Recaps

Li Ping'an arrived in the Great An Kingdom with Old Ox and Little Girl and looked for an affordable place to stay. After finding a neglected courtyard for a hundred copper coins every ten days, he agreed to rent it.

• Little Girl recorded her journey in a diary, and Li Ping'an teased her about how it portrayed him.
• Li Ping'an, Old Ox, and Little Girl disembarked in the Great An Kingdom and entered a busy city.
• Little Girl worried that their restaurant meal would leave them without money, but Li Ping'an ordered food and she promised to provide for him and Niu Niu.
• A waiter directed Li Ping'an to his cousin, a property broker, who showed him a neglected courtyard beside a willow tree.
• Li Ping'an accepted the courtyard's rent of a hundred copper coins every ten days, and the broker went to fetch a contract.

Li Ping'an settled into a cheap house in Smoke City with Kitten and Old Ox, then learned the house was haunted by a wild god’s shrine. As Kitten took on paid mouse-catching work, the shrine tried to enter Li Ping'an’s dream, while Kitten confronted a mouse at another residence.

• Li Ping'an, Kitten, and Old Ox cleaned their new house and settled in, with Kitten promising to earn money.
• Li Ping'an visited a bun seller, who warned him that the house had been plagued by a wild god’s statue and that past tenants had fled.
• Li Ping'an returned to find neighbors watching and predicting he would not last long in the house.
• Kitten caught mice, stocked the household with supplies, and left after agreeing to catch mice for someone else for two copper coins each.
• A palm-sized shrine entered Li Ping'an’s room and tried to use a Dream-Entering Great Art, but Li Ping'an met its gray-eyed gaze.
• At another residence, Kitten bent down to meet the gaze of a mouse.

Li Ping'an spared a weak Artifact God and gave it a talisman so it could make amends, then watched Kitten recover from a series of fights with other cats and find a place among them. When he later met her leading a group of cats, she pretended not to know him.

• Li Ping'an questioned the shrine, learned it was an Artifact God that had frightened local households to obtain incense, and gave it a talisman to travel and repay its karmic debts.
• Kitten hid her injuries from Li Ping'an after fighting other cats over hunting territory, then returned home more confident after taking Old Ox and a packet of beef out at night.
• Kitten made friends with the other cats and began spending less time at home.
• Li Ping'an went to look for the City God and ran into Cat Immortal leading several cats across a bridge.
• Kitten denied knowing Li Ping'an when one of the cats asked why he had called her Cat Immortal, then hurried away with the group.

Li Ping'an visited Yanzhou City's City God Temple, went fishing, and returned home to find Kitten earning money by catching mice and using a fearsome Jianghu name. After dinner, their neighbor Fang Jin came to invite him over for tea.

• Li Ping'an found no divine presence at the City God Temple, then caught many fish and gave two to an old fisherman.
• Kitten admitted that Niu Niu had named her Cat Aotian and that she called herself Scarface in the Jianghu, claiming her belly scar came from fighting a Demon Sage.
• Kitten showed Li Ping'an the copper coins she had earned by catching mice and said the other cats had told her about a Big Rat Demon in Yanzhou City.
• Li Ping'an and Kitten ate fried flatbread and little fish soup, and Li Ping'an praised her cooking.
• Fang Jin, a neighboring licentiate, invited Li Ping'an to his home for tea.

Li Ping'an learned that strange hauntings had become more common in Smoke Continent and sent Kitten to deal with Scholar Fang’s Knocking Ghost. After she reported that the ghost had lost its mind, Li Ping'an asked her to investigate further, and several people arrived seeking his help with other uncanny matters.

• Scholar Fang told Li Ping'an that a Knocking Ghost had been pounding on his gates and asked him for help.
• Li Ping'an sent Kitten to watch over Scholar Fang’s home, and she drove off the Knocking Ghost that night.
• Kitten told Li Ping'an that the ghost had lost its mind, so he asked her to gather rumors about strange occurrences in Smoke Continent City.
• Two or three days later, several people came to Li Ping'an’s home to ask him to deal with uncanny matters they had experienced.

Li Ping'an resolved several minor supernatural troubles and learned that Kitten would miss dinner because Aotian was busy. Kitten returned with news about a suspicious Maiden Temple as Li Ping'an went to investigate a wealthy woman's vanishing valuables.

