Chapter Summaries

Yang Qing and his companions were swept beneath the Nether Lake when a water dragon shattered their Spirit Jade passage, then discovered their escape route had been sealed. They reached an ancient stone door whose inscription required blood from a descendant of the Duan clan, leaving them to consider how to obtain imperial bloodline blood.

• A water dragon broke the Spirit Jade passage and swept Yang Qing, Jiang Zhizhou, Bu Er, and Pei Buji down a slope, knocking them unconscious.
• After the water receded, Jiang Zhizhou revived Yang Qing, and the group realized the Nether Lake had disappeared.
• Yang Qing recognized that the Hexagram Diagram had sealed shut, cutting off their retreat, so the four proceeded through the only passage.
• The group found an ancient stone door covered in Northern Liang writing, which Yang Qing read as requiring a Duan clan descendant's blood to open.
• Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er wondered whether they would need to bring Duan Ziqian or Duan Hongxing, and the chapter ended with the door's demand for imperial bloodline blood.

Yang Qing realized that the stone door required imperial blood and revealed that Bu Er had been born into an imperial family. Bu Er's blood opened the door, and the group entered the dragon vein, where they found a Golden House.

• Yang Qing told Bu Er that the jade he wore as a child indicated he came from an imperial family, then asked him to test his blood on the stone door.
• Bu Er cut his palm and dripped his blood into the door's recess until a blood sacrifice formation appeared and the door opened.
• Jiang Zhizhou burned a Hundred Herbs Cleanser through the passage, and the group followed him inside.
• Yang Qing, Jiang Zhizhou, Bu Er, and Pei Buji reached a Golden House built from gold and gemstones.
• Yang Qing warned the group not to touch anything and urged them to look elsewhere.

Yang Qing became trapped alone in a Spirit-Raiding Formation that turned his fears about the abyss and his companions into illusions. He resisted the formation by embracing memories of his homeland and lost clan, but the chapter ended with him still inside the dream.

• Yang Qing and his companions passed the Golden House and followed a narrow passage toward the sound of water.
• Jiang Zhizhou stepped onto a stone path over an abyss, but the path behind vanished and Yang Qing found himself alone.
• Yang Qing recognized that the abyss and his missing companions were illusions created by a Spirit-Raiding Formation.
• Yang Qing recalled the Remnant Book’s words about illusion and understood that the formation was drawing out his hidden worries.
• Yang Qing sat cross-legged and fell asleep, dreaming of Western Chu and his deceased Yang clansmen.
• Yang Qing felt the wind change beside him as he smiled with his eyes closed.

After falling into an abyss, Yang Qing, Jiang Zhizhou, Bu Er, and Pei Buji found a cave leading deeper into the Duan Clan Dragon Vein. They discovered evidence of repeated formations and a strange iron-encased grave, and Yang Qing prepared to test whether it was a gateway using Pei Buji’s Separation Incense.

• Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er caught Yang Qing as he fell, and Pei Buji guided them to a narrow ledge beside a cave.
• Yang Qing detected the scent of Immortal-Gathering Stone and concluded that another formation had been laid in the Dragon Vein.
• The group followed the cave into a broad clearing and found a solitary grave encased in fine iron, with a Wordless Stele before it.
• Pei Buji suggested the grave might be inauspicious, while Yang Qing proposed it could be a gateway.
• Yang Qing stopped Bu Er from cutting his palm and asked Pei Buji for Separation Incense to test the grave.

Yang Qing used Separation Incense to reveal the Skyworm Silk seal on the Wordless Stele and opened it with a fragrance that made the Sky Worms destroy their own silk. Inside, the four found a fragment of another broken stele, which Pei Buji suspected was a Proclamation Stele.

• Yang Qing scattered Separation Incense over the Wordless Stele, drawing out Darkened Incense and revealing that the fragrance could break the seal.
• Yang Qing explained that the Wordless Stele was a Cover Stele sealed with Skyworm Silk, and that the two incenses together could make the Sky Worms destroy their silk.
• Pei Buji wondered why Northern Liang’s dragon vein was connected to the Eastern Radiance Ancient Kingdom rather than the Duan Clan’s ancestors.
• Bu Er worried that the Sky Worms might attack them, but Yang Qing said they would die after destroying their silk.
• The Wordless Stele split and fell, revealing a fragment of another broken stele that Pei Buji thought might be a Proclamation Stele.

Yang Qing realized that the Duan Clan had sent them after the Proclamation Stele rather than the Northern Liang Dragon Vein, and he had Jiang Zhizhou take a rubbing before they prepared to leave. Duan Tianyu arrived and demanded the rubbing, threatening to kill them if they refused.

