Chapter Summaries

Song Chao attained the Dao and used his power with Huang Hongchuan to transform Broad South Mountain into a lively gathering place. Yi A Bao and Wu Yuantao arrived with Yi Shuyuan and Yi Yong'an, and the celebration grew as mountain spirits and other guests came to congratulate Song Chao.

• Song Chao's breakthrough released spiritual energy across Broad South Mountain, and he used an ancient painting with Huang Hongchuan to bring the mountain and a grand residence to life.
• A Bao and Wu Yuantao left for the mountain in the Yi Household carriage, while the little girl invited the Land God, who stayed behind to guard his post.
• The carriage traveled along a newly formed road to Green Pine Residence, where Song Chao, Huang Hongchuan, Yi Shuyuan, and Yi Yong'an welcomed the guests.
• Yi A Bao and Wu Yuantao saw mountain spirits playing and serving the banquet, while Yi Yong'an filled his bag with fruit for his family and Yi Shuyuan encouraged A Bao to help.
• Cave Lords and other spirit cultivators arrived to congratulate Song Chao, and Lady Yao E of the E River came as a distinguished guest.

The Great Toad King Chanshang arrived at Broad South Mountain to congratulate Old Pine and discovered a lively celebration where Yi A Bao accepted a demon’s long-held student’s devotion. Chanshang then recognized Yi Daozi among the guests, finding the person he had been searching for.

• The Moon Province City God sensed Old Pine’s released essence and praised his breakthrough and generosity.
• Chanshang flew to Broad South Mountain, entered Green Pine Residence without an announcement, and congratulated Old Pine.
• Yu Mihuan revealed that he had secretly studied under Yi A Bao for years and presented him with a refined piece of candy, which Yi A Bao accepted.
• Chanshang noticed the gray-haired guest beside Yi Yong’an and realized he was Yi Daozi, the Immortal Venerable he had sought.

At Old Pine’s feast, the Great Toad King Chanshang presented a treasured gift and met Yi Shuyuan, then escorted the drunken Yu Mihuan home. On the ride back to the Yi Household, Yi Yong'an asked Yi Shuyuan for a special favor: to catch the enormous fish that had escaped their fishing rods.

• Chanshang gave Old Pine a piece of his exceptionally resilient toad slough and learned that Yi Shuyuan was present.
• Chanshang introduced himself to Yi Shuyuan, who invited him to visit at the Yi Household in West River Town.
• After the feast, Chanshang carried the drunken Yu Mihuan toward Jade Du Gorge, while Yu Mihuan struggled to direct him.
• Yi Shuyuan and the others left Old Pine’s mountain feast by carriage, and Yi Yong'an asked whether his uncle had become an immortal.
• Yi Yong'an wished to haul ashore the big fish that had once escaped their fishing rods, and Yi Shuyuan agreed to hear his request.

Yi Yong'an renewed his decades-old fishing contest at the E River mouth and fought a supernatural fish with the rod Yi Daozi had given him. He lost the fish at the last moment, but the Yaksha commander revealed himself, admitted defeat, and offered the crowd a haul of fish.

• Yi A Bao woke at home, confirmed with Lu Junling that the mountain banquet had been real, and hurried with Wu Yuantao and Wu Ziqun to watch Yi Yong'an fish.
• Yan Bo warned Yi Yong'an that the fish was coming, while Yao E transformed the Yaksha commander into a giant fish and explained how their contest would be balanced.
• The Yaksha commander swallowed Yi Yong'an's hook, and Yi Yong'an fought the fish through enormous waves until he briefly hauled it above the river before it slipped free.
• The Yaksha commander appeared on the bank, confessed that he had been the fish Yi Yong'an had pursued for years, and acknowledged his defeat.
• Yi Yong'an asked the Yaksha commander to rise, and the Yaksha summoned large fish from the river onto the bank.

Yi Yong'an celebrated catching the E River Yaksha with West River Town, while his family worried over his health. Months later, his wife Li and old friends from the Underworld came to receive him, and he died peacefully surrounded by his family.

• Yi Yong'an told children how his fishing skill had let him catch the E River Yaksha, while the Wu family shared Wu Minggao’s later-life story and letters with Yi Shuyuan.
• The Yi family spent months anxiously watching Yi Yong'an, while Yi A Bao stayed home and slept beside his father.
• Yi Shuyuan and Hui Mian hosted Wu Minggao and Netherworld Officials for wine after Wu Minggao returned to visit.
• Yi Yong'an saw his wife Li and called Yi A Bao to gather the family, while Netherworld Officials waited outside his room.
• Yi Shuyuan and Wu Minggao entered with the Netherworld Officials, and Yi Yong'an recognized old friends who had come to escort him.
• Yi Yong'an died peacefully, surrounded by his children and grandchildren.

