Chapter Summaries

After returning to Thousand Birds Cliff, Xing Yan resumed his duties as Hall Master Zhang and learned that Hua Piaochen was recovering. Lingyi came to him in distress because her parents had accepted Meng Zhang’s betrothal gifts, and she and Xing Yan confessed their love and agreed to marry before returning together.

• Meng Zhang told the South Sea Dragon Ancestor that Xing Yan had fled after eating the Giant Yang Flowers, and they assumed he had died from their effects.
• Xi Ying attacked Meng Zhang, then fled in tears; her father and brother realized the blemishes had vanished from her face.
• Xing Yan returned to Thousand Birds Cliff, lectured the sect disciples, and heard that Hua Piaochen was recovering.
• Lingyi visited Xing Yan and told him that her parents had accepted Meng Zhang’s betrothal gifts and that she wanted to marry him instead.
• Xing Yan declared his love for Lingyi, and she accepted his proposal.
• Xing Yan’s sword failed to shatter the blue stone, but he dismissed the omen and flew away with Lingyi.

Xing Yan and Lingyi postponed her marriage proposal and settled together at Four Seas Hall while they waited for her grandfather to return. As Lingyi made a home on Thousand Birds Cliff, Meng Zhang revealed his ambition to use marriage to gain control of the Four Rivers, and Xing Yan remained anxious to master the Heaven-Earth Rebirth Tribulation.

• Xing Yan suggested Lingyi's grandfather would oppose forcing her to marry Meng Zhang, but Lingyi said he had abruptly left to visit friends.
• Xing Yan and Lingyi decided she would stay at Four Seas Hall until her grandfather returned, then explain their relationship and raise marriage with him.
• In Lin Yi Palace, Meng Zhang prepared another betrothal gift list and told Moon Lady he intended to gain command of the Four Rivers through marriage; he then kissed her before she could voice her concerns.
• Lingyi settled into daily life at Four Seas Hall, helping Xueyi with household chores and making porcelain chimes from a broken bowl.
• During a mountain outing in the seventh month, Xing Yan worried that he still had not comprehended the Heaven-Earth Rebirth Tribulation.

Lingyi used her magic to furnish and transform Four Seas Hall, while Xing Yan and his companions enjoyed a summer outing that led them to a quiet cave. As they rested in its stillness, they remained unaware that turmoil had erupted on Luofu’s main peak.

• Xing Yan began making Qiong Rong a dressing table, but Lingyi conjured one and magically renovated the rooms of Four Seas Hall.
• Lingyi played Water Immortal and sang beneath the stars, then Lin Xu and Zhang Yuner visited to announce their marriage.
• Xing Yan, Lingyi, Xueyi, and Qiong Rong went to gather flowers in a secluded valley, where a blossom Xing Yan picked for Xueyi suddenly wilted.
• Qiong Rong found a cool cave hidden behind flowers, and Xing Yan and the girls entered to rest in its silence.
• While the group rested, an uproar broke out hundreds of li away on Luofu’s main peak.

Xing Yan and his companions returned to Luofu to find Meng Zhang’s South Sea forces attacking the Shangqing Order, and they fought back against the invading dragons. Kou Xueyi sacrificed herself to save Xing Yan from Meng Zhang’s lightning whip, leaving him alone with snow falling into his empty hand.

• Xing Yan told Kou Xueyi that she was not his servant, then he and his companions hurried toward Luofu after Qiong Rong heard fighting nearby.
• Meng Zhang led the South Sea dragon army from the Checkerboard Shoals toward Luofu after learning that Four Seas Hall had left the mountain.
• Meng Zhang’s forces attacked Flying Cloud Summit, destroyed Shangqing buildings, and covered Luofu in ice and snow after Sect Master Ling Xu resisted.
• Lingyi confronted Meng Zhang while Xing Yan, Qiong Rong, and Kou Xueyi fought the dragon troops alongside the Shangqing disciples.
• Meng Zhang struck Xing Yan with his Heavenly Flash whip, and Kou Xueyi shielded him and sent him flying to safety at the cost of her life.

After the South Sea dragon army devastated Mount Luofu, Xing Yan recovered from his shock and left Shangqing Palace on an urgent errand. Five days later, Qiong Rong waited outside a mansion in Changping County as someone called her inside to meet Master Liang, who had agreed to adopt her.

