Recaps

Xiao Yan defeated Hai Bodong in a confrontation over an Ancient Treasure Map fragment, then learned that the fallen Ice Emperor needed his help to break Medusa’s seal. The two began negotiating a cure and the map’s missing piece, leaving Hai Bodong offering information about a Heavenly Flame.

• Xiao Yan threatened Hai Bodong with six Flame Beasts, and Hai Bodong warned him that the map fragment was incomplete.
• Hai Bodong introduced himself as the Ice Emperor and explained that Medusa had sealed his cultivation and aged his body decades ago.
• Hai Bodong offered the missing map piece and his friendship in exchange for Xiao Yan refining a Sixth-Grade Pò'è Pill.
• Xiao Yan said he might obtain a life-extending treasure but would need greater compensation than one map fragment.
• Hai Bodong offered information about a Heavenly Flame to show his sincerity.

Xiao Yan followed Hai Bodong’s map to search for a Heavenly Flame in the Tagor Desert, but found none at the eastern marker. He rescued a poisoned mercenary and recognized the design on the man’s badge as he prepared to leave.

• Hai Bodong gave Xiao Yan a map marking three possible Heavenly Flame locations and warned him to avoid the western site near Empress Medusa’s palace.
• Xiao Yan promised to return within a year to continue his exchange with Hai Bodong, then set out for the eastern marker.
• Xiao Yan and six Flame Beasts searched the eastern area but found no trace of a Heavenly Flame, so he crossed the location off his map.
• Xiao Yan followed his giant flaming bird to a dehydrated, poisoned mercenary and gave him a Detoxification Pill and clean water.
• Xiao Yan noticed the design on the mercenary’s badge looked familiar as he was about to leave.

Xiao Yan rescued his brothers’ Desert Iron Mercenary Group from a Snake-People ambush by sending three Flame Beasts to kill the attackers. One Snake-Person survived and fled, so Xiao Yan attacked it himself with a Flame Giant Sword.

• A wounded mercenary asked Xiao Yan to seek reinforcements for the Desert Iron Mercenary Group, and Xiao Yan recognized the group’s badge and learned that its leaders were Xiao Ding and Xiao Li.
• Xiao Yan brought the mercenary to the ambush site, where eight Snake-People surrounded the surviving squad and targeted its leader, Xue Lan.
• Xiao Yan summoned three Flame Beasts, which quickly killed the eight Snake-People and saved the mercenaries.
• Dan Zai returned, and a Snake-Person that had survived by hiding in the sand fled while everyone’s attention was diverted.
• Xiao Yan attacked the fleeing Snake-Person with a Flame Giant Sword, splitting the sand ahead of it with a scorched fissure.

Xiao Yan rescued Xue Lan’s mercenary squad and accompanied them to Stone Desert City, where he reunited with the Desert Iron Mercenary Group’s two leaders, his older brothers. The chapter ended with the brothers embracing before the gathered mercenaries.

• Xiao Yan dismissed his Flame Beasts after saving Xue Lan’s squad from the Snake-People, and Xue Lan thanked him.
• Xiao Yan accepted Xue Lan’s invitation to visit Stone Desert City because he wanted to see his two older brothers.
• Xue Lan’s squad and Xiao Yan traveled to Stone Desert City, where the Desert Iron Mercenary Group had become one of the city’s three great mercenary groups.
• The Desert Iron Mercenary Group gathered to welcome Xiao Yan, and its two leaders recognized him as their younger brother.
• Xiao Yan greeted his older brothers and embraced them as the mercenaries realized who he was.

Xiao Yan reunited with his brothers in Stone Desert City and met Qing Lin, a mixed-blood girl who had endured prejudice. After accepting her and encouraging her to ignore her detractors, he defended her from hostile mercenaries and showed her how to fight back.

• Xiao Yan celebrated his reunion with Xiao Ding and Xiao Li at a feast, then slept late after they arranged a room for him.
• Qing Lin, the maid assigned to Xiao Yan, startled him with her unusual eyes, and he learned she was a mixed-blood child of humans and Snake-People.
• Xiao Yan told Qing Lin that her scales were beautiful and encouraged her not to let others' prejudice define her.
• Xiao Yan asked Qing Lin to show him around Stone Desert City, where residents stared at her with hatred and disgust.
• Xiao Yan publicly condemned the people who targeted Qing Lin, then knocked several mercenaries away when they confronted him.

Xiao Yan helped Qing Lin begin cultivating and encouraged her to become strong enough to protect herself. After she reached the first stage of Dou Power, Xiao Li arrived to bring Xiao Yan to the Desert Iron Mercenary Group's monthly test.

