Recaps

Chen Zhang confronted Black Tongue over his attempt to leave the Underground City and forced him to choose between joining the Soul Fighting City Alliance or dying. Black Tongue faced the ultimatum in silence, with his fear and desperation finally showing.

• Chen Mu mocked Zhu Wuneng after he compared Chen Mu's charm to Sister Xiao Yi, then dragged him off to drink while Gao Cuilan and Su Ningxia hurried away from the sounds in the Backyard.
• At Iron Jaw Fortress, Chen Zhang confirmed that the plain-faced middle-aged man was Black Tongue and asked why Tan Yashuang had brought him.
• Chen Zhang refused to help Black Tongue escape, explaining that the Dragon Court and the Three Ministries had sealed the routes out of the Imperial Capital and that Black Tongue's information made neutrality impossible.
• Chen Zhang gave Black Tongue two choices: surrender his intelligence and serve the Soul Fighting City Alliance, or be branded a criminal and killed.
• Black Tongue went rigid as fear and inner conflict appeared in his eyes, while Tan Yashuang watched and Chen Zhang calmly drank his tea.

Prince Xue Jiqing learned that Azure Bamboo was in the Forgotten Ruin Abyss and ordered the Empire to clear a path before the seven-day deadline. Meanwhile, Gao Cuilan and Su Ningxia kept Tao Ruyin from entering the study, then worried over whether they should tell the Matriarch about what they believed was happening inside.

• Prince Xue Jiqing learned from the Chen Clan that Azure Bamboo was in the Forgotten Ruin Abyss, where soul beasts and Underground Forces made the route perilous.
• Prince Xue Jiqing ordered purge units recalled and the great clans and sects notified so they could force a path to the Ruin Abyss and recover the Sword Lord.
• Gao Cuilan and Su Ningxia waited outside the study, distracted by the sounds they had heard and the long silence from within.
• Tao Ruyin brought food for the Young Master, but Gao Cuilan and Su Ningxia persuaded her not to disturb him and the Miss.
• Gao Cuilan and Su Ningxia worried that the Miss might be hurt and debated whether to report the situation to the Matriarch.

Chen Xiaojun and Xiao Yi’s joined powers awakened the hidden potency of the Yin-Yang Twin Lives Flower, driving their domains and understanding of their respective laws to new heights. As the Taiji Diagram spun faster, their spiritual and divine resonance reached a perilous peak.

• Chen Xiaojun and Xiao Yi’s soul powers and energies poured into the Black-Red Cocoon as their powers formed a cycle of purification and mutual transformation.
• The Yin-Yang Twin Lives Flower awakened and enveloped Chen Xiaojun and Xiao Yi in a black-and-white phantom, with each positioned in the Taiji Diagram’s opposing yin-yang eye.
• Chen Xiaojun’s yin-yang domain and sword intents deepened, while Xiao Yi’s five-elements conception and great void domain advanced rapidly.
• The Taiji Diagram accelerated until the pair’s fused spiritual and divine resonance threatened to overwhelm their consciousness.

Lesser Siming’s Dharma Body appeared in Chen Xiaojun’s upper soul nest and used reversed divine skills to nourish the Black-Red Cocoon and mend the heavenly scar caused by his burden of Great Siming’s power. The cocoon began recovering and the scar started to close, though Chen Xiaojun and Xiao Yi remained unconscious.

• The Yin-Yang Twin Lives Flower and Taiji Diagram vanished after the soul resonance ended, leaving Chen Xiaojun and Xiao Yi drained and unconscious.
• Lesser Siming’s Dharma Body manifested in Chen Xiaojun’s upper soul nest as her life-nature soul power resonated with the Black-Red Cocoon.
• The Black-Red Cocoon drew in Lesser Siming’s life force, and she reversed Two Fingers Cover All Life to feed it an even purer power.
• Lesser Siming reversed One Finger Severs Yin and Yang and sent a growing Taiji Diagram to press against Chen Xiaojun’s heavenly scar.
• The Taiji Diagram began disentangling and repairing the scar, reducing its size and weakening its unstable fluctuations.

Chen Xiaojun’s Sea of Consciousness transformed as Lesser Siming and the Black-Red Cocoon gave rise to a mysterious merged domain. When the changes ended, Chen Xiaojun awoke beside an unresponsive Xiao Yi, and Gao Cuilan and Su Ningxia rushed in after hearing him call for help.