After Yi Yong'an’s funeral, Yi Shuyuan prepared to leave the Yi Household, leaving Yi A Bao with an indirect promise that they would meet again. The Great Toad King then asked Yi Shuyuan about White Crane and revealed his interest in Fairy Mili.

• Yi Yong'an was buried at the Yi Household’s ancestral grounds as a large funeral procession attended by relatives and prominent guests.
• Huang Hongchuan and Old Pine watched the procession and discussed Yi Yong'an’s closeness to the Dao.
• Yi Shuyuan told Yi A Bao he would not return to the household, and A Bao tearfully asked whether Yi Shuyuan would someday see him off.
• Hui Mian gave A Bao a hawthorn and explained that Yi Shuyuan’s lack of a clear answer was itself an answer, leaving A Bao comforted as he returned to the procession.
• Yi Shuyuan met the Great Toad King, who asked about White Crane and admitted his interest in Fairy Mili.

Yi A Bao discovered a golden pill hidden inside the hawthorn berry left by his great-granduncle and sealed it away for a future Yi descendant who sought true enlightenment. At South Hill Ridge, the Great Toad King asked Yi Shuyuan for an Immortal Elixir to help his adopted daughter survive her approaching tribulation.

• Hui Mian told Yi Shuyuan that a prominent figure from Moon Province planned to build a Poetry and Song Garden with the Yi Household in West River Town.
• Yi A Bao found a pale golden pill inside a cracked hawthorn berry, then sealed the berry in beeswax and told Yi Xuan to keep it secret.
• Yi Xuan learned that his great-granduncle had not returned from the mountain and realized he would never see him again.
• The Great Toad King asked Yi Shuyuan for an Immortal Elixir and explained that he wanted it for his late brother’s daughter, whom he had raised as his own.
• The Great Toad King recounted how a great upheaval had killed his brother and ruined the Golden Toad Palace, and said his daughter’s tribulation was approaching.

The Great Toad King asked Yi Shuyuan for an Immortal Elixir to save his daughter, Xiao Yao, but learned that neither of Yi Shuyuan’s available pills was suitable. Yi Shuyuan agreed to help him face the coming tribulation, gave him a strand of empowered hair, and then set out for Taiyin Mountain to investigate the upheaval and the Taiyin Palace’s secret art.

• The Great Toad King offered Yi Shuyuan rare treasures and his finest wine in hopes of obtaining an Immortal Elixir.
• Yi Shuyuan explained that the Vital Essence Pill would not help Xiao Yao survive her tribulation and that the Heavenly Battle Pill would likely burn her to ashes.
• Yi Shuyuan promised to help the Great Toad King and gave him a strand of empowered hair to carry as he went to find Xiao Yao.
• The Great Toad King departed for the north, while Yi Shuyuan left South Hill Ridge and headed for Taiyin Mountain to investigate the upheaval and perhaps help Xiao Lin.

Yi Shuyuan visited Taiyin Palace to ask about the Great Toad King and learned that the palace had helped the Northern Heavenly Realm suppress turmoil in the Northern Territories. After hearing that Du Xiaolin was connected to the matter, Shi Wei agreed that she could accompany Yi Shuyuan.

• Du Xiaolin's attempt to absorb moonlight and form an immortal robe failed, but she endured the backlash and continued meditating.
• Shi Wei worried that Du Xiaolin's attachment to self would prevent her from becoming a true Taiyin Immortal, while Zhuo Qing believed the Starwoven Pill would still help her in time.
• Yi Shuyuan arrived at Taiyin Palace with Hui Mian and asked Shi Wei about the Great Toad King's past and his daughter.
• Shi Wei explained that Taiyin Palace had cooperated with the Northern Heavenly Realm amid the Northern Mang Demon Clan's upheaval, which had helped bring stability to the Northern Territories.
• After hearing Shi Wei's account, Yi Shuyuan said Du Xiaolin could accompany him, and Shi Wei agreed.

Yi Shuyuan left the Taiyin Palace and traveled north toward the prosperous coastal lands, while Du Xiaolin discussed her recovery and plans with Zhuo Qing. He arrived at a busy harbor, where a fisherman claimed to have caught dragon scales.

• Yi Shuyuan left the Taiyin Palace, leaving a note for Du Xiaolin and recording his journey in his book as Hui Mian traveled with him.
• Du Xiaolin told Zhuo Qing she hoped to recover her former feelings and memories, then said she would visit Stoneborn in Tea Province before seeking Yi Shuyuan's help.
• Yi Shuyuan crossed the sea and encountered a pod of whales before reaching a bustling harbor in the northern lands.
• Yi Shuyuan explored the harbor, learned its local language through his transformation, and concluded that the country was prosperous.
• Fisherman Li Laosan drew a crowd by announcing that his catch included dragon scales.