• Xiao Yan told Qing Lin that strength could help her avoid being bullied and offered to teach her how to protect herself.
• Xiao Yan cleared Qing Lin's meridians and taught her how to cultivate, discovering that she had an unusually strong foundation and wood-attribute Qi.
• Xiao Yan decided to stay in Stone Desert City for a month so Qing Lin could stabilize her cultivation.
• After seven days of diligent practice, Qing Lin reached the first stage of Dou Power, and Xiao Yan promised to ask Xiao Ding to guide her after he left.
• Xiao Yan reminded Qing Lin that she would ultimately have to protect herself, and she resolved to protect him if she ever became stronger than him.
• Xiao Li told Xiao Yan that the Desert Iron Mercenary Group had gathered for its monthly test and wanted to see him demonstrate his abilities.

The Desert Iron Mercenary Group held an internal competition, where Xue Lan defeated Kai Le. Xiao Yan then sparred against Xiao Ding and Xiao Li, revealing that he had reached Two-Star Dou Ling and overwhelming their combined attacks with a single swing of a Heavenly Flames Greatsword.

• Xue Lan defeated Kai Le in an assessment match and kept her position as captain of the fourth mercenary squad.
• Xiao Yan arrived at the training grounds with Xiao Li, and the mercenaries gathered to see his strength.
• Xiao Ding and Xiao Li challenged Xiao Yan to a friendly spar, and he revealed that he was a Two-Star Dou Ling.
• Xiao Ding and Xiao Li launched their signature Dou Techniques, but Xiao Yan destroyed them with a single sword swing and scorched the ground before them.
• Xiao Yan thanked his two older brothers for the match.

Xiao Yan reunited with Xiao Ding and Xiao Li in Stone Desert City and revealed that he was a Two-Star Dou Ling and a Second-Rank Alchemist searching for Heavenly Flames. Qing Lin then reported a powerful, injured woman who had touched something intensely hot in the city, giving Xiao Yan a likely Heavenly Flame clue and a destination to investigate.

• Xiao Yan defeated Xiao Ding and Xiao Li in a mercenary test, then revealed he had reached Two-Star Dou Ling.
• Xiao Yan told his brothers he had come to Stone Desert City on a whim and would leave after Qing Lin stabilized her cultivation to search for Heavenly Flames.
• Xiao Yan showed his First-Rank Alchemist badge and explained that he had reached the standard of a Second-Rank Alchemist.
• Xiao Ding and Xiao Li said they had no information about unusual heat or Heavenly Flames in Stone Desert City.
• Qing Lin described sensing a powerful woman who touched something terrifyingly hot in Stone Desert City and appeared injured when she left.
• Xiao Yan asked Qing Lin to lead him to the place, and Xiao Ding and Xiao Li volunteered to go with them.

Xiao Yan and his brothers searched the dunes for the powerful presence Qing Lin had sensed, then confronted the Sand Mercenary Group’s Mo Xing. Xiao Yan left to deal with Sha Luo while his brothers continued the search.

• Qing Lin led Xiao Yan, Xiao Ding, and Xiao Li to the dunes where she sensed the presence had appeared, and Xiao Yan suspected something was hidden underground.
• Xiao Li returned with dozens of Elite Mercenaries, and Xiao Ding organized them to survey and dig through the dunes.
• Mo Xing arrived with Sand Mercenary Group men and claimed the area, but Xiao Li struck him with lightning and drove him away.
• Xiao Yan told Xiao Ding and Xiao Li he would deal with Sha Luo, then flew off on his Eagle Wings as the mercenaries watched in amazement.

Luo Bu planned to challenge the Desert Iron Mercenary Group’s excavation, but Xiao Yan forced him to abandon the conflict. Luo Bu later brought more than two hundred Sand Mercenary Group members to join the Desert Iron Mercenary Group.

• Mo Xing told Luo Bu that the Desert Iron Mercenary Group was digging near the eastern dunes and urged him to seize whatever treasure they found.
• Xiao Yan appeared in Luo Bu’s headquarters, burned Mo Xing to ashes, and forced Luo Bu to promise the Sand Mercenary Group would stop opposing the Desert Iron Mercenary Group.
• After Xiao Yan left, Luo Bu decided to pledge the Sand Mercenary Group to the Desert Iron Mercenary Group in hopes of improving his prospects.
• Xiao Yan returned to the dunes, where Luo Bu arrived with more than two hundred members and announced that the Sand Mercenary Group was joining the Desert Iron Mercenary Group.