• Pei Buji examined the broken stele while Yang Qing questioned the story that it was Emperor Zetian's Proclamation Stele.
• Yang Qing and Jiang Zhizhou suspected the Duan Clan's search for the Dragon Vein was really a scheme to find the Proclamation Stele, whose other half might be held by the Duan Clan.
• Yang Qing urged Jiang Zhizhou to copy the inscription, and Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er took a rubbing with Shadow Ink before replacing the damaged Cover Stele.
• A stone door opened in the cavern wall, and Duan Tianyu emerged and demanded that Jiang Zhizhou hand over the treasure, threatening to leave them with no chance of returning.

Jiang Zhizhou, Yang Qing, Pei Buji, and Bu Er escaped Duan Tianyu after the soldiers shattered the Proclamation Stele. Back on the surface beneath the stars, Yang Qing suggested that the Duan Clan Dragon Vein might still hold a legendary treasure.

• Jiang Zhizhou refused Duan Tianyu’s demand and led Yang Qing toward the cavern exit, but Duan Tianyu attacked them and ordered his soldiers to seize them.
• Jiang Zhizhou followed Yang Qing’s signal and dodged aside, causing the soldiers’ weapons to strike and shatter the Proclamation Stele.
• Jiang Zhizhou confronted Duan Tianyu over the destruction, but Duan Tianyu took Yang Qing hostage and demanded the object Jiang Zhizhou had taken.
• A pebble struck Duan Tianyu’s sword hand, allowing Jiang Zhizhou to pull Yang Qing away while Pei Buji opened a hidden passage in the cavern wall.
• Jiang Zhizhou, Yang Qing, Pei Buji, and Bu Er escaped through the passage; Duan Tianyu collapsed when he tried to pursue them.
• The four companions emerged on the surface after the Hexagram Diagram vanished, and Yang Qing said the Dragon Vein might still contain a legendary treasure.

After uncovering the Duan Clan’s connection to the Eastern Radiance Ancient Kingdom, Jiang Zhizhou and his companions decided to flee Northern Liang for the Western Regions. They set out to find Fen Liyou’s returning caravan, while armed pursuers approached the place they had left.

• Yang Qing warned Jiang Zhizhou that Duan Ziqian would move against him once Duan Tianyu escaped and revealed what had happened.
• Jiang Zhizhou showed Yang Qing a bamboo slip and said his father would never have joked about its contents.
• Yang Qing urged the group to flee west, arguing that their clues about the Eastern Radiance Ancient Kingdom made Northern Liang unsafe.
• Yang Qing reasoned that Fen Liyou would return to Northern Liang to buy Coiled Pine branches for the Western Regions’ Fire Festival.
• Jiang Zhizhou agreed to follow Yang Qing’s plan, and the four set out toward the place where they had parted from Fen Liyou.
• Less than half a day later, armed pursuers arrived at the place the group had left.

Jiang Zhizhou, Yang Qing, Bu Er, and Pei Buji joined Fen Liyou’s caravan to escape west, hoping the merchant would value the information they possessed about the Eastern Radiance Ancient Kingdom. At Jade Gate Pass, iron-masked riders accused Fen Liyou of carrying prohibited goods and ordered his entire party arrested.

• Duan Tianyu learned that Jiang Zhizhou and the others had headed west and let them go, while they returned to wait for Fen Liyou.
• Yang Qing argued that Fen Liyou’s desire for profit could make him their ally, and the four agreed to risk asking him for help.
• Fen Liyou arrived, welcomed the group into his caravan, and warned that they might be away from Northern Liang for three to five years.
• The group traveled west with Fen Liyou and reached Jade Gate Pass, where they dismounted and approached the entrance on foot.
• Iron-masked riders accused Fen Liyou of concealing prohibited goods and ordered him and everyone traveling with him taken away.

Yang Qing and Fen Liyou were imprisoned at Jade Gate Pass, where Xiao Shen tried to force Fen Liyou to reveal the whereabouts of a valuable object. Fen Liyou explained that the crown prince had sent him to retrieve a token from Northern Liang, and warned that Xiao Shen would soon escalate his threats.

• Fen Liyou pleaded for his subordinates, but Yang Qing stopped him from speaking as the soldiers arrested the group and locked them in neighboring cells.
• Yang Qing urged Fen Liyou to consider why they had been targeted, and Fen Liyou realized the arrest might be connected to a secret matter.
• Xiao Shen confronted Fen Liyou and threatened the others to make him surrender an object, but Fen Liyou refused.
• Fen Liyou told Yang Qing that the Fen Household served the emperor as Imperial Merchants and that some relatives had betrayed the family for political advantage.
• Fen Liyou revealed that the crown prince had sent him to retrieve a token of friendship from Northern Liang, which rumor falsely claimed would determine the next heir to the throne.
• Fen Liyou explained that Xiao Shen served the First Prince and had imprisoned him under the pretext of searching for contraband, but warned that Xiao Shen would soon make a stronger move.

