Recaps

Bai Yi of East Dragon Island came to the Xiao Residence after sensing Zi Yan’s royal bloodline, but Xiao Yu intervened before he could take her. After confirming Bai Yi’s identity, Xiao Yu let down his guard but decided not to send Zi Yan back to the Ancient Void Dragon Clan yet.

• Bai Yi tried to grab Zi Yan, but Medusa appeared and warned him off.
• Xiao Yu arrived, heard Zi Yan’s account, and demanded Bai Yi explain himself.
• Bai Yi said he had come to seek a pill and had reached for Zi Yan only to confirm her connection to his clan.
• Xiao Yu questioned Bai Yi in the main hall and surrounded him with soul perception as he asked which island he came from.
• Bai Yi identified himself as a member of East Dragon Island, and Xiao Yu withdrew his perception after confirming he had told the truth.
• Xiao Yu considered the dangers within the Ancient Void Dragon Clan and chose not to send Zi Yan back alone.

Xiao Yu agreed to refine a Void Dragon Essence Pill for Bai Yi and let him speak with Zi Yan about her origins. After Bai Yi and Zi Yan were alone, Tian Leizi visited Xiao Yu to invite him to the upcoming Pill Gathering.

• Bai Yi gave Xiao Yu the ingredients and formula for an eighth-tier Void Dragon Essence Pill, and Xiao Yu agreed to refine it.
• Bai Yi asked to speak with Zi Yan, and Xiao Yu allowed it after warning him not to harm or coerce her.
• Zi Yan agreed to talk with Bai Yi because she wanted to learn about her origins, and Xiao Yu left them alone.
• Xiao Yu met Tian Leizi, who invited him to attend the upcoming Pill Gathering and visit the Pill Tower to meet the other two presidents.

Xiao Yu learned that Zi Yan wanted to return to the Ancient Void Dragon Clan and agreed to let her go with Bai Yi after he refined the pills. As the Pill Gathering approached, Xiao Yu headed to the Pill Tower and met the deacon Chen Qi at its entrance.

• Xiao Yu decided not to detain Bai Yi and let Zi Yan choose whether to return to her clan.
• Zi Yan told Xiao Yu she wanted to meet her clansmen, and he warned her about the dangers within the Ancient Void Dragon Clan.
• Zi Yan said she would leave with Bai Yi after Xiao Yu finished refining his pills.
• Xiao Yu visited Medusa and learned she had advanced to Peak One-Star Dou Zun.
• Xiao Yu went to the Pill Tower wearing his Eighth-Tier Alchemist Badge and Elder Token, drawing respectful attention from the crowds.
• Xiao Yu greeted Chen Qi at the tower entrance, and Chen Qi invited him to enter together.

Xiao Yu entered the Pill Tower and met its three presidents, including Xuan Kongzi and Xuan Yi, who praised him as a young eighth-tier Alchemist. He stayed beside Tian Leizi as the gathered elders and juniors watched him with surprise.

• Chen Qi led Xiao Yu to the presidents’ chamber, where the elders and younger members of the Five Great Families had gathered.
• An old woman rebuked Xiao Yu for entering without permission, but Tian Leizi said he had summoned him and invited him to sit.
• Tian Leizi introduced Xuan Kongzi and Xuan Yi to Xiao Yu, and both presidents greeted him.
• Xuan Kongzi praised Xiao Yu’s achievement as an eighth-tier Alchemist, while Xiao Yu called earning his badge a stroke of luck.
• Xiao Yu sat beside Tian Leizi and remained quiet.

Xiao Yu agreed to refine a pill at the Pill Tower, drawing the interest of its presidents and a growing crowd. As Tian Leizi prepared a spatial barrier around the site, Xiao Yu was about to begin his public demonstration.

• The Dan Family elder asked the Pill Tower's three presidents to attend the Five Great Families' upcoming elder-seat assessment, but Xuan Kongzi declined on their behalf.
• Xiao Yu asked Tian Leizi to let him use a pill-refining site, and Tian Leizi agreed to take him there.
• Xuan Kongzi asked to watch Xiao Yu refine a pill, and Xiao Yu also welcomed the other interested guests.
• Tian Leizi led Xiao Yu and the guests to an open-air pill-refining square, where news of the demonstration drew a huge crowd.
• Tian Leizi told Xiao Yu he would raise a spatial barrier so he could focus, then urged him to impress Xuan Kongzi.

