Recaps

Consort Ling arranged to care for the unconscious Liu Wan while Xia Wanwan secretly tended to her damaged soul. After disappearing for a day, Xia Wanwan returned with the Phoenix’s spine, egg, and feathers, then asked Yuanbao to help her lift Phoenix Mountain.

• Imperial Physician Huang warned Lady Liu that grief was endangering her five-month pregnancy, and Consort Ling decided to stay at the Ninth Prince’s Residence to care for Liu Wan.
• Yuanbao discovered Liu Wan was unconscious and that Xia Wanwan had left; he realized she was using talismans to heal the soul that had been scorched.
• The Ninth Prince’s Residence searched for Xia Wanwan until she returned covered in ash with the Phoenix’s spine, egg, and a sack of feathers.
• Xia Wanwan explained that she had pulled out Phoenix Mountain’s backbone and trees because the Phoenix had hurt her mother.
• Xia Wanwan told Yuanbao she had wanted to roast and eat the Phoenix, then asked him to help lift Phoenix Mountain.

Xia Wanwan and Daoist Qianyun found Liuli, the child with the Wood Spirit Pearl, and agreed to wait until they found the child with the Fire Spirit Pearl before gathering them. At the Borderlands, the Third Battalion's commander revealed that Yuan Can had seemed to argue with an unseen presence that called his betrayal of Eastern Lin his destiny.

• Xia Wanwan followed Daoist Qianyun to Yuanbao's room and learned that Liuli possessed the Wood Spirit Pearl.
• Yuanbao explained that Liuli had been practicing her handwriting to reassure the Empress Dowager, and that Liu Zimu had helped her regain some happiness.
• Xia Wanwan told Daoist Qianyun not to take Liuli away until they found the child with the Fire Spirit Pearl, and asked him how to speed her mother's soul's recovery.
• Xia Siheng rescued Old General Mo's remaining troops, ordered him to muster forces, and arrested Yuan Can for treason.
• The Third Battalion's commander recounted hearing Yuan Can cry that he was not a traitor before shouting that betrayal was his destiny.

Xia Siheng questioned Yuan Can after the battalion commanders suspected that he had been possessed, but the exorcism talisman had no effect. Yuan Can insisted that an unknown force had compelled him to betray Great Xia, then fell into agony as conflicting thoughts overwhelmed him.

• The battalion commanders urged Xia Siheng to reconsider Yuan Can's guilt, believing his loyal and compassionate nature made treason impossible.
• Jing Er placed one of the Little Princess's Exorcism Talismans on Yuan Can, but nothing happened.
• Yuan Can awoke, recognized Xia Siheng, and said he had struggled to resist an inexplicable compulsion to serve East Lin.
• Xia Siheng told Yuan Can that he believed him, and Yuan Can broke down, protesting that he was not a traitor.
• Yuan Can began muttering conflicting words about his identity and fate, then clutched his head and screamed in pain as Jing Er asked Xia Siheng what to do.

Yuan Can learned from his family’s letter what his betrayal would cost them and killed himself, asking Xia Siheng to spare his family. Jing Er helped Xia Siheng realize the plot had drawn him away so the Ninth Prince’s Residence could be attacked.

• Xia Siheng and Jing Er restrained Yuan Can as he struggled between declaring loyalty to East Lin and insisting he was not its running dog.
• Xia Siheng gave Yuan Can letters from his mother, son, and wife, and Yuan Can broke down in grief as he read their hopes for his safe return.
• Yuan Can slit his throat, asking Xia Siheng to protect his family and saying he wanted to understand why he had lost control of himself.
• Xia Siheng swore to make those behind the scheme pay for Yuan Can’s death and suspected East Lin was involved.
• Jing Er pointed out that the scheme may have been intended to draw Xia Siheng away, and Xia Siheng realized the Ninth Prince’s Residence might already be under attack.

After Yuan Can died under suspicious circumstances, Xia Siheng prepared to attack East Lin while Xia Wanwan suspected the plot was meant to leave her mother vulnerable. Xia Wanwan secretly fed her mother heart blood to help restore her soul, then learned the last child with a Fire Spirit Pearl was her little cousin.