Yang Qing and Fen Liyou remained imprisoned when Ouyang Lin entered the dungeon and demanded the object Fen Liyou had sought. Ouyang Lin discovered Yang Qing’s Travel Document, left him an unexplained item, and departed, prompting Fen Liyou to identify him as the Jade-Faced Divine Thief.

• Yang Qing and Fen Liyou discussed their imprisonment and the danger of getting caught in the struggle over the throne.
• Ouyang Lin entered the dungeon and demanded that Fen Liyou hand over the object he had sought.
• Ouyang Lin used his power to pull Yang Qing’s Travel Document from his sleeve and recognized that Yang Qing was not from the Western Regions.
• Ouyang Lin tossed an unexplained item into Yang Qing’s cell and left without revealing his purpose.
• Fen Liyou told Yang Qing that Ouyang Lin was known as the Jade-Faced Divine Thief.

Yang Qing discovered that Ouyang Lin had taken his Jade Pendant and left behind a pearl that might be the fabled Spirit-Calming Pearl. As Yang Qing and Fen Liyou considered the mysteries surrounding their imprisonment, they heard an unexplained sound in the cell and resolved to stay cautious.

• Yang Qing realized Ouyang Lin had stolen his Jade Pendant and examined the round pearl Ouyang Lin had left behind.
• Fen Liyou said the pearl resembled the Spirit-Calming Pearl, a treasure said to steady minds and control hearts and souls.
• Yang Qing hid the pearl beneath the straw, wary that its powers and origins could attract danger.
• Yang Qing wondered why Ouyang Lin had taken his pendant and suspected Xiao Shen’s imprisonment of the group concealed a deeper purpose.
• Yang Qing and Fen Liyou heard a faint, untraceable sound in the cell and agreed to respond cautiously.

Ouyang Lin took Yang Qing from the dungeon to meet Mo Yi, who revealed that he already knew Yang Qing’s origins and had learned them from Fen Liyou. Mo Yi arranged for Yang Qing and his three companions to leave with him, and Yang Qing accepted despite not knowing what awaited them.

• Ouyang Lin appeared in Yang Qing’s cell and invited him to meet someone, while Fen Liyou worried and Bu Er urged the others to intervene.
• Yang Qing followed Ouyang Lin out of the empty dungeon and met Mo Yi in a carriage.
• Mo Yi revealed that he had known Yang Qing’s origins since Yang Qing began traveling with Fen Liyou, and Yang Qing asked him to spare Fen Liyou.
• Mo Yi told Ouyang Lin to inform Xiao Shen that he had taken Yang Qing and his three companions, and said Fen Liyou would find his own way out.
• Bu Er, Jiang Zhizhou, and their companion joined Yang Qing in the carriage, and Yang Qing told them to wait and see what their captors would do.

Mo Yi brought Yang Qing and his companions to his residence, revealed that he knew about their search for the Eastern Radiance Ancient Kingdom, and pressed them to accept his help. Yang Qing agreed to keep investigating, though the kingdom’s existence remained unproven.

• Mo Yi escorted Yang Qing, Bu Er, Jiang Zhizhou, and Pei Buji to his residence and offered them rare tea that reminded them of Radiant White.
• Mo Yi asked Yang Qing about Radiant White, showing that he knew about the group’s search for the Eastern Radiance Ancient Kingdom.
• Mo Yi offered wealth and support in exchange for Yang Qing’s cooperation, then threatened him with imprisonment and torture if he refused.
• Yang Qing said the places they had found offered only clues, not proof that the ancient kingdom still existed.
• Yang Qing accepted Mo Yi’s support on the condition that they continue investigating without knowing whether the kingdom was real.

Yang Qing and his companions traveled with Mo Yi through the Western Regions, where Mo Ze intercepted the Second Prince and grew suspicious of the carriage following him. The brothers’ confrontation ended with Mo Yi denying wrongdoing while Mo Ze remained convinced he was hiding something.

• Yang Qing explained that he had temporarily accepted Mo Yi’s offer to keep the Second Prince’s men in view and avoid provoking him.
• Pei Buji identified Mo Ze, the First Prince, as the person who had stopped Mo Yi’s carriage, and Yang Qing speculated about the royal succession struggle.
• Mo Ze invited Mo Yi to visit his villa and pressed him about his hurried trip and the people in the carriage behind him.
• Mo Yi claimed he had traveled to handle private matters and mentioned secretly entrusting Fen Liyou with bringing back some items.
• Mo Ze’s guard attacked Yang Qing’s carriage, but Mo Yi’s guard blocked the strike before the attacker could reach them.
• Mo Ze suggested Mo Yi might have brought Fen Liyou with him, and Mo Yi denied doing anything wrong as Mo Ze continued to suspect a secret.