Xiao Yu began refining the Void Dragon Essence Pill before a crowd gathered at the Pill Tower, while the elders watched his exceptional soul power and skill. As the refinement continued, Xuan Kongzi and Tian Leizi recognized how much Xiao Yu had advanced in less than two years.

• People in the square discussed Xiao Yu’s age, alchemy rank, rumored strength, and good looks while Spatial Barriers kept the outer crowd’s noise away from him.
• Xiao Yu formed a Medicine Cauldron from the Myriad Transformation Flame and began refining the Void Dragon Essence Pill.
• Xuan Kongzi and the others watched Xiao Yu’s soul power and praised his talent as he processed the medicinal ingredients.
• Xuan Yi stopped Xuan Kongzi and Tian Leizi’s bickering and told them and Ying'er to observe Xiao Yu’s alchemy.
• As the refinement progressed, Xuan Kongzi marveled at Xiao Yu’s strength, and Tian Leizi realized how far Xiao Yu had advanced in less than two years.

Xiao Yu completed a Void Dragon Essence Pill, drawing six-colored pill lightning and astonishing the Pill Tower crowd. He caught the lightning in a jade bottle, while Xuan Kongzi reflected that Xiao Yu’s strength could help the Pill Tower protect the Three Thousand Burning Flame from the Soul Palace.

• After five days of refining, Xiao Yu drew vast natural energy into his cauldron as the pill neared completion.
• Xuan Kongzi identified the pill as an Ancient Void Dragon Clan Void Dragon Essence Pill and explained that only Ancient Void Dragons could withstand its power.
• Xiao Yu struck the Myriad Transformation Cauldron, revealed the dragon-marked pill, caught it as it tried to escape, and stored it in his Storage Ring.
• Six-colored pill lightning formed overhead, stunning the onlookers and prompting Xuan Kongzi to praise Xiao Yu while Ying'er watched him with admiration.
• Xiao Yu caught the massive lightning bolts with his golden-lit hand and stored them in a jade bottle, as Xuan Kongzi considered how Xiao Yu might help protect the Three Thousand Burning Flame from the Soul Palace.

Xiao Yu left the Pill Tower after impressing its leaders, then prepared a Void Dragon Essence Pill for Zi Yan before she returned to the Ancient Void Dragon Clan. As Zi Yan departed with Bai Yi, Xiao Yu warned him to protect her and promised to visit her in the future.

• Xuan Kongzi explained that the Pill Tower hoped its contestants would subdue the rampaging Three Thousand Burning Flame before the Soul Palace could claim it.
• Xiao Yu returned to the ground after collecting the pill lightning, spoke with the three Pill Tower leaders, and left through the void.
• Xiao Yu refined another Void Dragon Essence Pill for Zi Yan, then said goodbye to her at the Xiao Residence.
• Xiao Yu gave Bai Yi the pill and warned him not to let Zi Yan suffer mistreatment in the Ancient Void Dragon Clan.
• Bai Yi assured Xiao Yu that Zi Yan would be respected on East Dragon Island, and Xiao Yu watched her prepare to leave.

Xiao Yu accepted a Pill Tower assignment for the approaching Pill Gathering after reflecting on Zi Yan’s departure and reassuring Medusa that partings were inevitable. As the gathering began, he took up his role overseeing its second trial, while the story left Xiao Yan’s absence unexplained.

