Chapter Summaries

Hun Changqing bought a damaged map fragment at the auction, silencing the hall with his bid. He revealed to Medusa and Hai Bodong that the map was worth more than a Heaven Rank Low Grade Dou Technique and could draw powerful Central Plains experts if its importance became known.

• The auction resumed cautiously, and bidders gradually regained their nerve as VIP Room No. 3 remained quiet.
• Hun Changqing bid one hundred thousand gold coins for a damaged map fragment, sending another black deposit card into the crystal podium.
• A male attendant delivered the fragment to Hun Changqing, who complained that the auction house had sent a man instead of a maid.
• Medusa asked Hun Changqing why he had bought the map, while Hai Bodong recognized the fragment that had brought him years of misery.
• Hun Changqing told Hai Bodong that the assembled map and its energy were more valuable than a Heaven Rank Low Grade Dou Technique, and that Dou Zun and Dou Sheng experts would come to seize it if its location became known.

Hun Changqing reassured Medusa and intimidated Hai Bodong over the map fragment as the auction revealed a seventh-tier Yin-Yang Profound Dragon Pill. The pill’s appearance awakened Yao Chen, who recognized it and seethed with hatred toward Han Feng.

• Medusa considered killing Hai Bodong to keep the map fragment’s secrets, but Hun Changqing calmed her by taking her hand.
• Hun Changqing told Hai Bodong that the map was safe with him and teased him about his loyalty as Ice Sect lord.
• The auctioneer presented the Yin-Yang Profound Dragon Pill, refined by Han Feng, and the crowd erupted with greed.
• Yao Chen awakened inside Hun Changqing’s Storage Ring and reacted to the pill with hatred for Han Feng.

Hun Changqing left the auction house with Medusa and Hai Bodong, only to be surrounded by Fan Lao and thousands of Blood Sect fighters seeking revenge for Fan Lao’s son. After Fan Lao threatened Medusa, Hun Changqing stopped her from attacking and unleashed his terrifying aura as the crowd fled.

• Hun Changqing reassured Yao Chen that Han Feng was nearby and promised to kill him, prompting Yao Chen to retreat into the Storage Ring in grief.
• Hun Changqing, Medusa, and Hai Bodong left the auction house and found themselves surrounded by Fan Lao and thousands of Blood Sect fighters.
• Fan Lao threatened to torture Hun Changqing and have his men assault Medusa, enraging Hun Changqing and making Medusa raise her hand to strike.
• Hun Changqing stopped Medusa, released a terrifying aura that sent the surrounding fighters fleeing, and dismissed their chances of escape.
• Hun Changqing spread black death qi across the area and called down the Black Death Tree.

Hun Changqing unleashed a blackwood forest that devastated the battlefield and trapped Fan Lao. After the forest drained Fan Lao’s strength, Hun Changqing captured his soul with the Soul-Binding Art and stored it in a container.

• Hun Changqing caused enormous blackwood trunks filled with Death Qi to erupt across the battlefield, killing and draining the vitality of those nearby.
• Fan Lao fled through the blackwood forest as it pursued him and deliberately wounded him without killing him.
• Fan Lao’s Dou Qi ran out, and he collapsed before Hun Changqing, gravely weakened and unable to speak.
• Hun Changqing taunted Fan Lao and said he would be kept alive for the Soul Palace’s tortures.
• Hun Changqing used the Soul-Binding Art to pull Fan Lao’s soul from his body and store it in an ancient-looking container.

Hun Changqing left the devastated Black Seal City with Medusa and Hai Bodong, then traveled to Maple City to find Han Feng. Han Feng was away, so Hun Changqing settled in the city while Yao Chen emerged from his storage ring and struggled with memories of the disciple who had betrayed him.

• Hun Changqing left Black Seal City with Medusa and Hai Bodong, while terrified survivors emerged from hiding and Yuan Yi lamented the destruction of his auction house.
• Hun Changqing and his companions reached Maple City and searched the Secluded Bamboo Grove, where Hun Changqing discovered that Han Feng had left after meeting with faction leaders.
• Hun Changqing subdued a guard and examined his memories, confirming that Han Feng had gone away and was not expected back soon.
• Hun Changqing settled into a secluded chamber and told Yao Chen that his revenge would have to wait because Han Feng was absent.
• Yao Chen emerged from the storage ring and recalled raising Han Feng as a beloved child before everything changed after Han Feng obtained the Flame Mantra.