• Meng Zhang withdrew the South Sea dragon army, taking the seemingly uninjured Xueyi's body with him.
• Lingyi and Qiong Rong found Xing Yan in the snow, carried him to Thousand Birds Cliff, and revived him two days later.
• Shangqing Palace buried its dead and began rebuilding, while Lingyi and Qiong Rong cared for Xing Yan until he awoke seven days after the calamity.
• Xing Yan told Ling Xu he needed a few days before returning to answer for himself, and Ling Xu gave him seven days.
• More than five days later, Qiong Rong waited outside a mansion in Changping County, where someone invited her to meet Master Liang, who had agreed to adopt her as his daughter.

Xing Yan left Qiong Rong with the Liang family, but she followed him, and he explained that he feared the dangers of their journey to the South Sea and refused to let fate separate them. The three continued toward Luofu, where Xing Yan’s mighty song shattered the dawn clouds and left him unsettled by the power he had felt.

• Xing Yan arranged for Qiong Rong to become Master Liang’s adopted daughter, but she followed Xing Yan and Lingyi out of Changping, insisting she would not stay behind while he left her alone.
• The Liang Residence Steward caught up with the travelers and relayed Master Liang’s message of encouragement, then rode back to the city.
• Xing Yan told Qiong Rong he was heading to the South Sea to avenge Xueyi and feared she would be separated from him; Qiong Rong promised to help him defy fate, and the three set off together toward Luofu.
• At a night market, Xing Yan heard a fortune-teller say fate and fortune could be turned upside down, thanked him, and secretly left him a silver ingot; he later found Qiong Rong arguing over a cake and smiled.
• After flying through the night, Xing Yan sang atop a mountain peak, and his roar parted the clouds to reveal the dawn; Qiong Rong imitated his call as the forest birds awoke.

After finding resolve to rescue Xueyi and avenge Shangqing Palace, Xing Yan returned to Luofu with Lingyi and Qiong Rong. He sought permission from Sect Master Ling Xu to leave the order and fight Meng Zhang, then spent a grief-stricken night at the ruined Four Seas Hall awaiting Ling Xu’s answer.

• At sunrise atop Ten Thousand Peaks, Xing Yan recovered his resolve, promised Qiong Rong he would take her to find Xueyi, and encouraged Lingyi to stop blaming herself and seek revenge on Meng Zhang.
• Xing Yan, Lingyi, and Qiong Rong visited Magistrate Li, where Xing Yan asked him to submit a memorial resigning his title as Central Court Grand Master so his fight with the South Sea Dragon Clan would not implicate the court.
• At Shangqing Temple, Xing Yan asked Sect Master Ling Xu to let him leave the Shangqing Order and go to the South Sea; Ling Xu told him to return the next morning for an answer.
• Back at the ruined Four Seas Hall, Qiong Rong found Xueyi’s crushed candied apricots and wept, while Xing Yan and Lingyi mourned the destruction of their home.
• Ghost King Xiao Mang reported that he had found no trace of Xueyi’s soul, and Xing Yan, Lingyi, and Qiong Rong spent the night grieving at Thousand Birds Cliff.

Xing Yan and the Highest Clarity disciples gathered to decide how to answer the South Sea dragon god Meng Zhang’s attack. Ling Xu named Qinghe the new sect master, then led a group including Xing Yan, Lingyi, and Qiong Rong toward the South Sea, leaving Qinghe to protect the order on Mount Luofu.

• Xing Yan attended the elders’ debate, where the Highest Clarity members argued over whether to seek revenge for the attack that had killed dozens of disciples.
• Qinghe urged everyone to listen to Ling Xu, who summoned the disciples and declared that the order must retaliate against Meng Zhang.
• Ling Xu announced that he would travel to the South Sea to fight Meng Zhang, and Xing Yan, Lingyi, Qiong Rong, and others stepped forward to accompany him.
• Ling Xu relinquished the sect master position to Qinghe, who accepted the Five-Mountains Crown and dismissed several disciples from the expedition so they could remain on Mount Luofu.
• Ling Xu entrusted the order to Qinghe and the Mountain Deity of Mount Luofu, then departed with the expedition; the assembled disciples bade them farewell as Jingxing wept.