• A hunter asked Li Ping'an for help escaping a mountain path where minor ghosts kept making him lose his way, and Li Ping'an told him to curse at them and avoid the woods for a few days.
• Li Ping'an advised a man whose family was frightened by a one-eyed Demon Ghost to splash his young son's urine on it.
• A black-and-white cat brought Li Ping'an money and Aotian's message that she would not come home that night, so Li Ping'an and Old Ox went out to eat.
• Two days later, people whose troubles Li Ping'an had resolved returned with gifts and money, and a wealthy woman asked him to investigate food and valuables that vanished from her home.
• Kitten joined Li Ping'an on the way to the woman's home and revealed that she had investigated the Maiden Temple with other cats and discovered something suspicious there.

Li Ping'an and Kitten investigated a wealthy woman's missing jewelry and discovered that an old yellow dog had hidden it to help his impoverished owner. Li Ping'an made the wealthy woman return the fields she had seized, then walked through snowy Yanzhou City sensing that events were approaching.

• Kitten identified an old yellow dog as the one who had taken the woman's valuables, and Li Ping'an followed her to his home.
• The old woman explained that Big Yellow had stolen food, clothing, and jewelry after the wealthy household seized their land, and Li Ping'an confirmed the dog's account.
• Li Ping'an learned where Big Yellow had hidden the jewelry, gave him a pill as compensation, and left with Kitten.
• Li Ping'an told the wealthy woman that a deity had taken her jewelry and warned her to return the seized fields and apologize to their owners.
• Li Ping'an refused the woman's payment and walked back through snowy Yanzhou City, sensing that something was about to happen.

Li Ping'an and Old Ox joined Cat Immortal’s plan to attack the Maiden Temple, where a giant rat demon was exposed before the worshippers. The crowd fled as Rat Lady begged an unknown Immortal Master to spare her.

• Cat Immortal gathered an army of cats and planned a nighttime assault on the Maiden Temple to eliminate the rat demons.
• Li Ping'an and Old Ox went to the crowded temple, where followers demanded payment for access and a tea stall attendant warned Li Ping'an that the temple was sinister.
• The Maiden Temple’s golden statue cracked apart as Rat Lady’s enormous form emerged and revealed the human remains she had eaten.
• The worshippers fled in terror while Li Ping'an calmly drank tea and Old Ox poured himself a cup.
• Rat Lady pleaded with an unknown Immortal Master to spare her life.

Li Ping'an questioned the Rat Maiden about the strange gathering of demon ghosts in Smoke Continent, then left her to die. Cat Immortal led the cats in defeating the rats at the Maiden Temple, and Little Girl returned home wounded before dawn.

• Li Ping'an questioned the Rat Maiden, who said she had been drawn to Smoke Continent and described the City God’s disappearance and the sudden growth of demon ghosts; he left her to die.
• Cat Immortal led a force of cats against the rats behind the Maiden Temple, using Earth Armor Puppets and fire to drive them back.
• The rats fled as the Maiden Temple collapsed, and people discovered that the shrine had been a rat’s nest.
• After Government Office personnel arrived, Li Ping'an and Old Ox left; near daybreak, Little Girl returned exhausted and wounded, changed back from cat form, and went to sleep beside Old Ox.

Li Ping'an learned that the City Gods and their officials had vanished across Smoke Continent, leaving its Underworld without order, and found the situation unexplained. He asked Black-and-White Kitten to investigate the upheaval while sharing fried tofu with the cats.

• Li Ping'an heard people discussing the rat spirit at the Maiden Temple and learned that the Government Office had sealed it and arrested some of its followers.
• Li Ping'an visited the remaining City Gods in Yanzhou City and discovered that they and all their officials had disappeared.
• Li Ping'an wondered why the imperial court seemed unaware of the crisis and decided not to force what was beyond his abilities.
• Li Ping'an shared fried tofu with Black-and-White Kitten and another cat, then bought the stall's remaining tofu for the cats.
• Li Ping'an asked Black-and-White Kitten to find out what powerful demon ghosts were in the city, where the City Gods had gone, and when the upheaval began.

Li Ping'an hosted Tianyuanzi, a Dragon-Tiger Mountain Daoist investigating an Extraterrestrial Demon in Smoke Continent. Tianyuanzi warned that great turmoil was coming and promised to tell Li Ping'an if he found the demon.