Yao Chen reflected on Han Feng’s betrayal and agreed to wait for him so Hun Changqing could capture him and bring him back. After leaving Yao Chen to refine pills, Hun Changqing took Medusa into another secret chamber, where he teased her by making her wait for the “lesson” he promised.

• Yao Chen recalled refusing Han Feng the Flame Mantra to protect him, then learned too late that Han Feng had joined Old Man Mu Gu and stolen half of it.
• Yao Chen told Hun Changqing to capture Han Feng and give him his soul when he returned.
• Hun Changqing left a large supply of medicinal ingredients with Yao Chen and told him to refine pills in peace.
• Medusa confronted Hun Changqing outside the secret chamber, demanding to know what he had been doing inside.
• Hun Changqing carried Medusa into a dark chamber and teased her with a promised new lesson, leaving her embarrassed and trembling with anticipation.

Hun Changqing swallowed the Supreme Yin Pill and attempted to break through to Dou Zun, but an inexplicable restraint stopped him at the final moment. His near-breakthrough revealed three new characters in the Supreme Yin True Explanation: “Artifact Refining Chapter.”

• Hun Changqing emerged from the secret chamber after defeating Medusa and decided to cultivate with a pill from Yao Chen.
• Hun Changqing swallowed the Supreme Yin Pill and used its immense icy medicinal power to batter his bottleneck.
• Hun Changqing’s breakthrough failed when a powerful restraint stopped him just before he could reach Dou Zun.
• Hun Changqing realized his supreme yin true body might make the bottleneck harder to overcome, though he had glimpsed the mysteries of Dou Zun.
• Hun Changqing used his soul power to reveal the words “Artifact Refining Chapter” in the Supreme Yin True Explanation.

Hun Changqing gave Medusa a seventh-tier medicinal pill that restored her strength and healed her injuries. After she worried that he had wasted something precious, he distracted her by proposing they revisit what he had taught her, and they continued their intimacy in the secluded chamber.

• Hun Changqing woke Medusa and gave her a medicinal pill, then guided her energy as she refined it.
• The pill healed Medusa’s injuries and fatigue and cleared the disruptions in her Dou Qi.
• Medusa asked what the pill was, then scolded Hun Changqing for spending a seventh-tier pill on her when she would have recovered with rest.
• Hun Changqing reassured Medusa that she mattered more than the pill and said he could steal another one.
• Hun Changqing began teasing Medusa and suggested they review the new things she had learned, and she welcomed the idea after regaining her strength.

After returning from the Chu Yun Empire, Han Feng learned that Fan Lao had been killed by a black-clad Soul Palace figure and went to meet the group he assumed were his allies. Hai Bodong identified himself as Protector Bo and went inside to tell Hun Changqing that Han Feng had arrived.

• Han Feng returned to Maple City after securing the Chu Yun Empire's promise of support in exchange for medicinal pills.
• Han Beng told Han Feng that Fan Lao and thousands of Blood Sect disciples had been killed by a black-robed man after Fan Lao sought revenge for his son.
• Han Feng concluded that the killer belonged to the Soul Palace and was pleased to learn that the group had settled near his home.
• Han Feng went to the group's courtyard and called for a Soul Palace Protector after Hai Bodong's freezing aura surrounded him.
• Hai Bodong introduced himself as Protector Bo and went inside to inform Hun Changqing of Han Feng's visit.

Hun Changqing cultivated with Lesser Supreme Yin Pills before Han Feng arrived to ask for help killing the Ancient Flame Old Demon, who supposedly possessed a heavenly flame. Han Feng’s claim left Hun Changqing incredulous, and the chapter ended with him questioning the absurd comparison.

• Hun Changqing refined a Lesser Supreme Yin Pill and stored its energy as he prepared to break through to Dou Zun.
• Hai Bodong told Hun Changqing that Han Feng had arrived seeking an audience, and Hun Changqing ordered him to bring Han Feng in.
• Han Feng introduced himself as the Medicine Emperor and asked Hun Changqing to help kill the Ancient Flame Old Demon, a suspected Dou Zong.
• Han Feng claimed the Ancient Flame Old Demon’s dark-gold heavenly flame resembled the nine nether golden ancestor flame and offered the information as bait to enlist help.
• Hun Changqing recognized the absurdity of Han Feng’s claim and wondered how anyone could mistake the flame for Yan Jin’s heavenly flame.