• The Black-Red Cocoon stopped absorbing energy as Lesser Siming’s life-source energy expanded and transformed Chen Xiaojun’s Sea of Consciousness.
• The Yin-Yang Taiji Diagram continued repairing the Heavenly Scar while purple and chaotic gray light formed around Lesser Siming and the cocoon.
• A primordial will awakened within the merged domain, which swallowed Chen Xiaojun and Xiao Yi before Lesser Siming vanished and the cocoon withdrew into the Sea of Consciousness.
• Gao Cuilan and Su Ningxia heard Chen Xiaojun call for Xiao Yi and hurried into the East Room.
• Chen Xiaojun sat beside Xiao Yi, who lay fully dressed but barely breathing and unresponsive.

Chen Xiaojun found that the power of Severing in his heart might have weakened, but Xiao Yi collapsed and began her first Celestial Menstruation, leaving her condition a mystery. The next morning, Ye Xiuxin and Yang Jingxue questioned him, but he refused to reveal the truth without Chen Hong’s permission.

• Chen Xiaojun found Xiao Yi unconscious and ordered Gao Cuilan to fetch Sister Ru Yan.
• Gao Cuilan and Su Ningxia helped cover Xiao Yi while Chen Xiaojun worried over her condition.
• Ye Xiuxin returned to the mansion after Yang Jingxue sent a warning about Xiaojun and Xiao Yi, then confirmed Xiao Yi was breathing weakly.
• Ye Xiuxin ordered the others out and questioned Chen Xiaojun with Yang Jingxue about Xiao Yi’s collapse and first Celestial Menstruation.
• Chen Xiaojun said he could not disclose the matter without Chen Hong’s permission, angering Yang Jingxue.

Chen Hong revealed to Yang Jingxue that the ancient deities Great Siming and Lesser Siming were dwelling symbiotically inside Chen Xiaojun and Xiao Yi. The revelation bound the Yang Family more closely to the Chen Clan, and Chen Hong added that the gods came from elsewhere.

• Ye Xiuxin urged Yang Jingxue to consult Chen Hong before demanding answers from Chen Xiaojun.
• Yang Jingxue confronted Chen Hong, who warned that learning the Chen Clan's secret would bind their families together, and she swore not to reveal it beyond herself and Lord Cheng Lin.
• Chen Hong confirmed that the being Yang Jingxue had seen at the Chang'an Duke's Mansion was a deity who later split into two forms.
• Chen Hong revealed that Lesser Siming dwelled inside Xiao Yi and Great Siming inside Chen Xiaojun, and explained their divine offices and symbiotic bond with the children.
• Chen Hong explained the Divine Realm's structure and ended by revealing that Great Siming and Lesser Siming were gods from elsewhere.

The Chen Clan met with Clear Sky Sect leaders to explain why it sought cooperation with the Yellow Emperor Tang Family in Lankai Commandery. The meeting ended with Chen Zhang reframing the clan’s actions as cooperation among the Heavenly Soldiers Remnants, leaving Tang Potian speechless.

• Chen Hong, Chen Zhang, and Chen Xiaojun met Tang Yue, Tang Aotian, and Tang Potian at the Jade Hall of Abundance, with Ximen Wenlan and Yang Jingxue attending as witnesses.
• Tang Yue asked what the Chen Clan intended by involving itself in the Yellow Emperor Branch and Lankai Commandery.
• Chen Zhang said the Chen Clan needed skilled craftsmen and wanted to secure Lankai Commandery as a key junction in its logistics network.
• Tang Potian accused the Chen Clan of ignoring its shared history with the Clear Sky Sect and named other forging families that could supply craftsmen.
• Chen Zhang argued that the Yellow Emperor Tang Family belonged to the Heavenly Soldiers Remnants, so cooperating with it upheld their shared ties rather than violated them.

Chen Zhang proposed cooperation with the Clear Sky Sect in Heaven Dou City and Tianshan Commandery rather than in sensitive Lankai, easing the immediate confrontation while leaving room for the Yellow Emperor Tang Family to grow. Chen Xiaojun began explaining why the Clear Sky Sect sought to reunite with that family, but the chapter ended before he finished.