• Kitten learned Li Ping'an had also bought fried tofu for the cats after she had already treated them to grilled fish, then asked him for demon-catching work to earn money back.
• Li Ping'an gave Kitten details about people who needed help dealing with demons, and she hurried out to take the jobs.
• A filthy old Daoist named Tianyuanzi arrived at Li Ping'an's home, recognized him as the Heaven's Punishment One, and explained that he was a Dragon-Tiger Mountain disciple.
• Tianyuanzi revealed that he had followed the scent of Extraterrestrial Demons to Smoke Continent and believed great turmoil was coming.
• Li Ping'an asked Tianyuanzi to inform him if he found the demon, and Tianyuanzi agreed before leaving.

Li Ping'an investigated why County Magistrate Zhang and several other county officials had fallen into an unnatural sleep, then went to the prefect's residence with Zhang County Deputy. There, he recognized Prefect Zhao Huaimin as Daoist Tianyuanzi and confronted him.

• A steward invited Li Ping'an to County Magistrate Zhang's home because Zhang had fallen into an unshakeable sleep after visiting the prefect's residence.
• Li Ping'an diagnosed a Dream Devouring art, drew a talisman on white hemp paper, and woke Zhang County Deputy.
• After learning that other county officials were similarly afflicted, Li Ping'an asked Zhang County Deputy to accompany him to the prefect's residence and sent talismans to the others.
• At the prefect's residence, Zhang County Deputy introduced Li Ping'an to Prefect Zhao Huaimin, a master of the School of Mind.
• Li Ping'an recognized Zhao Huaimin as Daoist Tianyuanzi and accused him of hiding openly as a prefect.

Li Ping'an confronted the Prefect and learned that an Extraterrestrial Demon was behind the turmoil. Tianyuanzi and two allies arrived to capture it, but the Prefect threatened Smoke Continent’s civilians, leaving Li Ping'an to decide whether they would fight.

• Li Ping'an questioned the possessed Prefect about the coming turmoil and why he had come to Smoke Continent.
• The Prefect claimed Dragon-Tiger Mountain had mistaken him for the source of the turmoil and said he had once destroyed its lineage.
• Li Ping'an revealed that he had alerted Tianyuanzi, who arrived with Liu Wu and a wooden-faced middle-aged man.
• The Prefect warned that a battle would endanger Smoke Continent’s common people, and the group fell into a stalemate.
• Li Ping'an asked the Prefect how he proposed to resolve the matter.

The Extraterrestrial Demon fled Smoke Continent after the four pursuers each made one move and cultivators outside attacked. As the demon escaped toward the Great An Kingdom border, the Blue Robes Man finally unleashed a flying sword from White Jade Capital’s Eleventh Floor.

• The Great An Kingdom’s Director and Chief Attendant joined the cultivators surrounding Smoke Continent after hearing that an Extraterrestrial Demon was involved.
• Liu Wu and three others each struck the fleeing Extraterrestrial Demon once, then stopped their pursuit as agreed.
• Cultivators waiting outside Smoke Continent attacked, but the demon evaded their techniques and sped away.
• The demon realized the Blue Robes Man had not yet made his move and spotted White Jade Capital approaching.
• A flying sword dropped from White Jade Capital’s Eleventh Floor and swept across the mountains at the Great An Kingdom border in a vast wave of Sword Qi.

Li Ping'an wounded the Heavenly Demon with a sword from the White Jade Capital, then returned home to rest while the Great An Kingdom dealt with the aftermath. As demon-exorcism work dried up, two senior officials arrived to meet him, and the chapter ended as Li Ping'an returned from fishing.

• Li Ping'an failed to kill the Heavenly Demon but gravely wounded him, then left the officials to handle the aftermath.
• Li Ping'an returned to Willow Tree Alley, rested, and later enjoyed dinner and wine sent by Tianyuanzi.
• The Great An Kingdom sent more personnel to Smoke Continent and transferred Underworld officials to Yanzhou City, leaving Kitten with fewer demon-exorcism jobs.
• Little Girl answered the door to the Great An Kingdom's Chief Attendant and the Director of the Imperial Astronomy Bureau, who asked to see Li Ping'an.
• The two officials waited at Li Ping'an's home while Little Girl watched them warily, and Li Ping'an returned from fishing with a large catch.

Li Ping'an declined the emperor’s invitation to the palace and sent him advice about the endurance that comes from selflessness. The emperor heard the message but remained unconvinced, while Zhong Guotao received unexpected news in prison.