• Xiao Yu told Medusa he would not stop Zi Yan from returning to her clan and said he would miss Medusa when her own three years were over; Medusa wondered whether he would miss her and later entered the Xiao Residence with a faint smile.
• After leaving the Inner Region, Zi Yan hid her tears from Bai Yi and flew toward Sacred Pill City’s outskirts, while Bai Yi worried whether East Dragon Island could keep her with the Ancient Void Dragon Clan.
• As Sacred Pill City filled with visitors ahead of the Pill Gathering, Tian Leizi assigned Xiao Yu to preside over the entrance to the Pill Realm, and Xiao Yu wondered why he had heard nothing about Xiao Yan.
• Xuan Kongzi briefed Cao Ying, Dan Chen, and Song Qing, who agreed to represent the Pill Tower’s younger generation because Xiao Yu could not compete as an elder.
• On the opening day, Xiao Yu reached the crowded venue and learned that he would oversee the second trial, distributing the items competitors needed.

A black-robed young man arrived at the Pill Gathering, where his teacher urged him to claim the Three Thousand Burning Flame and pursue his ambitions. As the Pill Tower opened the first stage, the Soul Illusion Realm, the young man entered and Xiao Yu began his own work nearby.

• The black-robed young man discussed the Pill Gathering with his teacher, who said he could rival nearly everyone there except perhaps his cousin.
• The young man vowed to obtain the Three Thousand Burning Flame so he could stand beside his cousin and help secure Xun'er’s future.
• Xuan Kongzi and the Pill Tower’s other leaders appeared and announced the Pill Gathering’s rules and rewards.
• Xuan Kongzi opened the Soul Illusion Realm and called contestants of the fifth tier and above to begin the first stage.
• The black-robed young man flew into the realm while Xiao Yu disappeared into the void and appeared in a space-distorted area.

Xiao Yu oversaw the entrance to the Pill Realm, punishing a contestant who insulted him and then opening the trial to the gathered alchemists. Among them, his black-robed cousin recognized him as the Pill Tower’s Ninth Elder.

• Xiao Yu waited at the spatial waystation and posted the Pill Realm trial rules beside the Spatial Passage.
• A Bald Strongman arrived, insulted Xiao Yu, and was knocked back after Xiao Yu punished him for speaking disrespectfully.
• Xiao Yu told the Bald Strongman to wait and read the rules while more contestants arrived at the waystation.
• Xiao Yu opened the Pill Realm trial and instructed contestants to collect a Space Stone and Task Medicine List before entering.
• A black-robed young man recognized Xiao Yu as his cousin and learned from his teacher that Xiao Yu was the Pill Tower’s Ninth Elder.

Xiao Yu reunited with Xiao Yan at the Pill Realm entrance and gave him an easier herb list for the second round of the Pill Gathering. Xiao Yan entered the realm with Yao Lao, while Xiao Yu returned to the square to await the contestants’ return.

• Xiao Yu greeted Xiao Yan and gave him a Space Stone and a specially chosen herb list before Xiao Yan entered the Spatial Passage.
• Xiao Yan arrived in the Pill Realm, where Yao Lao recognized that Xiao Yu had selected an unusually easy list for him.
• Xiao Yan and Yao Lao set out to gather the listed ingredients quickly so they could spend the remaining time seeking other treasures.
• Xiao Yu distributed Space Stones and herb lists to the contestants, then estimated that at least ninety thousand people had entered the Pill Realm.
• Xiao Yu returned to the square, sat in his designated seat, and formed a soundproof barrier while waiting for the ten-day round to end.

The Pill Realm contestants emerged and gathered for the Pill Gathering’s final round, with Xiao Yan among them and Cao Ying assessing him as a rival. Xuan Kongzi began the contest, and the contestants prepared to raise their cauldrons.

• The Spatial Gate opened, and more than a thousand contestants who had passed the second trial emerged from the Pill Realm.
• Cao Ying recognized Xiao Yan as a potential championship rival and compared his presence with Dan Chen’s, while still considering Xiao Yu beyond comparison.
• Xiao Yan noticed Xiao Yu on the elevated platform, and the two exchanged faint smiles.
• Xuan Kongzi announced that the final round would determine the Pill Gathering champion and invited the contestants onto the stone platforms.
• Xiao Yan chose an edge platform and composed himself as the other contestants scrambled for central positions.
• Xuan Kongzi declared the start of the contest and ordered everyone to raise their cauldrons.

