in his sleeve and flew to the South Heaven Gate.
• One heavenly general suspected Wen Ning was carrying Yao Qi, but his colleague warned him not to search Wen Ning because of his powerful connections.
• Wen Ning entered the Heavenly Court and headed toward the Thunder Department while the Sparrow Spirit whispered that the heavenly general might have noticed him.

Wen Ning visited the Thunder Department, caught up with Bai Lu and Meng Jiang, and brought gifts to his godfather Wen Zhong. After Wen Zhong told him how to register the Sparrow Spirit for travel to the Heavenly Court, Wen Ning returned to the shop, where Lu Ming heard Meng Jiang’s latest threat.

• Wen Ning visited Bai Lu and Meng Jiang at the Thunder Department, where Meng Jiang complained about Lu Ming’s rumors and antler velvet.
• Wen Ning gave Wen Zhong cigarettes, liquor, and tea, and Wen Zhong praised his recent work and cultivation.
• Wen Zhong told Wen Ning he could register the Sparrow Spirit as a pet for future trips through the South Heaven Gate.
• Wen Ning returned to the Mortal Realm, and the Sparrow Spirit flew off after boasting that he had visited the Heavenly Court.
• Wen Ning told Lu Ming that Meng Jiang planned to strip off his antler velvet herself the next time he went up.

At the shop, Feng Dema told Lu Ming and Wen Ning that the woman he liked had agreed to date him, while Lu Ming accidentally scrubbed fur off the Squirrel Spirit. Wen Ning followed a wave of resentment to a cemetery, where he discovered it came from the living father of a nineteen-year-old girl named Lin Jin; he returned to the shop and decided to leave the matter alone for now.

• Feng Dema told Lu Ming and Wen Ning that the woman he liked had agreed to date him, and Lu Ming accidentally scrubbed a patch of fur off the Squirrel Spirit.
• Wen Ning sensed resentment at the shop entrance and followed a middle-aged man to Green Mountain Cemetery.
• The man left wilted wildflowers at the grave of Lin Jin, who had died at nineteen, and sat silently beside it for more than ten minutes.
• Wen Ning returned to the shop and told Lu Ming and Feng Dema that the resentment came from a living person, but he would leave it alone for now.
• The Squirrel Spirit warned Lu Ming to be more careful before leaving the shop.

Wen Ning, Lu Ming, and Feng Dema followed a resentful man and stopped him from abducting a girl. The man revealed that he planned revenge for his daughter Lin Jin’s murder, and Wen Ning confronted him about harming an innocent girl.

• Wen Ning and Lu Ming followed the man’s aura west with Feng Dema.
• They found the man trying to put an unconscious girl into his van, and Feng Dema disarmed and restrained him.
• Wen Ning called the police and checked that the girl was still breathing.
• The man said his nineteen-year-old daughter, Lin Jin, had been killed and that he meant to abduct the daughters of those he blamed.
• Wen Ning asked how the man differed from his daughter’s killers, and the man accused him of speaking righteously about people who were not human.

Wen Ning and his companions gave statements after Lin Feng was arrested for kidnapping the girl who had helped spread rumors about his daughter, Lin Jin. The girl and her parents blamed Lin Feng and dismissed their online harassment, while Wen Ning and the others waited to speak with the police.

• Police arrived and arrested Lin Feng after Wen Ning explained that they had caught him kidnapping a girl.
• Lin Feng confronted the officer, saying that online rumors had led to Lin Jin's death and that justice could not bring her back.
• Wen Ning, Lu Ming, and Feng Dema went to the police station to give statements, while the girl was questioned in the next room.
• The girl and her parents insisted that her online posts were harmless and demanded that Lin Feng be locked up.
• Wen Ning told Feng Dema to wait for their turn to give statements, and the three followed an officer into the interview room.