• Xia Siheng sent letters about Yuan Can's death and ordered his troops to prepare an attack on Eastern Lin City to avenge him.
• Xia Wanwan suspected Yuan Can's fate had been altered to lure her father away so enemies could target the Ninth Prince's Residence, but she told Consort Ling to reassure him that all was well.
• Xia Wanwan asked Consort Ling to claim an East Lin expert had altered Yuan Can's fate, then secretly fed her mother heart blood with spiritual power.
• Xia Wanwan continued giving her mother heart blood while her eldest brother studied for the examination instead of worrying over her.
• Daoist Qianyun returned with the last child who had a Fire Spirit Pearl, and Xia Wanwan recognized the child as her little cousin and accused him of stealing her.

After a month of care and Xia Wanwan secretly feeding Liu Wan blood from her heart, Liu Wan showed signs of waking, leaving the family overjoyed. Meanwhile, Shen Chuanlian continued searching for the Heavenly Dao and sought a fortune-teller, whose reaction to his palm left his fate uncertain.

• Daoist Qianyun confirmed Liu Wan should awaken after thirty days and took Xia Wanwan’s little cousin and Liuli to Azure Cloud Temple.
• Xia Wanwan secretly fed Liu Wan blood from her heart each night while Yuanbao and the household helped care for her.
• On the final day of the month, Liu Wan clasped Xia Wanwan’s hand, and the family gathered around her in joyful tears.
• Minister Liu rushed to the Ninth Prince’s Residence, learned Liu Wan was responding, and broke down in Xia Wanwan’s arms.
• Shen Chuanlian searched fruitlessly for the Heavenly Dao, then descended to a mortal town and asked a fortune-teller to read his palm.
• The fortune-teller examined Shen Chuanlian’s palm, and his smile suddenly froze.

Shen Chuanlian confronted Star Lord Siming to learn who had given him his cruel fate. Siming revealed that the Heavenly Dao had ordered him to alter Shen Chuanlian’s mother’s destiny so Shen Chuanlian would become a Demon God and be destroyed.

• After the old Daoist failed to divine Shen Chuanlian’s fate, he directed him to the Temple of the Star Lord of Fate, and Gu Ming followed him there.
• Shen Chuanlian drove the worshippers away, overturned the incense burner, and attacked Siming’s statue, demanding to know who had arranged his fate.
• Siming appeared and told Shen Chuanlian that the Heavenly Dao, not Siming, had determined his destiny.
• When Shen Chuanlian threatened to destroy Siming’s statue and plunge the world into chaos, Siming showed him the story of his mother’s life.
• Siming revealed that the Heavenly Dao had ordered him to change Shen Chuanlian’s mother’s fate because Shen Chuanlian had to become a Demon God so he could be eradicated.

Shen Chuanlian learned that fate-changing had caused his mother’s tragic life and destroyed Star Lord Siming’s chance to become a god, so he set out to force Yue Xuanji to appear by attacking the Mortal Emperor. As Siming sacrificed himself and Yue Xuanji vowed revenge, she tried to kill Liu Wan to drive Xia Wanwan into confronting Shen Chuanlian, but Xia Wanwan arrived just as Liu Wan was near death.

• Shen Chuanlian crushed Siming’s divine statue, condemned him for changing fate, and flew off intending to attack the Mortal Emperor and provoke the Heavenly Dao.
• Siming returned the Fate Scroll, exhausted his strength, detonated his divine soul, and vanished as his Divine Temple collapsed.
• Yue Xuanji appeared at the ruins and vowed to avenge Siming by making Shen Chuanlian disappear.
• Minister Liu told Xia Wanwan that the Phoenix’s attack had changed direction and struck Liu Wan, confirming her suspicion that someone had manipulated the incident.
• Yue Xuanji put Liu Wan and the others in a deep sleep and began strangling Liu Wan so Xia Wanwan would go after Shen Chuanlian.
• Xia Wanwan burst into Liu Wan’s room and cried out to her mother as Liu Wan was close to death.