At the Pill Gathering, contestants displayed rare flames, and Xiao Yan’s emerald-green flame drove off Old Man Mu Gu’s sea heart flame. Xiao Yu recognized Mu Gu as a Soul Palace enemy and considered the threat he posed, while the Pill Tower’s Three Giants wondered about Xiao Yan’s flame and acknowledged his skill.

• More than a thousand contestants began the Pill Gathering by lighting their cauldrons with an array of extraordinary flames.
• Old Man Mu Gu revealed his sea heart flame, which disrupted nearby contestants’ flames and injured some of them.
• Xiao Yan summoned his glazed lotus heart flame, frightening Mu Gu’s fiery serpent back into his body and provoking Mu Gu’s murderous glare.
• Xiao Yu identified the black-robed man as Old Man Mu Gu and decided the Soul Palace Dou Zun should not be allowed to leave the Pill Region after the gathering.
• As the gathering continued, pill fragrances helped spectators and alchemists, and the Pill Tower’s Three Giants discussed Xiao Yan’s unfamiliar flame and his prospects against Ying'er.

The Pill Gathering’s final round continued as contestants refined pills, with Xiao Yu judging the strongest alchemists and later meditating through the long wait. Song Qing completed a peak seventh-grade pill, but five contestants were still refining pills whose energy surpassed his, leaving him to realize he had lost to all five.

• Over five days, contestants struggled to fuse medicinal ingredients, and Xiao Yan made one mistake that cost him a set of ingredients.
• Xiao Yu assessed the contestants, recognizing Old Man Mu Gu, Dan Chen, Cao Ying, a gray-haired old man, and Xiao Yan as the five worthy of his attention.
• After another half month, several contestants completed seventh-grade pills, while thirty-six contestants continued refining and Xiao Yu entered meditation.
• As more cauldrons exploded and contestants succeeded with seventh-grade pills, only ten stone platforms remained lit.
• Song Qing refined a peak seventh-grade pill, then saw that five contestants were still working and sensed their pills would surpass his.

As the Pill Gathering narrowed to five finalists, the Pill Tower elders worried that the mysterious black-robed contestant might belong to the Soul Palace. After a month of refining, Dan Chen and Cao Ying produced eighth-tier pills, but Xiao Yan stunned the crowd by summoning four-colored pill lightning.

• Song Qing left the competition bitterly, resentful that the black-robed youth had outperformed him and drawn Cao Ying's attention.
• Xuan Kongzi worried that the suspicious black-robed old man might be from the Soul Palace and seeking the Three Thousand Burning Flame, while Tian Leizi urged him to wait for the final results.
• After a month of refining, Dan Chen's pill emerged with two-colored thunderclouds, marking it as an eighth-tier pill.
• Cao Ying also refined an eighth-tier pill with two-colored thunderclouds, though a faint third color failed to form.
• Xiao Yan opened his medicine cauldron and unleashed an emerald pillar of flame that summoned four-colored thunderclouds, shocking the crowd and Mu Gu.

Mu Gu revealed himself as a Soul Palace alchemist and appeared poised to win the Pill Gathering, enraging the Pill Tower leaders. Xiao Yu urged Xiao Yan to stop him, and Xiao Yan answered Mu Gu’s insults with a fierce challenge.

• Old Monster Qing Hua refined a pill with three-colored lightning, while Mu Gu revealed his concealed aura and produced a pill with four-colored lightning stronger than Xiao Yan’s.
• Tian Leizi, Xuan Yi, and Xuan Kongzi recognized Mu Gu and chose not to disqualify him, fearing a conflict with the Soul Palace and damage to the Pill Tower’s reputation.
• Mu Gu boasted that the championship belonged to the Soul Palace, alarming the spectators and angering the Pill Tower members.
• Xiao Yu told Xiao Yan to shut Mu Gu up, and Xiao Yan declared that the old alchemist would not win the championship.
• Mu Gu insulted Xiao Yu and Yao Chen, intensifying Xiao Yu’s and Xuan Yi’s killing intent.

Xiao Yan used Yao Lao’s Bone Spirit Cold Flame, spirit nurturing dust, and a blood sacrifice to restore and enhance his pill’s spirituality. The pill’s thundercloud transformed into a six-colored tribulation, leaving Xiao Yan poised to claim the Pill Gathering championship while Mu Gu seethed.