Xiao Yan used his status as an Alchemist and promised pills to secure Luo Bu’s loyalty and help integrate the Sand Mercenary Group into the Desert Iron Mercenary Group. The new membership rules and benefits sparked enthusiasm, while Xiao Yan was left with half a month of pill-making.

• Luo Bu brought the Sand Mercenary Group to join the Desert Iron Mercenary Group, explaining that he wanted Xiao Yan’s help advancing to Dou Ling.
• Xiao Yan revealed his Alchemist Badge and promised to help Luo Bu advance within ten years, settling Luo Bu’s doubts.
• Xiao Ding appointed Luo Bu as Third Group Leader and limited immediate membership to fifty of his elite mercenaries, requiring the rest to pass an assessment.
• The Sand Mercenary Group’s members protested the restrictions, but Xiao Yan promised pills and other benefits to official members and leaders who proved themselves.
• The mercenaries accepted the offer, and Xiao Yan spent the following half month making pills until his palms burned.

After refining a large supply of pills for the Desert Iron Mercenary Group, Xiao Yan learned that Qing Lin had found a buried underground passage connected to the presence he was seeking. He entered the winding tunnel with Qing Lin to search for a heavenly flame, while Xiao Ding and Xiao Li guarded the entrance.

• Xiao Yan finished refining more than a thousand Blood-Nourishing Pills and Poison-Expelling Pills, along with smaller quantities of Qi Recovery Pills and Strength-Multiplying Pills.
• Qing Lin told Xiao Yan that the excavation team had found a lead, and he carried her by Flying Dou Technique to the site.
• Xiao Yan examined the newly uncovered black passage and decided to explore it alone, but Qing Lin offered to guide him by sensing the lingering presence.
• Xiao Yan agreed to take Qing Lin into the passage and told Xiao Ding and Xiao Li to guard the entrance while they searched.

Xiao Yan and Qing Lin followed a trail of fire-attribute energy to a Magma Pool, where Xiao Yan fought a Fourth-Order Two-Headed Snake. After he drove it underwater, the creature suddenly attacked Qing Lin at the passage entrance.

• Qing Lin sensed a stronger trace of the missing person's presence in one passage, and Xiao Yan sent a Flame Beast bird ahead to scout it.
• Xiao Yan and Qing Lin reached a Magma Pool, where Xiao Yan told Qing Lin to wait while he flew across to investigate.
• A Two-Headed Snake burst from the magma and attacked Xiao Yan, who fought it with his Heavenly Flames Greatsword and the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame.
• Xiao Yan battered the snake back into the Magma Pool and warned it not to attack him again.
• The Two-Headed Snake erupted from the magma once more and lunged at Qing Lin.

Qing Lin awakened her Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils and formed a bond with the Two-Headed Snake. With the snake agreeing to guide him, Xiao Yan descended into the Magma Pool to search for the heavenly flame.

• The Two-Headed Snake ambushed Qing Lin, but her eyes released green light that subdued it and made it docile.
• Xiao Yan drove the snake back into the Magma Pool and checked Qing Lin, who said she could sense its thoughts and knew it would not attack them.
• Xiao Yan consulted Sheng'er's Medicine Book and identified Qing Lin's constitution as the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils, which could control snake-type magical beasts.
• Qing Lin realized the Two-Headed Snake knew where the heavenly flame was and asked it to guide Xiao Yan.
• The Two-Headed Snake entered the magma, and Xiao Yan followed it under the protection of the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame.

Xiao Yan followed the Two-Headed Snake through the Magma Pool and found the green lotus core flame, but its central flame was missing. A colorful scale suggested Empress Medusa had taken it, leaving Xiao Yan hopeful that the Heavenly Flame might still be within reach.

• Xiao Yan continued descending through the Magma Pool after the Two-Headed Snake, nearly giving up until the Little Milk Puppy confirmed their path.
• Xiao Yan entered a zone of green light and identified the jade lotus there as the green lotus core flame, ranked nineteenth on the Heavenly Flame Ranking.
• Xiao Yan discovered that the lotus's center was empty and realized someone had already taken its flame.
• Xiao Yan found a colorful scale and suspected Empress Medusa had taken the green lotus core flame for another purpose.
• Xiao Yan regained hope that the Heavenly Flame was still available and decided to take the abandoned green lotus.

Xiao Yan recovered the Green Lotus Platform and its seeds from the magma, then returned and revealed that Empress Medusa had likely taken the Heavenly Flame. Despite his brothers’ warnings, he decided he would still seek a chance to obtain it.

