Recaps

Jia Xingtian explained to Jia Ye why the Jia Ma Imperial Family had to give eight Dou Ling Pills to the Snake-People Tribe. He left Jia Ye believing the pills were payment for the tribe to leave the Jia Ma Empire within ten years.

• Jia Ye protested when Jia Xingtian planned to give the Snake-People Tribe eight costly Dou Ling Pills.
• Jia Xingtian revealed that Queen Medusa had gravely injured him three years earlier and that the tribe had five Dou Emperors and eight Dou Wangs.
• Jia Xingtian said Medusa had used a developing technique that might be a Heaven-Rank Dou Technique.
• Jia Xingtian told Jia Ye that the Snake-People Tribe would leave the Jia Ma Empire within ten years in exchange for the pills.
• Jia Ye rejoiced at the bargain, unaware that the pills were also the price of Jia Xingtian's life.

After a month of refining, Chen Xuan successfully made a Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill, bringing him close to becoming a fifth-grade alchemist. The Jia Ma Imperial Family arrived outside the Holy City, and Chen Xuan expected them to bring eight successfully refined Dou Ling Pills.

• The Snake-People Tribe devoted itself to cultivation in preparation for relocating to the Black-Corner Region.
• Chen Xuan carefully combined the ingredients for a Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill while Queen Medusa watched and encouraged him.
• Chen Xuan removed the impurities and successfully refined the peak fourth-grade pill after a month of attempts.
• Queen Medusa celebrated Chen Xuan's success, and he believed he could become a fifth-grade alchemist within half a year to a year.
• Leader Yue Mei told Chen Xuan that the Jia Ma Imperial Family had arrived outside the Holy City, and he ordered her to welcome them inside, expecting them to bring eight Dou Ling Pills.

Jia Xingtian, Jia Ye, and Gu He visited Queen Medusa in the Snake-People Holy City, delivering eight Dou Ling Pills and discussing future cooperation. Gu He revealed that he had heard the Snake-People Tribe discovered a Heavenly Flame, startling Jia Xingtian and Jia Ye.

• Yue Mei led Jia Xingtian, Jia Ye, and Gu He into the Sacred Hall, where Chen Xuan welcomed them.
• Jia Xingtian presented Chen Xuan with eight Dou Ling Pills on behalf of the Jia Ma Empire.
• Jia Ye asked Chen Xuan to open trade with the Jia Ma Empire after the Snake-People Tribe settled in the Black-Corner Region, and Chen Xuan agreed if they gained a foothold there.
• Chen Xuan asked Gu He why he had come, and Gu He said he had heard the Snake-People Tribe had discovered a Heavenly Flame.

Chen Xuan confirmed that the Snake-People Tribe had discovered a Heavenly Flame, but refused Gu He's offer to trade pills for it. After Chen Xuan revealed her alchemy skills, Gu He accepted that she had good reason to keep the flame, while the others reassessed the Snake-People Tribe's growing strength.

• Chen Xuan confirmed that the Snake-People Tribe had found a Heavenly Flame in the Tagor Desert.
• Gu He offered a Transformation Pill and four Emperor's Extreme Pills for the Heavenly Flame, then raised his offer to five Emperor's Extreme Pills when Chen Xuan refused.
• Queen Medusa suggested killing Gu He and taking the pills, and Chen Xuan considered the idea.
• Chen Xuan showed a tangible flame and revealed the Purple Heart Barrier-Breaking Pill she had just refined.
• Gu He recognized Chen Xuan as a peak fourth-grade Alchemist and gave up on the trade, while Jia Xingtian, Jia Ye, and the Snake-People Tribe elders reacted to her potential.

Chen Xuan revealed that Medusa was nearing fifth-tier Alchemist status, prompting Jia Xingtian and Jia Ye to seek closer ties with the Snake-People Tribe while Gu He abandoned his hopes of obtaining the heavenly flame. Back in the Sacred Hall, Chen Xuan ordered four Snake-People leaders to capture Gu He so he could bring the sixth-tier Alchemist into his service.

• Jia Xingtian and Jia Ye left the Snake-People Holy City and agreed to befriend the tribe, offering two more Dou Ling Pills as an investment.
• Gu He lamented that he had failed to obtain the heavenly flame and decided he could not take it from Medusa by force.
• Chen Xuan received congratulations from the Snake-People Tribe's elders and chiefs, then announced that he wanted someone captured.
• Chen Xuan ordered Ji She, Ji Xuan, Yue Mei, and Mo Bass to capture Gu He and bring him back alive.
• Chen Xuan revealed that he intended to recruit Gu He by offering him overwhelming benefits.