Meng Zhang and Chi Gang plotted to exploit divisions in the Four Rivers while Ling Xu’s party received the completed Godslaying Seven Swords and set out for the South Sea. Their journey ended with a vast Mystic Spirit Cult army welcoming Xing Yan as its Cult Master.

• Meng Zhang and Chi Gang discussed using Luofu’s freezing to recruit dissatisfied Four Rivers gods and ordered envoys dispatched while reinforcing the southeastern front.
• Feiyang appeared before Ling Xu’s party and delivered the seven completed Godslaying swords, then promised to protect the Highest Clarity disciples left on Mount Luofu and revealed that Xing Yan’s parents were safe.
• Ling Xu and six elders took the swords south with Xing Yan, Lingyi, and Qiong Rong, planning to distract the South Sea forces while recovering Kou Xueyi’s body.
• A fierce wind and flying debris made Ling Xu fear that the South Sea had ambushed the travelers as they reached the forest beyond Mount Luofu.
• Warriors of the Mystic Spirit Cult appeared with a host of fierce birds and welcomed Xing Yan as their Cult Master.

Zhang Xingyan met the Mystic Spirit Cult’s gathered beast spirits, accepted their call to become the Myriad Spirits Demon King, and led their celebration. The Four Rivers Dragon Lord arrived with wine and the Four Spirits Regalia, while his teasing revealed Xing Yan’s secret bond with Ling Yier.

• Qiong Rong revealed that the gathered beast spirits were members of the Mystic Spirit Cult, and Yin Tieya and Kunxiang asked Xing Yan to lead them in a campaign against the South Sea Dragon Domain.
• After hearing of the spirits’ losses at Mount Luofu, Zhang Xingyan swore to share their fate and urged humans and demons to unite against the gods who oppressed them.
• Yin Tieya and Kunxiang named Xing Yan their choice for Demon King, and he accepted the title Myriad Spirits Demon King as the spirits cheered.
• The Four Rivers Dragon Lord arrived with wine, called Xing Yan his grandson-in-law, and gave him a Kunlun Goblet and the Four Spirits Regalia.
• Ling Yier recalled that her grandfather had once forbidden her from touching the regalia, and the Dragon Lord joked that it was Xing Yan’s future dowry.

Xing Yan joined the Four Rivers Dragon King, Highest Clarity, and the Mysterious Spirit Monster Race in an alliance to march against the South Sea Water Marquis. After reaching Wave-Subduing Island, Xing Yan learned that the enemy army had already arrived.

• Xing Yan donned the Four Spirits Regalia and declared that he would travel south to demand justice from Meng Zhang.
• The Lord of the Clouds announced that the Four Rivers Dragon Army would ally with Xing Yan's forces and march against the South Sea.
• At a war council beneath the Yu River, Yang Fu exposed Weng Cheng as a spy, but Xing Yan persuaded him to spare Weng Cheng and let him redeem himself.
• The allied army sailed to Wave-Subduing Island, where the Lord of the Clouds explained that he had intended to spare Weng Cheng and had planned to let Xing Yan plead for him.
• As Xing Yan and the Lord of the Clouds watched the dark sea at night, the old dragon warned that the South Sea army was already approaching.

Xing Yan and the Four Rivers forces repelled the South Sea army’s assault on Wave-Subduing Island with a surprise attack by the Mystic Spirit Cult’s beast warriors. As the victors mourned their dead, a new army of silver-armored riders emerged from the sea mist.

• Kong Tu Buwu activated the Five-Prison Divine Gate, which destroyed a nighttime raid by nearby South Sea forces.
• At sunrise, the Four Rivers Dragon Army fought the South Sea host while Xing Yan and the Mystic Spirit forces initially remained behind the lines.
• As the Four Rivers troops began to falter, Xing Yan returned to the island to arrange a counterattack, and the Lord of the Clouds ordered the army to withdraw.
• The Azure Wolf Elite Cavalry and other Mystic Spirit warriors ambushed the South Sea troops on the beach, routing them and helping the Four Rivers forces win the battle.
• After the victors mourned their dead, Xing Yan saw silver-armored riders and enormous silver-white beasts advancing through the sea mist.