Li Laosan and his son sold three strange scales as Dragon Scales and brought the silver home, where one hidden scale began stirring the sea and producing an eerie howl. Yi Shuyuan recognized that the scale’s aura was causing the disturbance and moved to protect the village, concluding that the object was more sinister than Hui Mian suspected.

• Li Laosan displayed three luminous scales at the dock, and the crowd bought them for high prices.
• Yi Shuyuan followed Li Laosan’s boat and warned him to keep some of the treasure, but Li Laosan and his son returned home with their silver.
• Li Laosan told his wife that the Dragon King had put food on their table, while mice and insects fled the house unnoticed.
• The Li Household held a village feast as Yi Shuyuan watched from the coast and noticed the tide surging toward the village’s hidden scale.
• Yi Shuyuan spread a watery aura over the village to calm the tide and mournful sea howl, then told Hui Mian that the scale was especially sinister.

Yi Shuyuan investigated the Li Household’s feast and found a dragon scale hidden in their ancestral niche. Its lingering resentment reacted to his presence, and he left the scale in place while considering what might have brought it to the village.

• Yi Shuyuan watched the villagers’ feast and judged that White Wave Village was relatively prosperous and stable.
• Li Yi glimpsed Yi Shuyuan in the mist, but the figure vanished before he could reach it.
• Yi Shuyuan found a yellow-marked dragon scale hidden behind the ancestral tablets and felt its powerful resentment.
• The scale’s lingering thoughts conjured a vision of a wounded dragon and stirred a strange wind through the Li Household.
• Yi Shuyuan soothed the disturbance, returned the scale to its hiding place, and wondered whether to investigate the North Sea Dragonkind or the North Sea Dragon Palace.

Yi Shuyuan followed the mysterious resentment from the Li Household’s treasure to Haiyu County, where he transformed into the White Dragon Ao Po and learned from local children that he had arrived in the kingdom of Great Qiu. He left the children with unusual copper coins, and their uncle began to suspect the stranger’s questions and money were suspicious.

• Li Laosan checked the bundle hidden behind his parents’ memorial tablets and urged them to guard the treasure that might bring the Li Household prosperity.
• Yi Shuyuan and Hui Mian left the fishing village, and Yi Shuyuan transformed into the White Dragon Ao Po to make the unclear trail easier to follow.
• Ao Po arrived in Haiyu County and bought two roasted taro from four children in exchange for twenty copper coins and answers about the kingdom.
• The children told Ao Po that Haiyu County belonged to North Sea Commandery and that their kingdom was Great Qiu, though they were unsure how long it had existed.
• The children’s uncle examined the coins, realized they were not standard currency, and questioned the children about Ao Po’s strange questions.

Ao Po and Hui Mian discovered that the servant who had bought one of the dragon scales had been smothered to death, while a cloud of resentment fled his corpse. The authorities arrived to investigate, unaware that Ao Po and Hui Mian had already left the room.

• Landowner Liu told the County Magistrate that three wondrous dragon scales had been hauled up at Haiyu Harbor and urged him to seize the two that had gone to outsiders.
• Ao Po sensed trouble at an inn and rushed into a room, where his dragon presence scattered a cloud of resentment and Hui Mian tried to seal the exits.
• Ao Po identified the dead man as the servant who had bought a scale and said the scale was next door with his master.
• Inn guests discovered the corpse and called for the authorities as bailiffs arrived to search for a wanted criminal.
• The Chief Constable secured the inn and entered the room, where he found the corpse and realized something had already happened.

After a servant was murdered over the Dragon Scale, County Magistrate Guan Xinrui ordered Fu Changyu brought to the County Office for protection. Ao Po captured the killer, who revealed that a strange dream had pushed him to draw the authorities’ attention to the Dragon Scale, leaving Ao Po and Hui Mian wondering why the North Sea Dragon Lord had not acted.

• The Chief Constable reported that the servant had been smothered and robbed, and Guan Xinrui ordered Fu Changyu brought to the County Office because of the Dragon Scale.
• Officers took Fu Changyu to the County Office while runners secured the inn and moved the body to the morgue.
• Ao Po found the killer watching the inn from a rooftop, caught him as he fled, and demanded to know who he was.
• The killer said a strange dream had urged him to attract the County Office’s attention so the Dragon Scale would reach local authorities.
• Ao Po knocked the killer unconscious and discussed with Hui Mian how the Dragon Scale and the sea’s lingering resentment might involve the North Sea Dragonkind.

Ao Po traced the third dragon scale to a traveling merchant and discovered that it manifested terrifying resentment through a vision of the Northern Mang Demon King. After reclaiming the scale and leaving the merchant a Night-Luminescent Pearl, Ao Po sent Hui Mian to the North Sea to learn what the Dragon Palace knew.