Liu Wan woke from her month-long unconsciousness and reunited with Xia Wanwan, while the household celebrated her recovery. Meanwhile, news reached the Capital that the Ninth Prince had captured East Lin’s first city, and the emperor secretly celebrated the victory with the Empress Dowager.

• Xia Wanwan found Liu Wan safe after Yue Xuanji vanished, and Liu Wan woke the next day and embraced her daughter.
• Consort Ling, Lady Liu, Liu Shi, and others visited to celebrate Liu Wan’s recovery, while Xia Wanwan stayed close because she feared her mother would be harmed again.
• Liu Wan secretly added her blood to Xia Wanwan’s tonic after realizing her daughter had given her heart blood while she was unconscious.
• News arrived in the Capital that the Ninth Prince had led twenty thousand soldiers to capture East Lin’s first city in half a month.
• The emperor woke from pretending to be unconscious, celebrated the victory with the Empress Dowager, and joked about his looks.

The Empress Dowager and the emperor planned to wait for Southern Yue to provoke Great Xia before sending troops to aid Southern Mei. At the Ninth Prince’s Residence, Liu Wan and Xia Wanwan learned that Shen Chuanlian had appeared as the Black-Winged Youth and helped Great Xia capture East Lin, and Liu Wan revealed that he had once saved her from a fatal attack.

• The Empress Dowager told the emperor that the Eldest Princess had seized Southern Mei’s throne and asked Great Xia for military aid against Southern Yue, while submitting documents declaring Southern Mei a vassal.
• The Empress Dowager explained that Great Xia needed a just cause to send troops, and Master Youzheng pointed them toward the Detention Center in the Capital Outskirts.
• Liu Wan and Xia Wanwan read Xia Siheng’s letter describing how the Black-Winged Youth killed East Lin’s commander and enabled Great Xia to capture the city.
• Xia Wanwan concluded that Shen Chuanlian had been searching for her, and Liu Wan said the youth sounded like him.
• Liu Wan revealed that Shen Chuanlian had pushed her out of the way of a fatal Phoenix Feather Plume strike during the tea ceremony.

Liu Wan and Xia Wanwan read their letters, while Xie Jin'an discovered Xiaomi had been forced to handle Happy Powder and reported Southern Yue Remnants to the authorities. After returning home, he found a man threatening Yan and their infant daughter, and rushed in to stop him.

• Liu Wan reassured Xia Wanwan, then read her own letter and kept its unsuitable contents from her daughter.
• Xie Jin'an learned that Xiaomi had hidden a packet of gray powder and heard the boy explain that someone had forced him to take it to protect the patients' medicine.
• Xie Jin'an reported the crime, and officers captured several Southern Yue Remnants the next day.
• Xie Jin'an gave the reward to Xiaomi's family to help him quit the powder, then returned home and found the courtyard disturbed.
• Xie Jin'an heard a man threaten Yan and their three-month-old daughter, kicked open the door, and shouted for him to stop.

Xie Jin'an died protecting Yan and their daughter from a Southern Yue loyalist, and the Empress Dowager used his death as grounds to declare war on Southern Yue. Meanwhile, Xia Siheng's campaign devastated East Lin, whose ruler considered using someone he cared about to stop the attack.

• Xie Jin'an fought a burly Southern Yue loyalist to protect Yan and their infant daughter, then died holding the attacker while Yan escaped for help.
• Villagers and government soldiers arrived, and the Empress Dowager ordered troops in the Southern States to attack Southern Yue.
• Minister Liu brought relief funds to Yan, who mourned Xie Jin'an and recognized that he had died protecting their child.
• Great Xia prepared to focus its military campaign on East Lin while Southern Mei fought Southern Yue.
• Xia Siheng's forces killed East Lin's general, and Eunuch Mo reminded the ruler that East Lin held someone Xia Siheng cared about.