Xing Yan joined the Four Rivers’ feast on Wave-Subduing Island, where Chu Huaiyu arrived with vital supplies and grew jealous of Xing Yan’s closeness with Lingyi. Later, Xing Yan walked beneath the moon with Lingyi and Qiong Rong and suddenly understood what the deceased woman he remembered had wanted, leaving him overwhelmed by grief.

• Chu Huaiyu delivered the Giant Buban and their military supplies to Wave-Subduing Island, and the Lord of the Clouds welcomed him.
• At the banquet, the Lord of the Clouds and Geng Chen explained why Meng Zhang was unlikely to attack before morning, while the assembled leaders praised Xing Yan’s battle plan.
• Lingyi brought Qiong Rong to the feast and stayed beside Xing Yan, prompting the lovesick Chu Huaiyu to challenge him with a proverb and a pointed toast.
• The Lord of the Clouds ordered everyone to remain on guard and return after midnight for an important discussion.
• Xing Yan walked along the shore with Lingyi and Qiong Rong, then remembered the deceased woman and realized what she had wanted, which filled him with grief.

Xing Yan told Ling Yier that he wanted to marry Xueyi as well, fearing he might die in the coming war against the South Sea. While the Shangqing Palace disciples prepared on Wave-Subduing Island, Ling Xu explained why their sect had allied with the demon race and hinted that battle was near.

• Xing Yan told Ling Yier that he wanted to marry Xueyi and fulfill her unfulfilled wish before the war might take his life.
• Ling Yier accepted his words without objecting to another wife, and Xing Yan fell asleep with his head resting in her embrace.
• Qiong Rong pondered Xing Yan's confession and felt close to tears, while the Shangqing Palace Daoists meditated across Wave-Subduing Island.
• Qingming questioned Ling Xu about allying with the demon race, and Ling Xu defended the alliance as a chance to survive and prevail against the South Sea.
• Ling Xu told Qingming to conserve his strength and help Xing Yan attack later that night, then sensed that Shangqing Palace's revival might begin soon.

Xing Yan received command of the assault on Hidden Wave Isle, with Bingyi and Qiong Rong joining him while Chu Huaiyu led a separate attack on Resting Wave Isle. When Xing Yan reached the island and found it sealed inside an enormous silken cocoon, he charged at it alone with the Divine Sword.

• Lord of the Clouds assigned Xing Yan and the Mysterious Spirit Monster Race to attack Hidden Wave Isle, and sent Chu Huaiyu to attack Resting Wave Isle.
• Xing Yan asked Bingyi to assist him, and Qiong Rong insisted on joining the battle.
• Lord of the Clouds gave Qiong Rong the Scarlet Radiance Separation Fire Robe to protect her spiritual roots from the Vermilion Bird blade spirits.
• Xing Yan led Kun Xiang, Yin Tieya, and the demon troops southwest toward Hidden Wave Isle, where they found the entire island wrapped in a vast white cocoon.
• After the feathered spirits failed to break the cocoon, Xing Yan raised his Divine Sword, surged into the sky amid lightning, and plunged toward it alone.

Xing Yan and Qiong Tong shattered the Wolf Spiders’ defenses and led the Demon Race army in taking Hidden Wave Isle. As Xing Yan reached a strange rocky hill where the Siyou Ghost Ring began stirring, he discovered something that left him stunned.

• Xing Yan blasted holes through the Wolf Spiders’ silk cocoon with Moonlit Flowing-Light Slashes, while Qiong Tong burned it with her Vermilion Bird Divine Blades.
• Xing Yan offered the Wolf Spiders a chance to surrender, but they answered with a hail of arrows and drove him and Qiong Tong into the sky.
• Xing Yan returned with Bingyi, who froze the sea, and Kun Xiang, who spread earth across the ice; the Demon Race cavalry charged over the new land and broke the Wolf Spiders’ formations.
• Xing Yan told Kun Xiang he did not want to be king of the Demon Race, then postponed their discussion to continue fighting.
• Xing Yan’s party fought through stronger black Wolf Spider warriors toward a rocky hill, where the Siyou Ghost Ring began stirring; he parted the undergrowth and stared at what lay beyond.