• Little Girl sold the fish Li Ping'an had caught while he welcomed the Director and the Attendant.
• The Director and the Attendant thanked Li Ping'an for helping stabilize Yan Prefecture and invited him to meet the emperor, but he declined.
• Li Ping'an asked after Zhong Guotao and learned that the emperor had imprisoned him after the failed search for a Longevity Agelessness Pill.
• Li Ping'an asked the visitors to tell the emperor that heaven and earth endure because they do not live for themselves.
• The Director and the Attendant relayed Li Ping'an’s words, and the emperor wondered how a cultivator could understand his sorrow before asking whether Li Ping'an knew Zhong Guotao.
• In Northern Army Prison, Zhong Guotao was reading when the jail official hurried over with good news.

Li Ping'an and Little Girl welcomed the New Year with Old Ox and their neighbors in Yanzhou, while distant battles hinted that peace was fragile. The chapter ended when the Demon Race launched a surprise attack outside Demon-Suppressing Pass.

• Little Girl fell asleep while fishing with Li Ping'an, then woke at night asking where her fish were.
• Neighbors and cats visited Li Ping'an's home for New Year's greetings, bringing gifts and red envelopes for Little Girl.
• Li Ping'an, Little Girl, and Old Ox ate their preferred dumplings and played cards while waiting for the New Year.
• Li Ping'an spotted evil energy and cultivators fighting in the distance, while Underworld officials hunted Yaomo over the holiday.
• A Demon Race attack struck a patrol near Demon-Suppressing Pass, and the young soldier and his companions shouted warnings.

Zhao Ling'er and her scouting squad discovered that the Demon Race had launched a massive assault on Demon-Suppressing Pass after surviving an ambush in strange fog. The chapter ended with the scouts under attack as the pass faced an overwhelming enemy tide, then shifted to Little Girl and Li Ping'an discussing their dwindling food and money.

• Zhao Ling'er rushed to Team C's distress signal and rescued its surviving scouts by killing the attacking Demon Race cultivators.
• Zhao Ling'er led the battered squad back toward Demon-Suppressing Pass, where they encountered thick fog that blocked Divine Sense and concealed danger.
• After Zhao Ling'er cut down a Demon Race creature in the fog, the scouts emerged and saw Demon Race soldiers swarming toward the pass in a large-scale assault.
• A Demon Race cultivator spotted the scouts and brought down an enchanted saber as they faced the battlefield.
• Little Girl chopped pickled cabbage while Li Ping'an and Old Ox complained about eating leftovers, and Little Girl worried about their lack of income and expenses.

Li Ping'an accepted the City God’s hospitality, offered him practical advice on cultivation, and left him a calligraphy piece. Back home, Little Girl finished packing for their departure from Yan Prefecture, then realized Li Ping'an had petted another cat.

• Li Ping'an met the newly appointed City God, who invited him to the temple for tea and refreshments.
• The City God asked Li Ping'an for guidance on his cultivation, but Li Ping'an said he had no methods to teach.
• Li Ping'an advised the City God to fulfill his duties sincerely and diligently, then wrote those words for him as calligraphy.
• Li Ping'an and Old Ox returned home with pastries, and Little Girl said she had finished packing and arranged to recover half the rent.
• Little Girl sniffed Li Ping'an and accused him of petting another cat.

Li Ping'an, Old Ox, and Kitten left Yan Prefecture and traveled toward the Anbei Four Garrisons, where they encountered a Great Sui patrol and an attack by Zhuang State cavalry. After the Great Sui soldiers defeated the raiders, an eerie wind suddenly rose, leaving the border situation unresolved.

• Kitten showed off his spinning trick, then went to say goodbye to his friends after Li Ping'an told him they would leave for the Anbei Four Garrisons.
• Li Ping'an, Old Ox, and Kitten departed Yan Prefecture early, giving away their belongings and avoiding the farewell gathering.
• While traveling across the grasslands, Kitten explored the insects and helped catch a rabbit for a meal.
• A Great Sui cavalry patrol checked Li Ping'an's papers and warned that the eastern border was tense and foreign cavalry might be roaming nearby.
• Zhuang State cavalry attacked the patrol, but the Great Sui soldiers routed them and shot the last fleeing rider.
• As the Great Sui soldiers gathered the spoils and prepared to return, an eerie wind suddenly rose.

Li Ping'an and Great Sui soldiers drove off an evil cultivator, and Huang Li told him that Great Sui was threatened by a united alliance while Empress Liu Yun and General Liu Yong were rumored to be gravely ill. Li Ping'an suspected Liu Yun was luring the enemy deep into Great Sui before striking back.