• Tang Aotian challenged Chen Zhang to recognize the Clear Sky Sect Main Line as the legitimate heir of the Mountain-Breaking Hammer lineage, and Chen Zhang declined to judge between it and the Yellow Emperor Tang Family.
• Tang Aotian argued that the Clear Sky Sect could meet the Chen Clan's needs better than the Yellow Emperor Lineage, and Chen Zhang clarified that he was open to cooperation outside Lankai Commandery.
• Chen Zhang proposed deep cooperation with the Clear Sky Sect in Heaven Dou City and Tianshan Commandery, focusing on civilian soul tools, advanced material processing, and specialized equipment outside sensitive fields.
• Chen Zhang asked Chen Xiaojun to explain the Chen Clan's ideas, and Chen Xiaojun said the Yellow Emperor Tang Family's few hundred members would add little to the Clear Sky Sect's existing strength.

Chen Xiaojun proposed six forms of economic and commercial cooperation to persuade the Clear Sky Sect to abandon its plan to merge with the Yellow Emperor Tang Family. He then offered Chen Clan support in seeking compensation from the Heaven Dou Imperial Family, leaving Tang Aotian to question whether the sect could pursue the claim alone.

• Tang Aotian admitted that the Tang Family envied the Chen Clan's concentrated talent and asked Chen Xiaojun how the Clear Sky Sect could grow stronger without merging with the Yellow Emperor Tang Family.
• Chen Xiaojun proposed guaranteed business, mineral and herb purchases, a medicinal herbs market, expanded trade, a logistics hub, and long-term military weapons contracts.
• Chen Xiaojun offered to help the Clear Sky Sect demand compensation from the Heaven Dou Imperial Family for two thousand years of deaths and injuries suffered while guarding against the Snowmen Tribe.
• Tang Aotian argued that the Heaven Dou Empire had granted the Tang Family land in exchange for guarding the passes, but Chen Xiaojun said generations of bloodshed had repaid that favor many times over and had also burdened affiliated soul masters.
• Tang Aotian asked whether the Clear Sky Sect might seek compensation without the Chen Clan, and Chen Xiaojun replied that the sect alone was not enough.

The Chen Clan offered the Clear Sky Sect a lucrative deal in exchange for abandoning its bid to absorb the Yellow Emperor Tang Family and yielding Lankai Commandery. Tang Yue weighed the loss of the sect’s strategic foothold against the risks of war, then sent Tang Potian to report the proposals and witnesses’ positions to the Elders Council while ordering Tang Aotian to monitor the Chen Clan.

• Yang Jingxue urged the Chen Clan and Clear Sky Sect to avoid open warfare, while Ximen Wenlan’s silence signaled her agreement.
• Tang Potian complained that the witnesses favored the Chen Clan, and Tang Aotian explained that their positions revealed the families’ true alignments.
• Tang Aotian argued that accepting the Chen Clan’s terms would sacrifice Lankai Commandery and undermine the Clear Sky Sect’s strategic position and Heaven and Earth Hammer Plan.
• Tang Yue ordered Tang Potian to report the negotiations and the Ximen and Yang families’ attitudes to the Elders Council, then told Tang Aotian to watch the Chen Clan.

Chen Hong warned the Ximen and Yang families that the Clear Sky Sect’s interest in the Yellow Emperor Lineage threatened their shared power in the Northern Region. Meanwhile, Ye Sirong returned to the Chen Duke’s Mansion with Dou Congtong and reunited with her family, where she learned Zhang Yin Tie had lost an arm defending the mansion.

• Chen Hong discussed the Tang Family’s unexpected hesitation and the Clear Sky Sect’s ambitions with Chen Zhang, Chen Xiaojun, Yang Jingxue, and Ximen Wenlan.
• Chen Hong asked Yang Jingxue and Ximen Wenlan to send warnings to their family elders and maintain the three families’ united stance against the Clear Sky Sect.
• Ye Sirong and Dou Congtong arrived discreetly at the Chen Duke’s Mansion, and Mu Jingming escorted them to the entrance.
• Gu Yuanchao welcomed Ye Sirong home and told her that the Chen Clan had been overjoyed to learn she was alive.
• Ye Sirong reunited with Zhang Yin Tie and discovered that he had lost his left arm fighting the Crimson Church’s attack on the mansion.