Xing Yan and his companions discovered that a Flame Spider Mother in Hidden Wave Island’s central magma pit was spawning endless wolf spiders and threatening their campaign. Xiao Mang swallowed the spider and her brood, then said the experience had brought back memories from his past.

• Xing Yan, Kunxiang, and their companions reached a magma pool where wolf spiders emerged from the molten rock, and Qiong Tong jumped in to fight them.
• Xing Yan rescued Qiong Tong from the Flame Spider Mother’s attack, and the group realized the magma itself was a giant spider that could not leave the pit.
• The Flame Spider Mother spawned more spiders, worsening the battle outside, while Xing Yan and the others struggled to stop her.
• Xiao Mang emerged from black mist, identified himself as Xing Yan’s ghost servant, and covered the pit despite the danger of the spider’s blazing yang energy.
• Xiao Mang absorbed the Flame Spider Mother and her brood, leaving the pit cold and empty, then told Xing Yan that he seemed to remember things from before.

After Xing Yan’s forces captured Hidden Wave Isle, Ghost King Xiao Mang recovered memories of his quest to master a technique for subduing yang energy, and the victors awaited reinforcements from the Four Rivers army. A resplendent naval force arrived, and Xing Yan heard a familiar, sweet voice approaching.

• After consuming the Flame Spider Essence, Ghost King Xiao Mang remembered that he had wandered the mortal world to learn a technique for subduing yang energy, then took Qiong Rong to fight monsters.
• Xing Yan’s forces defeated the Wolf Spider Warriors on Hidden Wave Isle, who threw down their weapons and surrendered.
• At dawn, Xiao Mang returned to the Siyou Netherworld Ring, whose mist had taken on fiery, Crimson Dragon-like hues.
• Chu Huaiyu reported that he had won at Resting Wave Isle, while Qiong Rong lamented that she had forgotten to clean Xing Yan before his visit.
• Xing Yan sent Ying Xiaodie to report to the Dragon Lord and watched Bingyi depart after learning that the Four Rivers army would reinforce Hidden Wave Isle.
• A large Four Rivers force arrived around Hidden Wave Isle, and Xing Yan heard a sweet voice as a resplendent naval force approached.

After Xing Yan’s victory at Hidden Wave Isle, Ling Yier arrived with Four Rivers reinforcements and explained the Dragon Lord’s plan to draw Meng Zhang’s elite forces into a decisive battle. The allied troops concealed themselves around the island and waited as the South Sea army approached beneath gathering clouds and rain.

• Ling Yier arrived at Hidden Wave Isle with her female guards, and Xing Yan met Shui Bi and Bai Hua.
• Ling Yier told Xing Yan that the Four Rivers Dragon Lord had staged the previous battle to lure Meng Zhang’s forces into a decisive clash while avoiding a full mobilization along the Ghostside front.
• Ling Yier said the Land Monster Race could rest and revealed that the Four Rivers planned to support Boyu as South Sea Dragon Deity after defeating the South Sea.
• Xing Yan and the Four Rivers forces took hidden positions among the island’s reefs and waters.
• Thunderous sounds approached from the eastern sea, dark clouds covered the sky, and rain began to fall as the enemy arrived.

Xing Yan and the Four Rivers forces fought the South Sea Dragon Clan’s elite army outside Hidden Wave Isle as Qiong Rong, Lingyi, and the seven Highest Clarity adepts displayed their formidable abilities. As Xing Yan admired the adepts’ sword art, a mysterious voice challenged him and filled the battlefield with blinding light and ghostly cries.

• Xing Yan joined the Four Rivers army’s fierce battle against the South Sea Dragon Clan’s elite troops and recognized the enemy’s carefully arranged shell fortress and main force.
• Qiong Rong struck down a sea monster near Xing Yan, then fought with her Vermilion Bird blade while evading stronger enemies.
• Lingyi used the Divine Moon Silver Bow and Moonlight Return-to-Truth Art to attack South Sea flood dragons while her guards defended her.
• Ling Xu and six other Highest Clarity adepts wielded the Seven Heaven-Slaying Swords and combined them through the Myriad Phenomena art.
• Xing Yan heard a scornful mysterious voice challenge him, then was blinded by sudden light as ghostly wails rang across the sky.