Chapter Summaries

Ji Xian and Lu Changfeng arrived at the Jade Splendor Lodge, where they met Wei Qiang and learned that he had come to seek a divination from Xu Yan. Lu Changfeng divined that Wei Qiang’s father, the Northern Lord, faced a deadly trap that day, and Wei Qiang raced to find him as Lu Changfeng and Ji Xian followed.

• Ji Xian showed Lu Changfeng around the Jade Splendor Lodge and explained that its formations could contain a fight between the Four Lords.
• Wei Qiang arrived, praised Lu Changfeng’s role in curing Eastern Yu’s epidemic, and warned that Yan Xiu remained furious.
• Wei Qiang told Ji Xian that he had come early for the Wine God’s Brew and planned to seek a divination from Xu Yan.
• Lu Changfeng used magnolia leaves to divine that Wei Shuo faced a hidden, man-made bloody calamity near water that day.
• Wei Qiang rushed toward the Wine God’s cellar, and Lu Changfeng and Ji Xian followed him.

Lu Changfeng and Ji Xian rescued Wei Qiang and the poisoned Wei Shuo from an assassination at the Wine God Residence, uncovering the Sun-Eater Alliance’s use of a disguise artifact. After Lu Changfeng cured Wei Shuo, Ji Xian suspected a powerful insider was involved, and the chapter left the group preparing to investigate as Yan Xiu and Yan Ling arrived.

• Wei Qiang reached the Wine God Residence and found assassins attacking him and the poisoned Wei Shuo, while Lu Changfeng and Ji Xian shattered the barriers and joined the fight.
• Ji Xian killed three attackers with earth spears, and Lu Changfeng struck down three fleeing men with heavenly thunder; Wei Qiang captured Xu Zhong, but a sigil burned him to ashes before he could reveal who ordered the attack.
• Ji Xian found a Thousand Faces mask and explained that the Sun-Eater Alliance had used it to impersonate Kang Bozong and poison Wei Shuo, while she warned Wei Qiang that someone higher up might be involved.
• Lu Changfeng used the Supreme Unity Divine Needle and Shennong Qi to purge Wei Shuo’s poison, and Wei Qiang pledged a brotherly alliance between the Northern Lands and Southern Mo.
• Ji Xian and Wei Qiang ordered investigations into the Wine God Residence and its missing occupants, while Yan Huan mobilized the Embroidered Guard’s informants.
• Yan Xiu and Yan Ling entered the guest residence with Eastern Yu’s guard contingent as Lu Changfeng remarked that the reporting would not be dull.

Yan Xiu and Ji Xian traded threats at Qionghua Lodge while Yan Ling urged her brother to seek protection from the Royal Clan. After Wei Shuo recounted the Wine God’s replacement and the attack at the Wine God Residence, the clues pointed toward Jiang Heng, and Yan Huan reported that Yan Xiu was going to meet him.

• Yan Xiu confronted Ji Xian and Lu Changfeng at Qionghua Lodge, but they drove off his party with their pressure and warnings.
• Yan Ling advised Yan Xiu to ask Jiang Heng to restrain Lu Changfeng, and Yan Xiu left Sweetwood Estate to seek his help.
• Wei Shuo woke and thanked Ji Xian and Lu Changfeng before recounting how an impostor posing as the Wine God poisoned and attacked him.
• Wei Shuo revealed that the Wine God had visited Jiang Heng on the day he was replaced, and Lu Changfeng said the prince was a lead but not necessarily the culprit.
• Yan Huan reported that Yan Xiu had gone to Jiang Heng’s residence, and Lu Changfeng warned that he might be walking into danger.

Yan Xiu visited Jiang Heng to seek protection from Ji Xian and Lu Changfeng, but Jiang Heng exposed Yan Xiu’s role in provoking the conflict before warning Ji Xian to restrain her consort. After Jiang Heng secretly planted a dark mark on Yan Xiu, Yan Xiu’s desire for Yan Ling began to intensify, while Ji Xian and Lu Changfeng concluded that the Great King was probably not the hand behind the schemes.

• Yan Xiu brought gifts to Jiang Heng and asked him to intimidate Ji Xian, claiming Lu Changfeng’s poison had caused Eastern Yu’s epidemic.
• Jiang Heng revealed that Yan Xiu had attacked the Qingqiu Fox Clan and repeatedly targeted Lu Changfeng, then sent Uncle Cen to warn Ji Xian to keep her consort in check.
• Jiang Heng returned to Yan Xiu and, while pretending to request more beauties, secretly placed a dark mark on Yan Xiu’s shoulder.
• As Yan Xiu descended the mountain, his suppressed desire for his younger sister Yan Ling began to grow without his awareness.
• Lu Changfeng warned Ji Xian that the Great King might seek an excuse to eliminate her, and they agreed to wait rather than act rashly.
• After hearing the Second Prince’s warning, Ji Xian and Lu Changfeng decided the Great King was likely not behind the schemes, and Ji Xian proposed having an heir to secure Southern Mo.

Yan Xiu attacked Yan Ling under the influence of a Lovesickness Gu, and she killed him while defending herself. A crimson seal then burned his body to ashes, leading Qi Ye to suspect Jiang Heng and swear revenge.

• Yan Xiu sealed the hall and planted a Lovesickness Gu in Yan Ling, who fought back with her Bright Moon Dharma Form and the Soul-Seizing Bell.
• Qi Ye hesitated to break through the barrier, while Ji Xian, Lu Changfeng, Wei Qiang, and the Western Lord gathered outside and ordered him to move aside.
• As the gu overwhelmed Yan Ling and Yan Xiu lunged at her, she unleashed a deadly storm of moonlight swords; Yan Xiu briefly regained his senses but was struck down.
• Qi Ye and the others entered the hall, but a crimson seal ignited Yan Xiu and reduced him to ashes before he could be saved.
• Qi Ye linked the strange events of the day to Jiang Heng and vowed revenge against him.