Snake Ji, Ji Xuan, Yue Mei, and Mo Bass pursued Pill King Gu He across the Tagor Desert after the Snake-People Tribe’s queen ordered them to bring him back. They caught him before he could reach a human city, and Gu He feared the tribe intended to take his pills and imprison him.

• Snake Ji tracked Gu He’s trail across the desert, but he concealed his presence with a Concealment Pill and slipped away while the four pursuers searched in separate directions.
• Gu He headed for the nearest human city, hoping its crowds would help him escape, but Snake Ji and the others discovered his trick and followed his trail.
• The four Snake-People Tribe experts caught up with Gu He and surrounded him, insisting that he return to meet their queen.
• Gu He offered them the Transformation Pill and the Emperor’s Extreme Pill if they would let him go, but Snake Ji refused and warned that they would use force if he resisted.
• Realizing he could not escape the two Dou Emperors and two Dou Wangs, Gu He regretted coming to the Snake-People Tribe.

Chen Xuan brought Pill King Gu He to the Snake-People Holy City and offered him a chance to join the tribe. Gu He rejected the offer until Chen Xuan revealed ninth-rank Alchemist notes, leaving him overwhelmed with excitement.

• Great Elder Snake Ji sealed Gu He's strength, reducing him from Dou Wang to Da Dou Shi, and took him to the Snake-People Holy City.
• Snake Ji and her companions brought Gu He to Chen Xuan in the Sacred Hall.
• Chen Xuan restored Gu He's strength and asked him to join the Snake-People Tribe, but Gu He refused.
• Chen Xuan claimed he had become a fourth-rank Alchemist in two years and showed Gu He a Beast-Skin Scroll.
• Gu He recognized the scroll as extraordinary alchemy notes, and Chen Xuan revealed they belonged to a ninth-rank Alchemist and would be Gu He's if he joined the tribe.

Gu He accepted Chen Xuan’s offer to join the Snake-People Tribe in exchange for access to a Ninth-Grade Alchemist’s Pill Refining Insights. Chen Xuan welcomed him as an honored guest equal in status to the Eight Leaders, and Gu He revealed an impressive store of pills that showed how dangerous he could be.

• Chen Xuan told Gu He that the Beast-Skin Scroll held a Ninth-Grade Alchemist’s insights and promised the remaining knowledge if Gu He joined the Snake-People Tribe.
• Gu He weighed the offer against losing his freedom, then knelt before Chen Xuan and agreed to join.
• Chen Xuan welcomed Gu He and granted him honored-guest status equal to the Eight Leaders, which the elders and leaders accepted.
• Gu He thanked Chen Xuan and presented a collection of pills from his Storage Ring to benefit the tribe.
• Great Elder Snake Ji spotted a Burning Qi Pill among the offerings, and the tribe’s experts realized Gu He’s pills could make him formidable in battle.

Chen Xuan distributed Gu He's pills and pill-refining insights among the Snake-People Tribe, strengthening its elders and leaders. He gave Yue Mei the Transformation Pill, and she emerged from the transformation in human form.

• Chen Xuan teased Queen Medusa about her age, then accepted most of Gu He's pills and gave Gu He seventh-grade pill-refining insights.
• Chen Xuan gave one Emperor's Extreme Pill to each of the Four Elders and one Dou Ling Pill to each of the Eight Leaders.
• On Queen Medusa's advice, Chen Xuan chose Yue Mei to receive the Transformation Pill because of her strength and talent.
• Yue Mei swallowed the Transformation Pill and transformed into a human woman in a long blue dress.

Chen Xuan and Queen Medusa discussed strengthening the Snake-People Tribe and identified Hai Bodong and the heavenly flame map fragment he stole as future targets. They decided to focus first on reaching Peak Dou Emperor and devouring the Green Lotus Core Flame.

• Queen Medusa and Chen Xuan noted that they were nearing Peak Dou Emperor and that pills had strengthened the tribe’s leaders and elders.
• Chen Xuan said the tribe’s next priority was raising its top experts and revealed that Hai Bodong was in the Tagor Desert, weakened to Dou Ling by Queen Medusa’s seal.
• Queen Medusa grew furious over Hai Bodong’s role in her younger sister’s death and his theft of her map fragment.
• Chen Xuan revealed that the fragment mapped a heavenly flame, the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame, and said Hai Bodong also had something the tribe needed.
• Chen Xuan and Queen Medusa agreed to first reach Peak Dou Emperor and devour the Green Lotus Core Flame before dealing with Hai Bodong.