• Xiao Yan summoned the Bone Spirit Cold Flame, revealing his connection to Yao Lao and alarming Mu Gu and the Three Giants.
• Xiao Yan combined the Bone Spirit Cold Flame with the emerald-green flame and used spirit nurturing dust and his blood to return spiritual energy to the pill.
• The pill’s thundercloud changed from four colors to six, astonishing the spectators and the Pill Tower’s Three Giants.
• Xiao Yan told Mu Gu that Yao Lao had once defeated him and that his disciple would do the same, prompting Mu Gu to spit blood in fury.

Xiao Yan won the Pill Gathering after his Earth Demon Puppet absorbed the combined pill lightning and became a Heavenly Demon Puppet. He collapsed from exhaustion, and a month later he remained unconscious at the Xiao Residence while Xiao Yi Xian watched over him and awaited his recovery.

• Mu Gu mocked Xiao Yan about the six-colored pill lightning, but Xiao Yan sent out his Earth Demon Puppet to face it.
• The lightning clouds converged over Xiao Yan’s puppet, which endured and absorbed their strikes for an hour until it transformed into a golden Heavenly Demon Puppet.
• Xuan Kongzi judged Xiao Yan’s Bone-Growing Blood-Melting Pill the finest and announced him as the Pill Gathering’s champion, while Mu Gu seethed with resentment.
• Xiao Yan collapsed from exhaustion after hearing praise from Xiao Yu, and a woman in a purple dress caught him as Mu Gu secretly vowed revenge.
• Xiao Yu brought the unconscious Xiao Yan to the Xiao Residence for safety, where Xiao Yi Xian cared for him through the following month.
• Xiao Yu told Xiao Yi Xian that Pill Tower representatives had visited several times and wanted Xiao Yan to go there once he woke.

Xiao Yu and Xiao Yan reunited and shared stories about their recent gains and hardships, while Xiao Yu pushed Xiao Yan to accept the Xiao Clan's Young Clan Head position. With Xiao Yan due to enter the Star Domain in two days to subdue the Three Thousand Burning Flame, Xiao Yu promised to give him some protections against Mu Gu.

• Xiao Yu sealed Xiao Yan's mouth when he nearly revealed a childhood secret, then persuaded him to accept the Xiao Clan's Young Clan Head position.
• Xiao Yan shared Pill Marrow Nectar with Xiao Yu and explained how he had obtained it in the Pill Realm.
• Xiao Yan recounted his trials in the Black-Corner Region and Central Plains, including reaching Eight-Star Dou Zong and nearing the middle stage of the Spirit Realm.
• Xiao Yu described his own rapid rise in strength and accomplishments, leaving Xiao Yan envious.
• Xiao Yan told Xiao Yu that the Pill Gathering's top ten would enter the Star Domain in two days to subdue the Three Thousand Burning Flame.
• Xiao Yu warned Xiao Yan to watch out for Mu Gu and promised to give him a few things before the Star Domain expedition.

The top ten Pill Gathering contestants entered the Star Domain to subdue the three thousand burning flame while Xiao Yu prepared to stop the Soul Palace’s attack in Sacred Pill City. After locating ten Soul Palace Dou Zun, he confronted the seven who remained outside the Star Domain, ending the chapter as he challenged them.

• Xuan Kongzi opened the Spatial Gate to the Star Domain, and Qiu Ling led Xiao Yan, Mu Gu, and the other top contestants inside.
• Xiao Yu stayed at the Xiao Residence, reasoning that Mu Gu and the Soul Palace had to be eliminated before they could threaten the Xiao Clan.
• Xiao Yu sensed ten Soul Palace Dou Zun in the Inner Region, including five Four-Star, three Five-Star, and two Six-Star Dou Zun, and left to intercept them.
• Three black-robed figures departed after learning Mu Gu’s Spatial Jade Slip had shattered, while their leader ordered the remaining seven to stop reinforcements from reaching the Star Domain.
• Xiao Yu appeared before the seven Soul Palace Dou Zun and warned them that the place would become their grave.