As Great Xia’s army threatened East Lin, Eunuch Mo proposed using the Empress Dowager to make Xia Siheng withdraw, while Grand Tutor Peng condemned the plan and defended her. The Ruler of Eastern Lin claimed he would ask his mother to mediate peace, and Grand Tutor Peng left determined to visit her.

• Eunuch Mo suggested offering the Empress Dowager as a bargaining chip to force Xia Siheng to withdraw his troops.
• Grand Tutor Peng objected, warning that the proposal would disgrace East Lin and recounting how the Empress Dowager had risked her life to destroy the Southern Yue Poison Den.
• Eunuch Mo argued that Great Xia had already ruined the Ruler of Eastern Lin’s reputation, and the Ruler tacitly supported his suggestion.
• The Ruler ordered Eunuch Mo to slap his own face, then told the ministers he would ask the Empress Dowager to mediate peace.
• Grand Tutor Peng doubted the Empress Dowager was being cared for as claimed and decided to visit her.

The Ruler of Eastern Lin forced medicine down the Empress Dowager’s throat to restore her speech, then demanded that she persuade Xia Siheng to withdraw his invading forces. After threatening her and dismissing his wife’s pleas, he went to visit Linglong, while Grand Tutor Peng secretly entered the palace to check on the Empress Dowager.

• The Ruler of Eastern Lin had Eunuch Mo force the Empress Dowager to drink medicine that burned her mouth and throat, restoring her ability to speak.
• The Ruler of Eastern Lin told the Empress Dowager that Xia Siheng had invaded East Lin and ordered her to persuade him to withdraw.
• The Empress Dowager remembered how the Ruler of Eastern Lin had killed his younger brother’s cat and realized how cruel he was.
• The Ruler of Eastern Lin ordered the attendants to keep the Empress Dowager cared for and out of sight, then threatened to slaughter his wife’s clan when told she was threatening suicide.
• The Ruler of Eastern Lin chose to visit Linglong, while Grand Tutor Peng slipped into the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility to investigate the Empress Dowager’s condition.

Grand Tutor Peng discovered that the Sovereign had imprisoned and abused the Empress Dowager for twenty years, and vowed to support her in the war. Meanwhile, the Sovereign elevated Linglong to Consort Xian and demoted Consort Jing after learning she had spread rumors about Linglong.

• Grand Tutor Peng found the Empress Dowager in a filthy, neglected state and learned that the Sovereign had abused her for twenty years.
• The Empress Dowager asked to see Xia Siheng, and Grand Tutor Peng pledged to follow her decision about the war.
• Linglong acted hurt over harem rumors, prompting the Sovereign to grant her the title of Consort Xian.
• Eunuch Mo traced the rumors to Consort Jing's palace, and the Sovereign stripped Consort Jing of her title and demoted her.

After being demoted, Consort Jing decided to flee East Lin with Jiu'er, the Little Imperial Prince, and her rabbit before Xia Siheng’s army reached the palace. Shen Chuanlian urged Xia Siheng to march on East Lin, then returned at dawn to order him to get up and fight.

• Consort Jing told Jiu'er that East Lin would lose the war and planned to escape with her and the Little Imperial Prince.
• Consort Jing decided to bring along the rabbit that had comforted her through pregnancy and childbirth.
• Shen Chuanlian entered Xia Siheng’s tent and urged him to attack East Lin’s Imperial Palace within three days.
• Xia Siheng refused to act rashly without knowing Shen Chuanlian’s purpose and preparing for battle.
• At dawn, Shen Chuanlian appeared by Xia Siheng’s bed and told him to get up and fight.

Shen Chuanlian told Xia Siheng that Liu Wan had died after the Heavenly Dao used the Phoenix Feather Plume against her, and urged him to attack East Lin for revenge. Xia Siheng agreed to fight alongside Shen Chuanlian, while the victorious army’s letter home reached Liu Wan, addressed to Xia Wanwan.