Ye Sirong returned to the Chen Clan with Dou Congtong and received a warm welcome from Chen Hong. Zhang Yin Tie learned that his older brother, Zhang Bitie, would replace him as Black Scale Guards Guard Leader while he recovered from losing his arm.

• Zhang Yin Tie accepted that his missing arm meant he would leave the front lines and learned that Zhang Bitie would take over his post.
• Gu Yuanchao explained that Heaven Dou City had become the clan's Northern Region headquarters and needed a Soul Saint Rank Assistant Commander to oversee the Black Scale Guards.
• Zhang Yin Tie accepted the handover to his brother and proposed a welcome drink for him with Gu Yuanchao and Ye Sirong.
• Chen Hong, Yang Jingxue, Ximen Wenlan, Chen Zhang, and Chen Xiaojun arrived at the mansion, where Ye Sirong and Dou Congtong paid their respects.
• Chen Hong welcomed Ye Sirong back and asked Chen Zhang to arrange for her, while Chen Xiaojun reassured her with a knowing look.

Ye Sirong reunited with Xia Yun, Zhu Shiyuan, and Xia Shuyao, then learned that her family had grown stronger while she was away. The chapter left her surprised to hear that her father was Deputy Minister of the Family Medical Department.

• Chen Zhang told Ye Sirong that He Song had died protecting the younger disciples and that word of her return had been sent to her parents.
• Xia Yun and Zhu Shiyuan welcomed Ye Sirong back and praised her advancement to Soul Saint.
• Xia Shuyao introduced herself to Ye Sirong and warmly befriended Dou Congtong.
• Xia Yun told Ye Sirong that her father Ye Zhengxin, her brother Cong Rong, and her clan uncle Ye Zhengyi had all reached the Soul Saint realm.
• Xia Yun revealed that Ye Zhengxin was Deputy Minister of the Family Medical Department, leaving Ye Sirong astonished.

Ye Sirong considered the Chen Clan’s proposal to transfer Dou Congtong to Five Mountains Academy, where she could develop safely and receive specialized training. Chen Xiaojun urged the clan to prepare her for the Gaoying Tournament Grand Finals, and Ye Sirong agreed to use the resources Dou Jing had left for their daughter.

• Xia Yun and Zhu Shiyuan described Five Mountains Academy’s development and invited Dou Congtong to transfer there for better training and protection.
• Xia Shuyao enthusiastically offered to partner with Dou Congtong and look after her at the academy.
• Ye Sirong asked the clan to inform Dou Jing and consider his opinion, and Xia Yun assured her they would contact him.
• Chen Xiaojun said Dou Congtong could represent Five Mountains Academy in the Gaoying Tournament Grand Finals after a month of intensive training.
• Ye Sirong agreed that it was time to use the things Dou Jing had left for Dou Congtong.

Chen Zhang assigned Ye Sirong to guard and assist Ye Xiuxin, trusting her with an important role in the clan. Ye Sirong accepted and was set to accompany Ye Xiuxin to Iron Jaw Fortress, where she could also see Dou Jing.

• Chen Zhang explained that Ye Xiuxin needed protection while treating wounded people in the dangerous Underground City and asked Ye Sirong to serve as her attendant and guard.
• Ye Sirong was surprised by the responsibility, then recognized Chen Zhang’s trust and accepted the assignment.
• Chen Xiaojun understood that the appointment would help Ye Sirong return to the clan, use her medical and protective skills, and put pressure on Dou Jing.
• Ye Sirong vowed to keep Ye Xiuxin safe and assist her with medical work.
• Chen Zhang told Ye Sirong to accompany Ye Xiuxin to Iron Jaw Fortress the next day, where she would also see Dou Jing.

Chen Cong and a group of Chang'an Academy personnel arrived at the Duke’s Mansion to help with the Northern Region Headquarters upgrade, bringing old comrades and family together. Zhu Wuneng then rushed in and reacted with surprise when he spotted Conduct problem among the newcomers.