• Xiao Yan used the Ancient Jade Piece to cut free the Green Lotus Platform and collected eleven Green Lotus Seeds, feeding one to the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame.
• Xiao Yan left the Green Lotus’s roots and stem intact, then returned to the Magma Pool and reunited with Qing Lin and the Two-Headed Snake.
• Xiao Yan told Xiao Ding and Xiao Li that Empress Medusa had probably taken the Heavenly Flame, though she could not absorb it because of her attribute.
• Xiao Ding and Xiao Li warned Xiao Yan not to challenge Empress Medusa until he was much stronger, but he said he could not leave without trying to obtain the Heavenly Flame.
• Xiao Ding and Xiao Li accepted Xiao Yan’s decision and reminded him that he still had to attend the banquet.

Xiao Yan left Stone Desert City and traveled toward the Snake-People Holy City, absorbing a Green Lotus Seed along the way. After reaching an oasis inside the territory of the Eight Snake-People Kings, he drank and refilled his water, only to discover that he had drunk a Snake-Person’s bathwater.

• Xiao Yan said farewell to Qing Lin and the Desert Iron Mercenary Group, then flew away from Stone Desert City.
• Xiao Yan absorbed a Green Lotus Seed and reached the peak of Two-Star Dou Ling, gaining Dou Qi with a trace of Green Lotus Core Flame power.
• Xiao Yan traveled for a week toward the Snake-People Holy City, following Elder Hai’s map into the territory of the Eight Snake-People Kings.
• Xiao Yan found an oasis watched by a squad of powerful female Snake-People and waited until they departed before approaching it.
• Xiao Yan drank from the oasis and filled his flask, then felt dizzy as a beautiful female Snake-Person emerged and asked whether he had enjoyed her bathwater.

Xiao Yan was discovered by Yue Mei, one of the Snake-People Kings, and fought to escape her pursuit across the desert. After Little Milk Puppy freed him from Yue Mei’s sealing snakes, a flying Magical Beast appeared overhead, bringing new pursuers close to their target.

• Xiao Yan feigned weakness before Yue Mei, then broke her Bewitching Charm Art and struck her with his Heavenly Flames Greatsword.
• Yue Mei recognized Xiao Yan as a dangerous young Dou Ling and ordered the female Snake-People to trap him with venomous snakes.
• Xiao Yan escaped into the sky with his Flying Dou Technique, but Yue Mei pursued him with Dou Qi wings and sent two Snake-Shaped Energy Beasts to seal his Dou Techniques.
• Little Milk Puppy transformed into a Giant Wolf and swallowed both energy snakes, restoring Xiao Yan’s Dou Qi.
• Xiao Yan prepared to fight Yue Mei as a flying Magical Beast appeared overhead, and its rider noted that they were near their target.

Xiao Yan encountered Pill King Gu He’s powerful party, which had come to the Tagor Desert seeking an audience with Empress Medusa and likely the Green Lotus Core Flame. Yue Mei rejected Gu He’s request, and the two sides began fighting while the black-robed Dou Emperor watched Xiao Yan.

• A flying Magical Beast descended with Pill King Gu He, the black-robed Dou Emperor, Yan Shi, Feng Li, and five Dou Ling guards, alarming Yue Mei with their strength.
• Gu He’s party mistook Xiao Yan for a prodigy from another empire until the black-robed figure said he was not.
• Xiao Yan recognized Gu He and realized he had likely come to seek the Green Lotus Core Flame, leaving Xiao Yan worried about the stronger party.
• Gu He asked Yue Mei to introduce them to Empress Medusa, but Yue Mei refused to negotiate with the humans.
• Gu He ordered Yan Shi and Feng Li to fight, and the three Dou Wangs began battling as Xiao Yan retreated.
• Xiao Yan noticed the black-robed Dou Emperor casting brief glances toward him.

Yue Mei fought Yan Shi and Feng Li but escaped after they severely wounded her, while Gu He pressed on toward Empress Medusa. Xiao Yan revealed his Heavenly Flame to persuade Gu He to take him along on the search.

• Yan Shi and Feng Li overwhelmed Yue Mei with coordinated attacks, and Yan Shi gravely wounded her with his Lionheart Heaven-Shaking Fist.
• Yue Mei used the Snake Technique: Division to scatter into energy snakes and escape.
• Gu He recalled Yan Shi and Feng Li, explaining that he urgently needed a Heavenly Flame to refine a pill that might save his disciple.
• Xiao Yan stopped Gu He and asked to join his search for Heavenly Flames.
• Gu He questioned why he should recruit Xiao Yan, and Xiao Yan revealed a blue-green flame as his reason.