• Shen Chuanlian revealed his identity to Xia Siheng and explained that he was seeking a way to save Liu Wan.
• Xia Siheng learned that the Heavenly Dao had caused Liu Wan’s death and grieved, then resolved to avenge her with Shen Chuanlian.
• Xia Siheng ordered his troops to march on East Lin and said he would ask Xia Wanwan to join them.
• Shen Chuanlian and his attendant helped Great Xia seize East Lin’s second city in a single day, and reports of their victory spread.
• Half a month later, Liu Wan received Xia Siheng’s letter, which was addressed to Xia Wanwan.

After reading Xia Siheng’s letter, Liu Wan and Xia Wanwan decided she would travel to the battlefield to tell him Liu Wan was alive. As Xia Wanwan prepared to leave with Yuanbao, he took her to the place where he had lived as a kitten, promising to explain why he and Wushuang looked alike.

• Xia Wanwan told Liu Wan that Xia Siheng had grieved over her apparent death and vowed to join her in the Yellow Springs after conquering East Lin.
• Liu Wan agreed that Xia Wanwan should go to the battlefield and urged her to return safely with Xia Siheng.
• Liu Wan gave Xia Wanwan food, clothes, and a bottle of her own blood, while Xia Wanwan gave a Qilin Horn to Liu Wan and another to her eldest brother.
• Yuanbao arrived to escort Xia Wanwan and invited her to visit the place where he had lived as a kitten before going to the battlefield.
• Yuanbao told Xia Wanwan that meeting Wushuang would explain why the two of them looked exactly alike.

Yuanbao brought Xia Wanwan to Wushuang’s grave and revealed how the Ruler of Eastern Lin destroyed Wushuang’s life and drove him to his death. After recovering Wushuang’s jade pendant, Yuanbao and Xia Wanwan hurried toward the war, hoping to stop Xia Wanwan’s father from dying.

• Liu Wan cared for Consort Ling, and Consort Ling promised to accompany her to the clan ceremony for Zi Mu.
• Zi Mu discovered that the family was raising the phoenix Yuanbao had entrusted to Liu Wan.
• Yuanbao brought Xia Wanwan to Wushuang’s grave and explained that the Ruler of Eastern Lin had violated Wushuang and forced him to flee as a spy.
• Wushuang had asked Yuanbao to find his fiancée, Rong Xue, and pass on his final message if she remained unmarried.
• Yuanbao dug up Wushuang’s crescent-shaped jade pendant and urged Xia Wanwan to ensure her father showed the Ruler of Eastern Lin no mercy.
• Xia Wanwan panicked that her father would soon die after winning the war and shouted for them to hurry to East Lin.

Xia Siheng’s army reached the outskirts of East Lin’s Imperial City after conquering dozens of cities, while the exhausted Ruler of Eastern Lin sought a way to negotiate peace and restore public support. He approved Grand Tutor Peng’s plan to use the Empress Dowager to negotiate and later spread a false account blaming Great Xia for the war.

• Xia Siheng agreed to let his exhausted battalion commanders rest for a day as his army camped near East Lin’s Imperial City.
• The Ruler of Eastern Lin’s ministers warned that the people blamed him for the war and urged him to negotiate peace with Great Xia.
• Eunuch Mo proposed sending the Empress Dowager to negotiate and offering Duke Yan to Xia Siheng as a gesture of sincerity.
• Grand Tutor Peng suggested that the Ruler use the Empress Dowager’s popularity to claim Great Xia had framed him and invaded for profit.
• The Ruler of Eastern Lin approved Grand Tutor Peng’s plan to restore his reputation after Great Xia withdrew.

The Ruler of Eastern Lin ordered the Empress Dowager to take a Gu Worm to restore her appearance before Great Xia attacked, but she used the moment to send him a brocade box and endured the Gu's terrible pain. Meanwhile, Duke Yan brought her to Xia Siheng’s camp, where she reunited with her grandson despite her blindness.