• Four Golden-Crowned Giant Eagles landed in the courtyard carrying Chen Cong and a sizable group from Chang'an.
• Chen Xiaojun and Chen Zhang welcomed Chen Cong, who joked with them about arriving in time for the Academy’s thank-you banquet.
• Zhang Bitie told Zhang Yin Tie to hand most of his Black Scale Guard duties to Sun Miaoyi, who was reunited with her son Gu Zijian.
• Gu Yuanchao reunited with Gu Yuanli as other relatives and former North Gate comrades gathered at the Duke’s Mansion.
• Zhu Wuneng entered the courtyard, saw Conduct problem among the newcomers, and shouted in surprise.

Chen Xiaojun welcomed several young visitors to the Duke’s Mansion, where Yan Xiaolai formally became Chen Zhang’s disciple. After the ceremony, Su Ningxia learned that Su Henhan had requested a transfer to the dangerous Transport Team and began to understand why.

• Chen Xiaojun greeted Zuo Feng Wen, Su Ninglan, and the other youths who had arrived at the Duke’s Mansion.
• Yan Xiaolai performed the formal kneelings and kowtows to become Chen Zhang’s disciple as his friends and family watched.
• Gao Ying explained to Yan Jinzhong that he had come to assess the situation after Chen Xin Yi’s rise to the top of the Heavenly Prodigy Ranking and to support Gao Cuilan’s connection to her.
• Su Ninglan delivered Third Uncle Su Henhan’s letter to Su Ningxia and told her that Su Henhan had applied to transfer to the dangerous Transport Team.
• Su Ningxia was shocked by Su Henhan’s decision, then began to grasp his reason.

After Su Ningxia learned that Su Henhan would take a dangerous assignment to prove the Su Family’s loyalty to Xiao Yi, Chen Xiaojun visited the recovering Xiao Yi and was turned away. Back in his room, he assessed the gains from his recent opportunity and discovered his soul power had reached level 59 and his physique had grown stronger.

• Su Ningxia realized the Su Family needed to prove its merit and hoped Heaven would protect Su Henhan as he volunteered for the Transport Team’s dangerous front line.
• The Duke’s Mansion held a welcoming feast for Chen Cong’s party, where Xia Shuyao introduced Dou Congtong to the assembled guests.
• Chen Xiaojun visited Xiao Yi at Moonshadow Residence, but she hid beneath her quilt and Tao Ruyin sent him away so she could rest.
• After returning to his room, Chen Xiaojun examined the gains from “Yin-Yang Evolution of the Dao, Lotus Blooming on the Spiritual Terrace.”
• Chen Xiaojun found that his soul power had reached level 59 and that his physique had advanced through the effects of the immortal herbs and divine power.

After assimilating the immortal herb and Lesser Siming’s power, Chen Xiaojun strengthened his sword conceptions, mental power, and Soul Nest, leaving him able to unleash his full combat strength without restraint. He emerged to find his friends gathered, learned Xiao Yi was resting, and heard that his mother had been promoted for curing four Titled Douluos.

• Chen Xiaojun reviewed how his Yin-Yang attributes had advanced and comprehended the core conception of nobility, completing his understanding of all six divine swords.
• He found that Lesser Siming’s strike had covered the Heavenly Scar in his Sea of Consciousness, removing his restraint on consecutive ultimate attacks and raising his mental power to roughly level 78.
• Chen Xiaojun left his quiet room and joined Zhu Wuneng, Dugu Fu, Ma Liang, Xia Shuyao, Dou Congtong, Gao Cuilan, and Su Ningxia in the pavilion, where they discussed martial skill legacies for Dou Congtong.
• Gao Cuilan told Chen Xiaojun that Xiao Yi was resting, and Dou Congtong said Ye Xiuxin had gone with Ye Sirong to the Heaven Dou Royal Hospital to examine the recovering Titled Douluos.
• Chen Xiaojun learned that the Heaven Dou Imperial Family had promoted Ye Xiuxin from third-rank to first-rank Enshrined Elder after she cured the four Titled Douluos’ blood curses.

Chen Xiaojun agreed to cook for the manor’s thank-you banquet and dragged Zhu Wuneng along to help, threatening to make braised pig’s head. Meanwhile, Barton escaped Chen Zhang and Zhu Yanfeng through a hidden tunnel, and the pursuers discovered another concealed passage at a nearby courtyard.