Yang Qing and his companions entered Mo Yi’s Plum Blossom Villa, wary of the princes’ interest in them and the Eastern Radiance Ancient Kingdom. After warning his companions that the villa seemed suspicious, Yang Qing faced Mo Yi’s probing questions about what they knew.

• Mo Ze let Mo Yi’s party leave, suspecting that his brother was hiding something in a carriage.
• Yang Qing and Pei Buji discussed the dangers of dealing with Mo Yi and Mo Ze, and Pei Buji mentioned an old acquaintance in the Western Regions.
• Mo Yi’s guards brought Yang Qing and his companions to Plum Blossom Villa at Jade Gate Pass to rest.
• Yang Qing sensed something amiss at the villa and secretly warned Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er to proceed with caution.
• Mo Yi arrived after a delay and pressed Yang Qing for information about the Eastern Radiance Ancient Kingdom, but Yang Qing dismissed the reports as unreliable rumors.

Yang Qing and his companions remained trapped in Mo Yi’s secluded residence, where he realized its formation concealed another world. After Pei Buji returned, Yang Qing prepared to explore the hidden space at sunset.

• Mo Yi threatened Yang Qing and demanded a definite answer about the Eastern Radiance Ancient Kingdom by the next day.
• Pei Buji left to investigate the residence, while Yang Qing suspected the First Prince would thwart the Second Prince.
• Yang Qing recognized that the courtyard held a complex formation and might be the Second Prince’s rumored sanctuary.
• Pei Buji returned before noon, and Yang Qing invited him to explore the gardens.
• Yang Qing explained that a hidden world appeared during brief transitions and planned to enter it at sunset.

Yang Qing and the others exploited a fluctuation in Mo Yi’s formation and escaped into a second, identical residence hidden beyond it. They discovered a concealed mechanism that transformed one of its rooms, but had not yet learned what the new arrangement revealed.

• Yang Qing ordered Pei Buji to strike specific points in the formation as Mo Yi returned, exposing a mist-covered opening.
• Bu Er, Jiang Zhizhou, Yang Qing, and Pei Buji plunged through the mist and landed outside a second residence with the same layout as Mo Yi’s.
• The four entered the bare courtyard and found a room lit by a beam shining through a hole in a table.
• Yang Qing warned Jiang Zhizhou not to inspect tiny characters beneath the table, suspecting they were bait for a trap.
• Bu Er pressed a groove in the windowsill, causing the room to brighten and its furniture to vanish, replaced by an enormous folding screen.

Yang Qing and the others discovered a map marking sites of the Eastern Radiance Ancient Kingdom and decided to use the information to secure a journey with Mo Yi. After they left the formation, Yang Qing offered Mo Yi a destination, and Mo Yi identified it as Sunset Glow Valley, beyond the dangerous Shadowless Slope.

• Yang Qing, Jiang Zhizhou, Bu Er, and Pei Buji found a map marked with several sites linked to the Eastern Radiance Ancient Kingdom and recorded the locations.
• Yang Qing proposed traveling with Mo Yi’s group while sharing the map’s information with another group to keep Mo Yi occupied.
• The four left the separate residence’s formation and were surrounded by Mo Yi and his Guards.
• Yang Qing told Mo Yi they had found another destination among the ancient kingdom’s ruins and wanted to travel with him.
• Jiang Zhizhou showed Mo Yi a sketch, and Mo Yi identified the destination as Sunset Glow Valley, which lay beyond fog-bound Shadowless Slope, full of venomous insects.

Mo Yi led Yang Qing and his companions toward Sunset Glow Valley to search for the rumored ruins of the Eastern Radiance Ancient Kingdom, while Mo Ze joined the expedition. As the two princes prepared to cross Shadowless Slope, Yang Qing worried that they would discard their allies once the danger passed.

• Mo Yi decided to use his men to force a way through the dangers ahead and set out from Plum Blossom Villa with Yang Qing and the others.
• Mo Ze intercepted Mo Yi, learned the party was bound for Sunset Glow Valley, and insisted on joining the expedition.
• Yang Qing and Pei Buji were revealed to have leaked the news to Mo Ze so his troops would join the party.
• Yang Qing agreed with Jiang Zhizhou and the others that they must stay together on Shadowless Slope and later find a way to leave the princes.
• Mo Yi warned that midnight was the safest time to cross because the venomous insects would be resting, but he refused Yang Qing's warning that the ruins were only a rumor.
• Mo Yi announced that the party was heading up Shadowless Slope as a vicious battle approached.