Recaps

Li Ping'an completed his breakthrough, left Shushan to travel with Old Ox, and helped people along the way while Monk Changqing joined him. They reached Wuling Valley as old friends and allies gathered for the Demon-Slaying Assembly.

• Li Ping'an killed Zhu Yan, returned to Shushan, and defeated Zhang Xiaojing in their staged match after Zhang demanded more payment.
• Li Ping'an kept avoiding Qin Sheng's challenges, but Qin Sheng pursued him through contests and died after the disciples returned from the Minor Cold Realm.
• Li Ping'an prepared carefully for his tribulation, formed the gate of eternal life within his mud pellet, and completed his breakthrough.
• Li Ping'an attended special training, then left Shushan with Old Ox to travel and recover, leaving Run Tu behind to watch over Qingfeng.
• Li Ping'an and Old Ox found Monk Changqing after his tribulation, then Li Ping'an killed an ox demon and Changqing performed rites to deliver its victims.
• Li Ping'an took Zhang Juhe and Geng Liancheng by boat toward Jiangdu Weir, where he confronted the Spring Fish Gang's water monsters and lost his boat.
• Li Ping'an and Changqing reached Five Mausoleums, then arrived at Wuling Valley as cultivators and familiar companions gathered for the Demon-Slaying Assembly.

As Great Sui and Great Yu went to war, Li Ping'an stayed at Shushan, developing medicines and poisons while friends left for the front. After the Emei Sect’s betrayal and the deaths of Shushan elders, the Soul-Seizing Demon Venerable attacked Shushan, and Li Ping'an prepared to defend the prison.

• At the Demon-Slaying Assembly, Li Ping'an watched the matches, reunited with friends, and was eventually sent back to Shushan after fighting with Zhengwu Sect members.
• As Great Sui marched against Great Yu, Li Ping'an returned to Heaven-Reaching Peak, cultivated medicines and poison, and learned that Liu Yun was leading the campaign.
• Shushan sent disciples north, including Liu Er Dog and later Yun Shu, while Li Ping'an was assigned to make medicines for the battlefield.
• Li Ping'an experimented with poisons, accidentally poisoned Liu Zongcheng with one of his pills, and used his improved poison to incapacitate four pursuers.
• After refusing Tang Zhen’s invitations, Li Ping'an took a post guarding Shushan’s Underground Prison and studied the Poison Scripture while developing poison formations.
• Two years passed as the war continued, and Li Ping'an joined a funeral for thirty-five dead before receiving news that Shushan was in danger.
• The Emei Sect ambushed Shushan’s reinforcements at Wolong Valley, killing six elders, then fled and was revealed to have sided with Great Yu.
• The Soul-Seizing Demon Venerable attacked Shushan’s Mountain-Guarding Grand Formation, and Li Ping'an readied Old Ox and Run Tu as the prison disciples rushed to battle.

Li Ping'an survived the attack on Shushan, traveled to the front, and became entangled in the war between Great Sui and Great Yu. He later settled in Great Yu to study alchemy as the war reached the capital and Guxiao Pass fell to Great Sui.

• The Nine Profound Cave Master betrayed Shushan, but Li Ping'an defended the prison and killed Zhang Xu, Song Zhongzhi, and many escaped prisoners before reinforcements arrived.
• After Shushan mourned its dead, Li Ping'an returned to Heaven-Reaching Peak, visited Lin Xue in prison, and buried her there when she died.
• Li Ping'an helped Yuanxi Town end its drought by locating and fighting the Drought Demon, then joined a northbound army and earned the soldiers' respect while serving at the front.
• During a surprise attack, Li Ping'an killed a Great Yu cavalry commander and escaped behind enemy lines with Old Ox, eventually helping destroy the Xieshan Spirit Mine.
• Li Ping'an reached Great Yu's Capital City and spent years there, but after failing to sell the spirit stones he had taken, he began studying pill refining with Old Ox.
• Fengyangzi accepted Wang Yushu as a disciple and later made Li Ping'an a nominal disciple, while Wang Yushu and many other disciples went to fight and died in the war.
• After Great Sui captured Guxiao Pass, Li Ping'an and Old Ox improved their pill-making, while unrest spread through the capital and Li Ping'an wondered whether Great Sui would win.

After leaving Great Yu’s fallen capital, Li Ping'an returned to Shushan, helped Yun Shu and Wei Jing, and built a successful pill workshop. He set off for a reunion with his old companions, then joined Jing Yu in investigating Changqing’s unexpected marriage to Lü Yao.

• Li Ping'an left Great Yu after its capital was massacred and returned to Shushan, where he reined in Run Tu and reunited with old friends.
• Li Ping'an helped Situ Lei recover, supported Yun Shu through her battlefield trauma, and joined the recruitment gathering at Shushan.
• Li Ping'an treated Wei Jing’s hidden acupoint injuries, while Yun Shu invited her to join Lesser Qiong Peak and thanked Li Ping'an for his help.
• Li Ping'an spent three years developing pills and building a workshop with help from his friends, then sold a cheap, effective pill that quickly became popular.
• Li Ping'an sold his pill stock and set out with Old Ox and Run Tu for the Three Heroes of the Nine Provinces’ reunion, stopping along the way to defeat bandits threatening a caravan.
• Li Ping'an reached Five Tiger Fort, killed a giant python before it struck a child, and learned that Changqing was to marry Lü Yao.
• Li Ping'an and Jing Yu entered the prefect’s residence and found Changqing, who said he had rescued Lü Yao while investigating Evil Sect attacks and had not agreed to marry her.