Hun Changqing agreed to help Han Feng deal with the Ancient Flame Old Demon, but recognized clues that the demon had cultivated the Flame Mantra and resolved to kill him. Meanwhile, Gu Xun'er continued cultivating in a chamber she had copied from her past with Hun Changqing, longing for his return.

• Han Feng offered Hun Changqing a rare dark-gold Heavenly Flame and a seventh-rank pill in exchange for helping kill the Ancient Flame Old Demon.
• Hun Changqing suspected Han Feng's true motive, recognized the clues to the Flame Mantra, and decided the Ancient Flame Old Demon had to die.
• Hun Changqing gave Han Feng a Jade Slip for contacting him and planned to join Han Feng's gathered forces before killing both the demon and Han Feng.
• Hun Changqing withdrew to a secluded chamber to conserve his strength and prepare to kill the Ancient Flame Old Demon.
• Gu Xun'er cultivated in a painstaking replica of the chamber she had shared with Hun Changqing and believed his presence was the only thing missing.

Gu Xun'er used a sealed portion of the Life Spirit Flame’s discarded Dou Sheng-level energy to temper her body, relying on the flame and three other Heavenly Flames to survive the destructive process. After expelling impurities and awakening with a strengthened physique, she entered a medicinal bath prepared by Gu Juan.

• Gu Xun'er endured violent energy scouring her body while the Life Spirit Flame repaired the damage, then combined it with three other Heavenly Flames to suppress the energy.
• Gu Xun'er absorbed the remaining energy, and the chamber fell still as her aura disappeared.
• Gu Xun'er awoke with dark golden light in her eyes as her body cracked and expelled black impurities.
• Gu Xun'er burned her robe and entered a precious medicinal bath brewed by Gu Juan to cleanse and temper her body.

Gu Xun'er emerged from a medicinal bath with greatly strengthened physical power and resolved to find Hun Changqing after nearly two years apart. Hun Changqing felt an unexplained unease, and Medusa offered to face whatever troubled him alongside him.

• Gu Xun'er absorbed the medicinal bath’s energy, then demonstrated strength capable of shattering a One-Star Dou Zong’s defenses.
• Gu Xun'er thought of Hun Changqing and restrained her violent aura, deciding she needed to discover where he was before acting.
• Hun Changqing felt a sudden unease while with Medusa, but set it aside at her request.
• Hun Changqing later stood by a window, still troubled, and Medusa asked what was wrong and offered to confront the problem with him.

Hun Changqing prepared Medusa to fight as a concealed ally while investigating the mysterious Ancient Flame Old Demon, who was believed to be cultivating the Flame Mantra. When a heavenly flame’s aura rose near Jia Nan Academy, Hun Changqing left to investigate before the Old Demon could claim it.

• Hun Changqing told Medusa they would need to kill the strange, potentially dangerous opponent and asked her to hide on his wrist in her true form during the fight.
• Hun Changqing gave Medusa a Jade Slip containing the Breath Concealment Technique and told her to master it while he investigated the energy fluctuation.
• Medusa recognized the nearby energy as resembling the aura of a heavenly flame, and Hun Changqing identified it as the Fallen Heart Flame near Jia Nan Academy.
• Medusa went to the pavilion’s secret chamber to study the technique, while Hun Changqing vanished from the pavilion and sped toward Jia Nan Academy to keep the flame from the Ancient Flame Old Demon.

Gu Xun'er sensed the Fallen Heart Flame at Jia Nan Academy and traveled there with Gu Ming to seize it. At the tower’s deepest level, she found Xiao Yan and silently approached him with an overwhelming urge to kill.

• Gu Xun'er detected the Fallen Heart Flame and ordered Gu Ming to open a spatial tunnel to its source.
• Gu Xun'er and Gu Ming arrived at Jia Nan Academy’s black tower as its elders tried to reinforce the seal on the flame.
• Gu Xun'er descended through the tower, while her dark golden flames responded eagerly to the Fallen Heart Flame.
• At the bottom of the tower, Gu Xun'er saw Xiao Yan near the silver cage containing the Fallen Heart Flame.
• Gu Xun'er recalled Xiao Yan’s Flame Mantra and other heavenly flames, accepted her sudden murderous intent, and stealthily approached him.