Chen Xuan reflected on his physical strength and his plan to cultivate his body, soul, and Dou Qi together. Queen Medusa questioned where he came from, and he left her with only a promise that she would learn the truth someday.

• Chen Xuan assessed his body as strong enough to contend with Dou Emperor-level magical beasts and resolved to develop his body, soul, and Dou Qi together.
• Queen Medusa teased Chen Xuan for admiring his own strength, and he boasted about his looks before she mocked his past as a single man.
• Queen Medusa asked where Chen Xuan came from, citing his unusual beliefs, knowledge, abilities, and control over her body.
• Chen Xuan smiled and called himself an ordinary person, then told Queen Medusa she would understand his origins in the future.

Queen Medusa worried that Chen Xuan might leave her, while Chen Xuan reflected on his past and began the monthly sign-in. He received the Eight Gates technique and considered how the Meteor Tear could offset its physical harm, giving him a way to fight stronger opponents.

• Queen Medusa wondered whether Chen Xuan would leave her, then resolved that she would not let him go.
• Chen Xuan received the system's monthly sign-in prompt and reflected on the mixed rewards he had collected over three years.
• Chen Xuan began the sign-in and received the Eight Gates, a technique that temporarily unlocked the body's power.
• Chen Xuan recalled the Eight Gates from Naruto and realized he might adapt it to the dou qi world.
• Chen Xuan concluded that the Meteor Tear's restorative power could help him withstand the technique's side effects and challenge stronger opponents.

After three months studying Chen Xuan’s alchemy insights, Gu He grew more accepting of serving the Snake-People Tribe and admired Queen Medusa’s leadership. Chen Xuan summoned Gu He to ask about the Blood Lotus Pill, and Gu He realized she planned to absorb a Heavenly Flame.

• Gu He credited a Ninth-Grade Alchemy Master's insights with greatly improving his alchemy skills over three months.
• Gu He learned to appreciate the Snake-People Tribe's strength and unity and came to believe joining them was the right choice.
• Yue Mei thanked Gu He for the Transformation Pill and relayed Queen Medusa's summons.
• Chen Xuan revealed her Peak Dou Emperor strength when she welcomed Yue Mei and Gu He into the Sacred Hall.
• Chen Xuan asked Gu He about the Blood Lotus Pill, and Gu He asked whether she intended to absorb a Heavenly Flame.

Chen Xuan prepared to refine the green lotus core flame and traveled with Yue Mei and Gu He to Black Rock City to obtain the missing ice spirit cold spring. At the city gates, Chen Xuan unleashed a terrifying red aura and ordered everyone to their knees, leaving Gu He and Yue Mei stunned by her sudden transformation.

• Chen Xuan promised Gu He a chance to obtain a heavenly flame and learned that Gute in Black Rock City possessed the ice spirit cold spring needed to refine one.
• Chen Xuan, Yue Mei, and Gu He prepared to take the ice spirit cold spring from Gute and flew to Black Rock City.
• The trio arrived near evening and headed for the city gates, where guards and bystanders stared at the Snake-People Tribe.
• Chen Xuan released a wave of red Dou Qi that forced everyone within a hundred meters to their knees.
• Chen Xuan ordered Yue Mei and Gu He to continue, while they noticed her aura and appearance had changed and Gu He wondered who she had become.

Queen Medusa and Gu He went to Black Rock City's Alchemist Guild to find Gute. Gu He revealed that he had joined the Snake-People Tribe, and Frank agreed to lead the group to Gute.

• Gu He led Queen Medusa and Yue Mei to the Alchemist Guild, where Queen Medusa's aura frightened the people outside.
• Gu He met Frank and Otto, then Queen Medusa demanded to know where Gute was.
• Gu He told Frank and Otto that he had joined the Snake-People Tribe, leaving them stunned.
• Frank agreed to take Queen Medusa and her companions to Gute.

Queen Medusa led Gu He and the others to Gute’s shabby home, seeking his ice spirit cold spring, and destroyed the building with a blast of Dou Qi. Gute emerged furious and attacked, but Medusa crushed him to his knees with a snap of her fingers; he then looked up at her in shock.