Xiao Yu ambushed seven Soul Palace Venerables inside his Thunderflame Illusory World and killed them with the Astral Fiend Great Handprint. He left no trace of the battle and disappeared, leaving others to suspect the Pill Tower.

• Xiao Yu trapped the seven black-robed Soul Palace Venerables in the Thunderflame Illusory World, preventing them from entering space.
• Xiao Yu overwhelmed the Venerables with his physical strength, while their leader urged them to use the Ten Thousand Soul Devour Life Formation.
• The Venerables formed a giant skull and launched black chains at Xiao Yu, but his Golden Light Dao Flame protected him from the attack.
• Xiao Yu unleashed the Astral Fiend Great Handprint, combining Purple Extreme Astral Thunder and Dark Cinder Baleflame to annihilate the Venerables and their souls.
• Xiao Yu contained the destruction within the illusory world, ensured no trace remained, and disappeared into space.

Mu Gu broke the seal on the three thousand burning flame and summoned Soul Palace Venerables to capture it. As they gained the upper hand, Xiao Yan released a hidden ally from his storage ring.

• Mu Gu shattered the dragon’s flameless forehead scale, awakening the three thousand burning flame and weakening its seal.
• Mu Gu’s allies from the Soul Palace knocked away the jade beads, but Xiao Yan crushed his own bead and sent a message.
• The three thousand burning flame burned through most of its restraints and broke free, while Xiao Yan waited for it to weaken.
• Mu Gu offered the dragon a year in the Soul Palace, but it refused and tried to leave after enjoying its freedom.
• Mu Gu summoned three Soul Palace Venerables, and the four attacked and suppressed the three thousand burning flame.
• Xiao Yan shattered his storage ring and released a figure radiating silver-blue light.

Xiao Yu revealed that he had entered the Star Domain as a clone and attacked the Soul Palace forces trying to seize the Three Thousand Burning Flame. While he fought four Soul Palace Venerables, the heavenly flame slipped away, prompting Qiu Ling to ask Old Monster Qing Hua for help trapping it.

• Xiao Yu explained that he was a clone, destroyed the two Soul Palace infiltrators, and charged at the four Venerables despite Qiu Ling's warning.
• Xiao Yu's Thunderbolt Arcs pierced Mu Gu and forced the other three Venerables to abandon their suppression of the Three Thousand Burning Flame and join the fight.
• Xiao Yu used Near-Horizon Wind Thunder to battle all four Soul Palace Venerables to a standstill, astonishing the onlookers.
• Old Monster Qing Hua spotted the Three Thousand Burning Flame's essence escaping from its dragon body, and Qiu Ling rushed to pursue it while asking Qing Hua to help trap it.

Xiao Yan used dragon qi to interrupt the three thousand burning flame’s self-destruction and swallowed it, but its collapsing body unleashed a sea of fire across the Star Domain. Xiao Yu stayed behind to destroy Mu Gu and the other Soul Hall Venerables, leaving his own fate uncertain as the flames consumed the domain.

• Old Monster Qing Hua followed Qiu Ling toward the weakened three thousand burning flame, while Xiao Yu struggled against four Soul Hall Venerables with his wind-thunder clone.
• Mu Gu sent two Soul Hall Venerables to intercept Qiu Ling and Qing Hua, and Xiao Yan used the opening to attack the three thousand burning flame with the Heavenly Demon Puppet and his strongest techniques.
• The three thousand burning flame prepared to self-destruct, but Xiao Yan released the dragon qi he had gained from the Yin-Yang Profound Dragon Pill, stunning it and allowing the Flame Mantra to draw it into his body.
• The three thousand burning flame’s enormous body collapsed and unleashed a vast wave of purple-black fire, so Qiu Ling evacuated the young people while Xiao Yu told him he had a way to save Xiao Yan.
• Xiao Yu blocked Mu Gu and the other Soul Hall Venerables, revealed that he was a clone, and self-destructed to engulf them in silver-blue lightning and wind.
• The sea of fire swept across the Star Domain and reduced everything within it to nothingness.