Xiao Yan freed the weakened Fallen Heart Flame from its seal and began refining it, hoping to grow strong enough to find Gu Xun'er. Before he could turn around, Gu Xun'er killed him, and the lingering flame burned his body and head to charcoal.

• Xiao Yan resolved to become powerful enough to find Gu Xun'er and marry her, then trained obsessively at Jia Nan Academy.
• Xiao Yan discovered the sealed Fallen Heart Flame beneath the Heaven-Burning Qi Refining Tower and fed it energy from his two Heavenly Flames.
• The Fallen Heart Flame broke loose and unleashed a rampage that killed students and alerted the elders of Jia Nan Academy.
• Xiao Yan used his Heavenly Flames and the Flame Mantra to endure the rampage and refine the Fallen Heart Flame inside the cage of light.
• Gu Xun'er approached Xiao Yan from behind and, driven by killing intent, cut off his head with a sword of dark golden flame.
• The lingering flame burned Xiao Yan's head and body to charcoal, killing him.

After Xiao Yan died, Gu Xun'er absorbed a mysterious surge of soul power and broke through to the early heaven realm. She tested her new soul attack, collected Xiao Yan’s remains and treasures, and destroyed the fallen heart flame’s soul.

• When Xiao Yan died, Gu Xun'er was immobilized as an unknown force poured into her soul.
• Gu Xun'er cultivated as her soul power surged through the spirit realm and reached the early heaven realm.
• Gu Xun'er’s golden soul attack startled Gu Ming, who avoided it by shifting space.
• Gu Xun'er collected the green lotus core flame, the myriad beast spirit flame, and Xiao Yan’s Storage Ring.
• Gu Xun'er struck the fallen heart flame with another golden beam and shattered its soul.

Gu Xun'er sealed the weakened fallen heart flame after profiting from Xiao Yan’s death, then discovered a vast magma sea beneath the Black Tower. She and Gu Ming descended into it, but stopped when the depths seemed to pose a threat even to him.

• Gu Ming destroyed the light cage, and Gu Xun'er captured the fallen heart flame in a Spirit-Receiving Stone.
• Gu Xun'er mocked Xiao Yan’s death and reflected on the three heavenly flames and her advancement to the Heavenly Realm.
• Gu Ming sensed something unusual beneath the Black Tower and lifted the black stone floor, revealing a vast Magma Ocean.
• Gu Xun'er entered the magma with Gu Ming protecting her in an energy barrier, and they found the sea seemingly boundless and increasingly hot.
• Gu Ming warned Gu Xun'er that something below could threaten even him, and she agreed not to descend farther.

Gu Xun'er and Gu Ming discovered a fallen heart flame and the weakened soul of Yao Tianhuo in the depths of the magma sea. Gu Xun'er questioned him about how he died and what lay deeper in the magma, leaving the mystery unresolved.

• Gu Xun'er sensed a faint soul fluctuation and directed Gu Ming to investigate it.
• Gu Xun'er found a fallen heart flame floating above an ancient skeleton and prepared to collect it.
• A powerful soul emerged from the skeleton, but Gu Ming’s aura forced it to retreat and take the form of an old man.
• The old man identified himself as Yao Tianhuo and explained that he had reacted rashly after seeing someone for the first time in ages.
• Gu Xun'er asked Yao Tianhuo how he had died and whether he knew what lay within the magma sea.

Yao Tianhuo explained how he had been gravely wounded by a fallen heart flame and attacked by powerful Lizardmen before dying in the magma sea. Gu Xun'er accepted his service and received his Five-Wheel Separation Flame Art, which she recognized as a technique with great potential for her heavenly flames.

• Yao Tianhuo told Gu Xun'er that he had been injured while trying to fuse a fallen heart flame seedling and later fled a tribe of powerful Lizardmen before his wounds killed him.
• Gu Xun'er decided the magma sea was worth exploring later with stronger support and offered to help Yao Tianhuo recover if he followed her.
• Yao Tianhuo eagerly agreed to serve Gu Xun'er, and she stored the fallen heart flame seedling in the Spirit-Receiving Stone.
• Yao Tianhuo retrieved a scroll from his Storage Ring and gave Gu Xun'er his Five-Wheel Separation Flame Art as a gesture of loyalty.
• Gu Xun'er examined the art's five beast-shaped Fire Spirits and considered having Gu Yuan perfect it for use with her heavenly flames.