• Frank and Otto guided Medusa, Gu He, and Chen Xuan through Black Rock City, where onlookers recognized the famed alchemists, Gu He, and Medusa.
• Frank and Otto brought the group to Gute’s cluttered, out-of-the-way home, and Medusa doubted it held an ice spirit cold spring.
• Medusa blasted Gute’s home into rubble, and Chen Xuan warned her that the cold spring might have been destroyed.
• Gute burst from the ruins, declared he would not let the attackers get away, and charged at the group with a condensed red sword.
• Medusa snapped her fingers and forced Gute to his knees with overwhelming pressure, then released him and walked up to him.
• Gute struggled to rise, asked who Medusa was, and stared at her in shock.

Queen Medusa obtained Gute’s Ice Spirit Cold Spring and seized his collection of treasures. She left with the resources needed to prepare for refining the Blood Lotus Pill and devouring the Green Lotus Core Flame.

• Queen Medusa intimidated Gute, and Gute asked what he had done to offend her.
• Gu He explained that Queen Medusa needed Gute’s Ice Spirit Cold Spring, and Gute handed over a bottle of it.
• Chen Xuan confirmed that the spring was the final item Queen Medusa needed to prepare for refining the heavenly flame.
• Chen Xuan urged Queen Medusa to take Gute’s other treasures, and she demanded that Gute hand over his entire collection.
• Gute gave Queen Medusa his Storage Ring, and she discovered it contained many medicinal ingredients and fifth-tier magic cores.

Queen Medusa took Frank and Otto’s Storage Rings after already claiming Gute’s Ice Spirit Cold Spring, then arranged for Gu He to refine the Blood Lotus Pill that night. Jia Xingtian arrived fearing she had broken her agreement with the Jia Ma Imperial Family, but Medusa assured him she had only come to collect an ingredient and would not attack the city.

• Queen Medusa demanded Frank and Otto hand over their Storage Rings, then scolded them when she found fewer high-tier resources than in Gute’s collection.
• Chen Xuan reminded Medusa that the Blood Lotus Pill was the last item needed, and Gu He promised to finish refining it that night.
• Medusa sensed someone approaching, and Jia Xingtian arrived in Black Rock City.
• Jia Xingtian asked whether his agreement with Medusa still stood, and she said she had only come to collect an ingredient and would not attack the city.
• Frank, Otto, and Gute were stunned that Jia Xingtian and Medusa discussed their agreement without fighting.

Lu Man and Bai Ya of the Heavenly Snake Mansion arrived in Black Rock City searching for someone with the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils. Chen Xuan explained the pupils’ danger and value to Queen Medusa, and he resolved to keep the Heavenly Snake Mansion from claiming their possessor.

• Lu Man and Bai Ya sensed two powerful auras near Black Rock City and decided to ask the local experts about the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils.
• Queen Medusa, Jia Xingtian, and the others sensed the newcomers’ Peak Dou Emperor auras as Lu Man and Bai Ya flew toward them.
• Lu Man asked Jia Xingtian whether the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils had appeared in the Jia Ma Empire, while Jia Xingtian and Queen Medusa admitted they did not know what they were.
• Chen Xuan told Queen Medusa that the pupils could control snake-type magical beasts, though they could not control those with certain advanced bloodlines after reaching Dou Zong.
• Chen Xuan explained that the pupils could become a major asset to the Snake-People Tribe and decided not to let the Heavenly Snake Mansion claim their possessor.

Queen Medusa confronted Bai Ya after he openly stared at her, overwhelming the gathered experts with her power and attacking him with a strange halberd. Bai Ya transformed into his Eight-Winged Black Snake Emperor form and used his wings to defend against her strike as the blast shook the area.

• Bai Ya stared at Queen Medusa, who released a terrifying aura that shocked Lu Man, Bai Ya, and Jia Xingtian.
• Lu Man recognized Queen Medusa and questioned how Yue Mei had taken human form, suspecting she had obtained a seventh-tier Transformation Pill.
• Bai Ya backed down and called his disrespect a misunderstanding, but Queen Medusa summoned a black crescent-bladed halberd and declared that he deserved to die.
• Queen Medusa gathered and compressed her red Dou Qi into a sphere before hurling it at Bai Ya.
• Bai Ya transformed into the Eight-Winged Black Snake Emperor and shielded himself with his wings, but the collision unleashed a devastating blast that collapsed nearby houses.