• Ao Po and Hui Mian flew northwest after Ao Po sensed the third scale had left Haiyu County, and Ao Po found only an ordinary wolf despite sensing savage malice in its howl.
• Ao Po told Hui Mian that the scale could stir strange resentment, and he wondered whether the sensation connected to his tribulation or a heart demon.
• Ao Po tracked the scale to a traveling merchant at a waystation, where the man dreamed that a wounded dragon demanded its scale and woke to find the scale replaced by a glowing pearl.
• Ao Po reclaimed the scale with a small trick and left the Night-Luminescent Pearl for the merchant, who believed the dragon had rewarded him.
• Ao Po gave the scale to Hui Mian and ordered him to visit the North Sea Dragon Lord to learn the Dragon Palace's knowledge and stance.

Hui Mian concealed the dragon scale before leaving, while a masked man secretly followed events in Haiyu County. The man witnessed Guan Xinrui and Landowner Liu admiring the scale, but a ghostly reflection terrified the magistrate and exposed the intruder.

• Hui Mian wrapped the scale in golden chains with the spell Mist Conceals Its Trail, then flew toward the North Sea as Ao Po returned to Haiyu County.
• Dogs woke a masked man hiding in the grass, and he fled across rooftops before making his way to the County Office.
• Guan Xinrui and Landowner Liu tested the scale in a basin and saw its light form dragon-like patterns around the study.
• The masked man watched through a gap in the roof as Guan Xinrui saw a pale woman's reflection in the basin and cried out in fright.
• Landowner Liu shouted that a thief was on the roof, and the masked man fled as bailiffs pursued him.
• Guan Xinrui asked Landowner Liu to remove the scale and cautiously checked the basin, then calmed himself after seeing only water.

Guan Xinrui coveted the Dragon Scale and dreamed of imperial rewards, while Yi Shuyuan sensed its influence and uncovered the magistrate’s past crimes. Hui Mian reached the North Sea and asked a Yellow Flood Dragon for directions to the Dragon Palace.

• Landowner Liu advised Guan Xinrui to use the Dragon Scale to seek an audience with the Fourth Prince and offered to bring Huifang and the child back himself.
• Guan Xinrui took the Dragon Scale to his bedroom, dreamed of receiving imperial honors, and woke terrified when the dream turned into a bloody nightmare.
• Yi Shuyuan sensed the resentment growing around Guan Xinrui and recalled how the magistrate had abandoned and plotted against his first wife.
• A black-clad man returned to the County Office to search for the Dragon Scale, while Yi Shuyuan suspected the treasure stirred greed in those who saw it.
• Hui Mian swam into the North Sea in search of the Dragon Palace and encountered a Yellow Flood Dragon.
• Hui Mian greeted the Yellow Flood Dragon and asked for directions to the North Sea Dragon Palace; the dragon realized the marten was no ordinary visitor.

Hui Mian brought a mysterious dragon scale to the North Sea Dragon Palace and learned that it belonged to the Dragon Lord’s deceased offspring, Ya Ci. The Dragon Palace’s chancellor kept the scale but offered little explanation, and Hui Mian left without meeting the Dragon Lord.

• Huang Xun escorted Hui Mian to the North Sea Dragon Palace after recognizing him as Yi Daozi’s companion.
• Chancellor Yin Lian welcomed Hui Mian but said the Dragon Lord was in seclusion and would not receive visitors.
• Hui Mian presented a golden-glowing scale and said Great God Yunlai had found it near Haiyu County amid strange resentment and a storm.
• Yin Lian recognized the scale as belonging to Ya Ci, the Dragon Lord’s deceased offspring, and asked to keep it while promising to inform the Dragon Lord.
• Hui Mian objected to being sent away without answers, then left the Dragon Palace after Yin Lian agreed to explain the matter to Great God Yunlai if asked.

County constables forced White Wave Village's fishermen to search the rough sea after Li Laosan found dragon scales, while a Flood Dragon stirred beneath the Reef Forest. Hui Mian returned from the North Sea Dragon Palace with news that the scale belonged to Ya Ci, and Yin Lian's report prompted a formidable response from the unseen Ya You.

• Constables ordered Li Laosan and the other fishermen in White Wave Village to return to sea and dredge for more dragon scales.
• Li Laosan led the boats to a safer fishing spot as worsening winds, waves, rain, and thunder swept over the sea.
• A Flood Dragon swam beneath the Reef Forest, drawn by an aura, and its cry sent nearby sea creatures fleeing.
• Madam Guan arrived at the county government residence, where Guan Xinrui showed her a dragon scale; Yi Shuyuan later sensed an ominous change in the storm.
• Hui Mian told Yi Shuyuan that the North Sea Dragon Palace had kept the scale and that it belonged to the deceased Ya Ci.
• Yin Lian reported the previous night's events to Ya You in a deep ocean trench, and Ya You demanded to know what had happened.