Arc 9Chapters 204–228
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No recap yet.
Zhang Xiao examined Lady's Glove's notebook and learned that she had once struggled to create a corporeal Patronus. After Lady's Glove warned him away from Tom's Diary, Zhang Xiao suspected the Room of Requirement might be a Horcrux and asked Tom what he knew about the room before turning to the Patronus Charm.
Zhang Xiao read Tom’s notes on reverse-engineering the Patronus Charm into the Dark Mark and Morsmordre, then continued trying to understand how to make a corporeal Patronus. When Malfoy suggested drawing the bones first, Zhang Xiao realized the advice might unlock his approach.
Zhang Xiao used memories of beauty, hope, and happiness to master a vivid, lifelike Dragon Carp Patronus and taught the other students how to begin practicing the spell. He then captured Peter Pettigrew in his rat form and prepared to take him to Dumbledore.
Zhang Xiao exposed Peter Pettigrew as an Animagus hiding as Scabbers, and Dumbledore confirmed that Sirius Black had been innocent all along. After explaining why he had left Black in Azkaban, Dumbledore prepared to act now that Peter had been caught, and Zhang asked to go with him.
Dumbledore took Zhang Xiao to the Ministry of Magic to meet Minister Cornelius Fudge, where Zhang Xiao saw the Ministry and donated Galleons to St Mungo's. As they completed the security check, Zhang Xiao's wand sparked and buzzed angrily on the inspection machine.
Zhang Xiao accompanied Dumbledore to the Ministry of Magic, where Dumbledore forced Cornelius Fudge to arrange Sirius Black’s release from Azkaban for trial. At the prison, Zhang Xiao discovered that his Golden Light Spell could physically strike a Dementor, and the chapter ended with the enraged creature calling for reinforcements as Dumbledore urged him to use his Patronus.
Zhang Xiao and Dumbledore entered Azkaban to retrieve Sirius Black, and Zhang’s animated corporeal Patronus drove off a swarm of hungry Dementors. They found Black in a ruined state, but after learning Peter had been captured, he erupted in fury, leaving his release to a future trial.
After returning to Hogwarts, Zhang Xiao learned from Snape how wizards created original spells and fainted after entering a deeply focused state. Recovering in the Hospital Wing, he realized his Thunder Talisman might offer a different path to spell creation.
After Sirius Black was declared innocent, Zhang Xiao told Harry that Black was his godfather and explained how Peter Pettigrew had betrayed the Potters and framed Black. Harry summoned a corporeal stag Patronus, which recalled his father James.
Zhang Chengdao and Zhang Xiao flew from London to Huaxia after Zhang Chengdao taught his son the Daoist Order’s prohibition against extending the life of public officials. When their deliberately chosen unlucky flight plunged into violent turbulence, the chief flight attendant discovered something was wrong in the cockpit.
Zhang Chengdao and Zhang Xiao stopped a cult sacrifice aboard a plane, revived the co-pilot, and repaired the cockpit controls. After the plane was safe, they discussed how rituals and collective belief could give rise to dangerous supernatural forces, and Zhang Xiao asked what his father knew about the Church.
Zhang Xiao and Zhang Chengdao discussed how the Church’s recruitment of young wizards may have created a divine spell system and how Hogwarts and other wizarding schools might have drained Europe of potential Church recruits. As their plane arrived in China, Zhang Xiao felt an immense supernatural pressure that made his soul tremble.
Zhang Xiao landed in Huaxia and learned from Zhang Chengdao that the oppressive presence he had felt was the Heavenly Court, while Zhao Yuanxu discussed a possible company to handle supernatural affairs. The chapter also showed Dobby settling into life on Dragon-Tiger Mountain and ended with the Old Celestial Master calling Zhou of Wudang.
Zhang Cunyi persuaded Sect Leader Zhou to take Neville Longbottom as a Wudang lay practitioner, while Zhang Chengdao brought Zhang Xiao on a long journey home to Dragon-Tiger Mountain. Zhang Xiao began returning to his true self during the trek, which ended with a call from Zhao Yuanxu.
Zhang Chengdao and Zhang Xiao traveled to Wangjiang after Zhao Yuanxu asked them to investigate a haunting tied to missing opera performer Leng Qianyu. They learned that Leng Qianyu’s disabled younger brother had starved to death, and after reaching the deserted town, they began asking about the deaths and nighttime opera sightings.
Zhang Xiao and Zhang Chengdao investigated Leng Qianyu’s haunting and discovered that a genuine Daoist was performing a ritual to confront her. When Leng Qianyu appeared and attacked, Zhang Xiao restrained her, while Zhang Chengdao revealed he had been searching for a hidden mastermind.
Zhang Chengdao uncovered how Leng Qianyu had been tormented for being a Spirit Child, then confronted Zhang Guangzheng, the mastermind behind the case. Zhang Guangzheng revealed his resentment toward orthodox sects before Zhang Chengdao cut off his rant.
Zhang Chengdao explained how the Daoist Order selected Spirit Children and how collective belief, Spirit Children, and the [Heavenly Court] shaped the supernatural world. He revealed that Zhang Xiao’s name had been at the top of the Ascension Ranking since birth, recorded by the Good Fortune Jade Disc.
Zhang Chengdao explained how Dragon-Tiger Mountain's Ascension Ranking had led to the creation of secular sects, then met Shangqing Sect disciple Mao Xuexian after defeating a vicious ghost. Zhang Chengdao guided Mao Xuexian to accept his path in the mortal world, and Mao left with his disciples, convinced that immortals existed.
After Zhang Chengdao and Zhang Xiao helped resolve the Wangjiang case, they continued their journey toward Dragon-Tiger Mountain. Zhang Xiao speculated about how collective beliefs shaped supernatural phenomena and became eager for his upcoming talisman investiture as the mountain came into view.
Zhang Chengdao brought Zhang Xiao to the hidden Celestial Masters' Mansion on upper Dragon-Tiger Mountain, revealing the secret route and its wonders along the way. Zhang Xiao reunited with his mother, Li Qingshu, at the mountain's blessed land.
Zhang Xiao returned to Dragon-Tiger Mountain, reunited with his family and the Mountain Lord, and received gifts before his talisman investiture test began. Sent to investigate missing disciples in Little Yang Village, he encountered a powerful bridal ghost and a warning from a little girl, then apparently died after drinking tea at a teahouse.
Zhang Xiao passed the illusion test by escaping Little Yang Village with the Earth God’s incense ash, then learned that the village had been the haunted Peach Blossom Spring and that its three helpful figures were Dragon-Tiger Mountain disciples. After recovering, he joined the candidates at the plaza, where Zhang Cunyi opened the Talisman Investiture examination.
Zhang Xiao endured the Golden Light Spell trials and struggled to draw talismans under crushing pressure as the Old Celestial Master changed the Talisman Investiture examination in preparation for coming turmoil. At the brink of exhaustion, Zhang Xiao used the Void-Clarity Mirror and Void Talisman Formation to manifest ten talismans.
After Zhang Xiao’s ten-talisman feat earned him a seventh-rank promotion, he spent time with his parents and Mountain Lord before Zhang Chengdao took him to pay respects at the Nameless Tomb. The chapter ended with Zhang Xiao learning that the kneeling Shinto Priest Statue was tied to a painful history, as a young Daoist attacked it after hearing the story.