Queen Medusa devastated Bai Ya and Lu Man with a single attack, then learned the Heavenly Snake Mansion was a powerful faction with High-Rank Dou Zong experts. Lu Man offered compensation to avert further conflict, and Medusa secured a deal for three Emperor's Extreme Pills.

• Jia Xingtian shielded the onlookers from Medusa's attack, but the blast shattered his barrier and left a massive crater where Lü Mei and Bai Ya had been.
• Bai Ya and Lu Man emerged injured, and Bai Ya admitted Medusa's strength exceeded that of an ordinary Peak Dou Emperor.
• Lu Man apologized and explained that the Heavenly Snake Mansion had sent them on a sect mission, while Chen Xuan revealed the faction's power and origins.
• Medusa refused to back down despite learning the Heavenly Snake Mansion was a first-rate faction with High-Rank Dou Zong experts.
• Lu Man offered two Emperor's Extreme Pills to secure their release, and Medusa demanded three, which Lu Man accepted.

After securing three Emperor's Extreme Pills from Queen Medusa, Lü Mei and Bai Ya left Black Rock City, while Medusa celebrated her gains and considered robbing more Alchemists. With Gu He reporting that the Blood Lotus Pill was ready, Medusa prepared to head to the Tagor Desert to refine the green lotus core flame.

• Lü Mei told Bai Ya that she had given Queen Medusa three Emperor's Extreme Pills because Medusa's soul power had repelled her probe and suggested she possessed another hidden trump card.
• Queen Medusa admired the resources she had acquired and mused about plundering the Jia Ma Empire, but Chen Xuan warned that doing so would invite disaster.
• Queen Medusa suggested that robbing human Alchemists from time to time could be profitable.
• Yue Mei and Pill King Gu He arrived, and Gu He reported that he had successfully refined the Blood Lotus Pill.
• Queen Medusa praised Yue Mei and Gu He and announced that they would leave for the Tagor Desert the next day to refine the green lotus core flame.

Chen Xuan, Yue Mei, and Gu He entered Mo City using an imperial token and went to the Ancient Map shop. There, Chen Xuan confronted the hidden Ice Emperor Hai Bodong and demanded that he submit or die.

• Chen Xuan showed the guards Jia Xingtian’s imperial token, allowing the three visitors to enter Mo City unhindered.
• Chen Xuan led Yue Mei and Gu He to the Ancient Map shop, where he sensed a powerful presence inside.
• Hai Bodong emerged from the shop and recognized Gu He and Chen Xuan as Queen Medusa.
• Chen Xuan demanded that Hai Bodong submit or die, and Hai Bodong unleashed icy Dou Qi.
• Chen Xuan calmly engulfed the spreading ice with black Dou Qi and melted it away.

Chen Xuan nearly killed Hai Bodong after he refused to submit, but Die’s memory reminded Hai Bodong of his promise to see the world for her. Hai Bodong regained his Dou Wang strength and agreed to join Queen Medusa on the condition that he would never be forced to kill innocent humans.

• Hai Bodong refused to submit to Queen Medusa and accepted Chen Xuan’s attack without resisting.
• As Chen Xuan strangled him, Hai Bodong remembered Die and the promise he had made to see the world for her.
• Hai Bodong broke through the Snake Curse Seal, regained his Dou Wang strength, and summoned an enormous ice dragon above Mo City.
• Hai Bodong agreed to submit to Queen Medusa if he would never have to kill innocent humans.
• Chen Xuan admitted he had expected Hai Bodong to submit and said Hai Bodong would have been useless if he had not resisted.

Chen Xuan restored Hai Bodong's Dou Emperor strength and gave him an Emperor's Extreme Pill, while Hai Bodong and Gu He agreed to serve the Snake-People Tribe for thirty years. The chapter ended with Gu He predicting that Queen Medusa and the tribe would soon become renowned powers.

• Hai Bodong agreed to serve the Snake-People Tribe for thirty years in exchange for his freedom afterward, and Gu He made the same commitment.
• Chen Xuan used his black Snake Shadow to remove Hai Bodong's Snake Curse Seal, restoring him to the Dou Emperor level.
• Chen Xuan gave Hai Bodong an Emperor's Extreme Pill to help him recover his remaining strength.
• Gu He told Hai Bodong that Queen Medusa would become renowned across the Northwest Continent and lead the Snake-People Tribe to greatness.