• A sinister mist attacked Huang Li's patrol, but Li Ping'an dispersed it and healed the wounded squad leader.
• Li Ping'an shared roasted rabbit with the soldiers and asked Huang Li why Zhuang State had provoked Great Sui.
• Huang Li said rival states had united against Great Sui amid rebellions and rumors that Liu Yun was gravely ill.
• Huang Li reported that the northern allied forces and rebels had captured towns, while General Liu Yong was also said to be gravely ill.
• Li Ping'an suspected Liu Yun was drawing the enemy into Great Sui to destroy them in one decisive strike.

Li Ping'an and his companions traveled north amid reports of Great Sui’s victory at Pingnan and returned to the Anbei Four Garrisons, now transformed by years of change. He visited Zhao Ling'er’s living shrine and found his old courtyard still standing, preserved by Wang Yi’s family.

• Li Ping'an, Old Ox, and Kitten heard reports that Liu Yong had routed the allied forces and that the Female Emperor’s opponents had been executed.
• Li Ping'an and his companions traveled through war-stricken regions, where refugees, Demon Ghosts, and remnants of the allied forces had spread.
• The allied forces were trapped in Pingnan City, where the starving survivors suffered catastrophic losses during the Battle of Pingnan.
• Li Ping'an and Old Ox reached the Anbei Four Garrisons and learned it was no longer a frontier region and that Zhao Ling'er had a living shrine there.
• Li Ping'an visited Zhao Ling'er's shrine and reflected on his past before finding his old courtyard still preserved by Wang Yi's family.

Li Ping'an returned to his old courtyard in Anbei with Old Ox and Kitten, reclaiming the home the Wang Family had tended for generations. Wang Anshan learned that the returned owner might be the deity said to have guided his ancestor, while Li Ping'an settled in with memories of the past and gratitude for the companions still beside him.

• Li Ping'an dug up a key, unlocked his old courtyard, and settled in while Kitten began cleaning the house.
• Zhang Er arrived with friends to drink at the courtyard and found Kitten and Li Ping'an there; Li Ping'an explained that he had returned to claim his home.
• Zhang Er reported the encounter to the Wang Family steward, who brought the news to Wang Anshan.
• Wang Anshan recalled his family's account that a powerful deity had once guided their Immortal ancestor and decided to wait before visiting Li Ping'an.
• Li Ping'an shared Anbei delicacies with Old Ox as Kitten cleaned, remembering those who were gone and appreciating the mountains, water, and companions that remained.

Li Ping'an returned to the Anbei Four Garrisons, visited the Wang Family, and learned that Liu Yong was retiring to his hometown. The news brought back memories as Li Ping'an talked with Old Ox about the past, while Little Girl listened without understanding.

• Li Ping'an heard Zhang Er tell his companions that Liu Yong planned to retire to his hometown after his victory.
• Li Ping'an visited the Wang residence with gifts to thank the family for caring for his courtyard, and Wang Anshan welcomed him as an Immortal Master.
• Li Ping'an asked Wang Anshan whether Wang Yi had returned home, and Wang Anshan said he had returned once when he was still an infant.
• Li Ping'an left the Wang residence and recalled his earlier days there, then told Old Ox that Liu Yong was coming back to Anbei.
• Li Ping'an and Old Ox talked about the past while Little Girl listened quietly.

Li Ping'an tricked Kitten into believing Qingfeng had become diligent and would challenge her, while Lord Wu'an Liu Yong returned to his hometown and eventually visited Li Ping'an. Kitten exposed Li Ping'an’s excuse for sleeping in, leaving him to hurry out and meet Liu Yong.

• Li Ping'an told Kitten that Qingfeng had quit drinking, become diligent, and planned to challenge her, so Kitten rushed off to prove she was cleverer.
• Li Ping'an learned that Liu Yong had returned to his hometown and stayed home as visitors crowded around the general’s residence.
• After more than a month, the crowds around Liu Yong’s home dwindled, while Kitten wrote memoirs and Old Ox made wooden furniture and armor.
• As winter approached, Li Ping'an accepted Wang Anshan’s modest gifts and sent back pickled vegetables and Old Ox’s beef sauce.
• When Liu Yong arrived to visit, Li Ping'an asked Kitten to claim he was getting up late because he had not rested, but Kitten told Liu Yong that Li Ping'an had been sleeping and eating like a little pig.