Xiao Yan used his green lotus flame and his ability to sense the Heavenly Flame to persuade Gu He to let him join the expedition. One of Gu He's Dou Ling companions then challenged Xiao Yan to prove his strength, and Xiao Yan chose the strongest opponent.

• Xiao Yan told Gu He that he had gained his green lotus flame by swallowing a Green Lotus Seed, but said he had no seeds left to sell.
• Gu He initially refused to take Xiao Yan along, but Xiao Yan claimed he could sense the green lotus core flame's location.
• The mysterious black-robed Dou Emperor vouched for Xiao Yan, and Gu He agreed to recruit him with fourth-grade pills as rewards.
• One of Gu He's Dou Ling companions challenged Xiao Yan to prove his strength, and Xiao Yan selected the Seven-Star Dou Ling elder as his opponent.

Xiao Yan fought He Rang in a ten-move boundary match and used repeated Explosive Steps to build enough momentum to overcome the stronger Dou Ling. He defeated He Rang with a final greatsword strike, then politely claimed that He Rang had let him win.

• He Rang challenged Xiao Yan to knock him down or force him out of a boundary within ten moves, and Xiao Yan accepted.
• He Rang attacked with Earth-Splitting Cleave, but Xiao Yan evaded it with Explosive Step and countered with his green greatsword.
• Xiao Yan repeatedly used Explosive Step to build speed and pressure He Rang, who realized he needed to interrupt Xiao Yan's growing momentum.
• He Rang unleashed Rock Prison Collapse, raising three rings of stone spikes that filled the boundary and trapped Xiao Yan.
• Xiao Yan shattered the spikes with Sonic Lion Roar, followed with a green flaming palm, and used the spikes as footholds to reach his twentieth Explosive Step.
• Xiao Yan struck He Rang into a crater with his greatsword, stood unhurt beside him, and said, “Sir, you let me win.”

Xiao Yan joined Gu He's expedition and helped the group force its way through a Snake-People settlement while avoiding unnecessary bloodshed. Gu He began considering Xiao Yan as a potential disciple, and the Snake-People sent a messenger to inform Empress Medusa after the humans left.

• He Rang accepted Xiao Yan's victory and assigned him to guard Gu He as the expedition continued toward the Holy City.
• The group reached a Snake-People settlement, where Xiao Yan and five other Dou Ling drove back the guards while Gu He and the stronger fighters pushed through.
• Xiao Yan found more than twenty Sand Mandala plants, uprooted them, and stored them before rejoining the group.
• Yan Shi and Feng Li praised Xiao Yan, and the black-robed Dou Emperor suggested that Gu He take him as a disciple.
• The group passed through the settlement and withdrew without killing the Snake-People, and Gu He decided to consider Xiao Yan as a disciple after the Heavenly Flame mission.
• After the humans left, the Snake-People ordered a messenger to inform Empress Medusa of the intrusion.

Xiao Yan, Gu He, and their companions broke into the Snake-People Holy City and fought their way to Medusa Temple to seek the Heavenly Flames. Empress Medusa answered Gu He's call, and the party awaited her appearance.

• The black-robed Dou Emperor breached the Holy City's wall, allowing the group to enter before the Snake-People guards could stop them.
• Xiao Yan sensed the Heavenly Flames near Medusa Temple, and the group hurried there as the city went on alert.
• Yan Shi and Feng Li fought Empress Medusa's personal guards while Gu He and the others climbed the temple steps.
• The group fought through another wave of guards and reached Medusa's temple hall.
• Gu He called for Empress Medusa, who replied and acknowledged the distinguished alchemist's visit.

Gu He offered Empress Medusa a Seventh-grade Transformation Pill and two Sixth-grade Dou Ling Pills in exchange for her Heavenly Flame, but she refused. The black-robed Dou Emperor exposed that Medusa was only a mirror image and suddenly attacked her.

• Empress Medusa appeared in the Divine Hall, and the black-robed Dou Emperor helped Xiao Yan withstand her pressure.
• Gu He offered Medusa a Transformation Pill and two Dou Ling Pills for her Heavenly Flame, but she declined and allowed the group to leave.
• The black-robed Dou Emperor revealed that Medusa needed a Heavenly Flame to complete a bloodline-evolving rebirth.
• The black-robed Dou Emperor said Medusa was only a mirror image and struck her with cyan Dou Qi, shattering the image.