• Chen Xiaojun agreed to cook for the thank-you banquet after Zhu Wuneng urged him to show off his skills.
• Chen Xiaojun hauled Zhu Wuneng toward the kitchen and told him he would prepare braised pig’s head.
• Barton disguised himself with a Secret Art and fled back into his room after spotting Chen Zhang and Zhu Yanfeng outside.
• Zhu Yanfeng smashed into the room, found a hollow space beneath the bed, and uncovered Barton’s tunnel.
• Chen Zhang and Zhu Yanfeng searched a nearby courtyard and saw a concealed passage open behind a kitchen wall.

Barton was caught by three Chen Clan experts after fleeing to one of his secret safe houses. At the appreciation banquet, Chen Clan representatives welcomed guests as the chapter detailed the clan’s control over Five Mountains Academy and Wushan Prefecture.

• Barton escaped through a hidden wall but found Chen Zhang and Zhu Yanfeng guarding the safe house entrance.
• Barton ran into the backyard, where an imposing elder and a middle-aged woman blocked his path, while another woman watched from the kitchen roof.
• The elder addressed Barton, and Barton recognized that all three Excellencies of the Three Great Families had come to apprehend him.
• At the Duke's Mansion Residence, Zhu Yanfeng, Lin Jingshu, and Zhu Shiyuan welcomed guests to the appreciation banquet.
• The chapter explained how the Chen Clan had taken control of Five Mountains Academy and secured influence over Wushan Prefecture through Qin Xizhao's rise to Commandery Governor.

The Chen Clan hosted an appreciation banquet for the tournament’s participants and guests, promoting its two academies and drawing attention to the newly risen Five Mountains Academy. Chen Xiaojun ended the chapter surrounded by admiring girls and smoothly flattering Chen Yanwu after she teased him about attending.

• Zhu Yanfeng, Zhuo Qianren, and Xia Yun opened the banquet with speeches, followed by coach representatives Yan Nanfei and Zhu Shiyuan promoting their academies.
• Zhu Wuneng feasted at the banquet and urged Dugu Fu to encourage his siblings to attend Five Mountains Academy, receiving only a brief reply.
• Chen Xiaojun and Xia Shuyao represented their teams onstage, sharing their tournament experiences and thanking their supporters.
• Zhu Wuxin pulled Chen Xiaojun over to the Moonlight Team’s table, where he was surrounded by girls and Bai Yanshan enthusiastically praised the food.
• Chen Shurui, Chen Bin, and Chen Mu joked about Chen Xiaojun’s survival instincts, and Chen Yanwu teased him for not wanting to attend.
• Chen Xiaojun praised Chen Yanwu with elaborate flattery, making her laugh despite recognizing how insincere his compliments sounded.

Chen Xiaojun composed verses for Yue Qingsi and Yun Yingluo, delighting both women and the Moonlight Team. He promised Chen Yanwu he would find her a new zither piece for the academy’s thank-you banquet.

• Zhu Wuxin asked Chen Xiaojun to compose a verse for Yue Qingsi, and Chen Yanwu urged him to capture her character.
• Chen Xiaojun recited “Picking chrysanthemums beneath the eastern hedge, at ease I glimpse South Mountain,” and Yue Qingsi thanked him warmly.
• Yun Yingluo asked Chen Xiaojun for a verse about herself, and he composed a line about the south wind carrying her dreams to the Eastern Continent.
• Chen Yanwu asked Chen Xiaojun to provide a fresh zither piece for her performance at the next day’s thank-you banquet, and he promised to find one.

At the Chen Clan’s victory banquet, Chen Xiaojun delighted the guests by composing a poem praising Chen Yanwu, then escaped the Moonlight Team’s teasing. Xiao Yi arrived looking frail and reunited with Chen Yanwu as the feast began.

• Zhu Wuxin urged Chen Xiaojun to compose a poem for Chen Yanwu, and he recited verses praising her beauty and swordsmanship.
• Yun Yingluo and the other guests admired the poem, while Chen Yanwu savored its imagery.
• Chen Mu teased Chen Xiaojun, who excused himself and hurried back to the Chen Clan youngsters.
• Xiao Yi arrived with Su Ningxia and softly greeted Chen Yanwu, who supported her and sheltered her from the crowd.
• The Chen Clan began serving the banquet’s eighteen hot dishes, many featuring Heaven Dou City’s freshwater ingredients.