• The Ruler of Eastern Lin learned the Empress Dowager could not regain her appearance in time and agreed to summon a Witch Doctor, whose Gu Worm could restore her looks but would kill her within three days.
• After hearing the Ruler and Eunuch Mo discuss the Gu, the Empress Dowager asked Eunuch Mo to retrieve a brocade box and deliver it to the Ruler as his final opportunity.
• The Empress Dowager drank the Gu medicine and collapsed in agony as the Worm consumed her vital blood.
• Duke Yan brought the Empress Dowager to Xia Siheng’s military camp, where Xia Siheng greeted her and learned she had been blinded for more than twenty years.
• The Empress Dowager recognized Xia Siheng by touch, and he nestled his face in her palm and told her he was there.

The Empress Dowager told Xia Siheng not to kill his uncle and chose to remain in Eastern Lin as she neared death. After the Xia army withdrew, the Sovereign celebrated the peace but rejected the Empress Dowager’s brocade box, leaving its opportunity undiscovered.

• The Empress Dowager recalled her daughter Yue'er and her final words, then asked Xia Siheng not to kill his uncle.
• The Empress Dowager refused to return with Xia Siheng and closed her eyes after entrusting him with her final request.
• The Xia army withdrew, and Eastern Lin's Sovereign celebrated the peace and planned to win back the people's support.
• The Sovereign ordered Eunuch Mo to monitor Duke Yan and planned for his mother and Grand Tutor Peng to meet the people.
• The Sovereign refused to open the Empress Dowager's brocade box, and Eunuch Mo put it in a corner.

Xia Wanwan, Yuanbao, and Shen Chuanlian met at the border, where Shen Chuanlian explained that Xia Siheng had withdrawn his troops after someone claiming to be his maternal grandmother arrived from East Lin. As Shen Chuanlian tried to discuss who had killed Liu Wan, Xia Wanwan bit his arm.

• Yuanbao and Xia Wanwan reached the border and found no Great Xia soldiers stationed there.
• Shen Chuanlian trapped Yuanbao in a Barrier and appeared with Gu Ming, prompting Xia Wanwan to charge at him in anger.
• Shen Chuanlian took Xia Wanwan's shovel and set her beside Gu Ming, who fed her and Yuanbao roasted pheasant.
• Shen Chuanlian apologized for nearly getting Xia Siheng killed and said Xia Siheng had withdrawn his troops after someone claiming to be his maternal grandmother arrived from East Lin.
• Shen Chuanlian asked whether Xia Wanwan wanted revenge on the person who killed Liu Wan, and she demanded he kneel before biting his arm.

Shen Chuanlian told Xia Wanwan how the Heavenly Dao altered his mother’s fate and drove him to become a demon. Xia Wanwan realized that the Heavenly Dao had manipulated both of them, and Shen Chuanlian resolved to kill her and use her power to rewrite Liu Wan’s destiny.

• Shen Chuanlian asked Xia Wanwan whether she wanted to kill the Heavenly Dao and explained how he had searched for it after becoming a demon.
• Shen Chuanlian recounted how the Heavenly Dao changed his mother’s fate, leading to years of abuse, her suicide, and the desecration of her corpse.
• Xia Wanwan concluded that the Heavenly Dao had altered both their families’ destinies to make them destroy each other.
• Shen Chuanlian learned that the Heavenly Dao would lose its position if it had desires, and he decided to use its power to rewrite Liu Wan’s destiny.

Xia Wanwan agreed to rest before searching for her father after Shen Chuanlian promised to take her to him in the morning. While she slept beside him in the safe Barrier, Shen Chuanlian examined her desires and discovered that she wanted to eat him.

• Xia Wanwan worried about her father, but Shen Chuanlian promised he would keep him alive and take her to find him after she rested.
• Gu Ming explained that he and Shen Chuanlian knew where to search, and Yuanbao said he trusted Gu Ming rather than Shen Chuanlian.
• Xia Wanwan fell asleep against Shen Chuanlian's arm, while Yuanbao rested in a tree and Gu Ming kept watch by the fire.
• Shen Chuanlian covered Xia Wanwan with a quilt and used his power to inspect her desires.
• Shen Chuanlian discovered that Xia Wanwan repeatedly wanted to eat him and reacted with disbelief and anger.