After Yan Xiu died under the Six Desires Heart-Bewildering Seal, Yan Ling brought his case before King Jiang Yan, and Lu Changfeng offered to use a Heart-Questioning Melody to expose the killer. When the music ended, Third Prince Jiang Yu involuntarily stepped forward.

• Qi Ye described Jiang Heng's suspicious private meeting with Yan Xiu, and Wei Qiang and Baili Ce identified the seal that had driven Yan Xiu mad.
• Yan Ling and Qi Ye struck the Heaven-Pounding Alligator Drum, prompting Jiang Yan to convene the grand court assembly early.
• Yan Ling accused Jiang Heng of murdering Yan Xiu, while Qi Ye linked him to the attack on Wei Shuo; Jiang Heng denied the charges.
• Lu Changfeng proposed a Heart-Questioning Melody, and Jiang Yan ordered the court to let him play while the Imperial Guards prevented anyone from resisting.
• Lu Changfeng played the Heavenly Demon Zither and asked Yan Xiu's killer to step forward; Third Prince Jiang Yu involuntarily took a step out of line.

Lu Changfeng exposed Jiang Yu’s role in the Sun-Eater Alliance’s plot to destabilize Hongfang, then warned him that the alliance’s leader would discard him after victory. As the guards moved to arrest him, Jiang Yu released a deadly poisonous mist and tried to fight his way out.

• Jiang Yu revealed his resentment toward Jiang Yan and Hongfang, arguing that the kingdom’s stagnation left it vulnerable to the rising Central Lands.
• Lu Changfeng rebutted Jiang Yu’s warnings about the Central Lands and detailed how Jiang Yu had planned to provoke wars among the regional rulers for the Sun-Eater Alliance’s benefit.
• Lu Changfeng argued that the alliance’s single leader would purge Jiang Yu after taking power, leaving Jiang Yu shaken and the court wary.
• Jiang Yan ordered the guards to take Jiang Yu away, but Jiang Yu crushed a purple talisman and released poisonous mist to escape.

Lu Changfeng stopped Jiang Yu from escaping and defeated him in a fierce saber duel, after which Jiang Yan ordered the traitorous prince seized. Though Jiang Yan praised Lu Changfeng for averting a crisis, the king began considering how an outsider’s influence might stir the stagnant Deathless Kingdom.

• Lu Changfeng dispelled Jiang Yu’s poisonous mist, allowing Jiang Xu, Jiang Heng, and the others to surround the fleeing prince.
• Jiang Yu used an Ancient Bronze Bell to stagger his attackers and break toward the hall’s exit, but Lu Changfeng pursued him with the Delusion-Sundering Demon Blade.
• Lu Changfeng overwhelmed Jiang Yu with Mountain Collapse, Hail, Storm, and finally Sea-Breaking, shattering his saber and leaving him helpless.
• Jiang Yan ordered the imperial guards to shackle Jiang Yu, while Lu Changfeng returned to Ji Xian’s side.
• Jiang Yan thanked Lu Changfeng for exposing the treasonous plot and reflected that the Deathless Kingdom might need outside influence to stir it.

After the court assembly and banquet, Lu Changfeng and Ji Xian returned safely to Southern Mo, where an assassin disguised as Bai Sheng attacked Ji Xian. Lu Changfeng intercepted the strike but was stabbed through the chest by the assassin's revealed Seventh Realm sword attack.

• Jiang Yan doubled the rewards for the territorial rulers and awarded Lu Changfeng a Deathless Elixir for exposing and defeating the traitors.
• Ji Xian offered Lu Changfeng her two Deathless Elixirs, and he promised to stay with her until March before returning to the Central Lands.
• The banquet ended, Jiang Yu was imprisoned, and Wei Shuo reunited with the rescued Wine God.
• The territorial rulers departed, and Lu Changfeng and Ji Xian traveled peacefully back to Southern Mo after Baili Ce warned them about the Sun-Eater Alliance.
• At Jade Splendor Mount Hua, Lu Changfeng sensed that Bai Sheng's scent was wrong and recognized an assassin disguised as him.
• The assassin revealed her Seventh Realm cultivation and stabbed Lu Changfeng in the chest after he stepped in front of Ji Xian.

Ji Xian avenged Lu Changfeng by crushing the Moon Demon with Breath Soil, then discovered that Lu Changfeng’s Shennong qi was dispelling the poison. At Guixu, Ji Wuji learned of the failed assassination, judged Lu Changfeng a dangerous prodigy, and ordered an attack on the Featherfolk Kingdom.

• The Moon Demon, disguised as Bai Sheng, stabbed Lu Changfeng, and Ji Xian answered with a furious assault that revealed her Breath Soil.
• Ji Xian crushed Xiao Chaochen and the Moonshadow Gauze beneath the Breath Soil mountain, while Ji Ming fled from the advancing Southern Mo courtiers.
• Ji Xian raised Lu Changfeng from underground and feared the Bone-Eroding Soul-Consuming Gu had poisoned him, but his Mysterious Crane released Shennong qi that began to dispel the poison.
• Ji Ming reported the failed assassination to Ji Wuji at Guixu, and Ji Wuji inferred that Ji Xian had concealed the Breath Soil for a century.
• Ji Wuji told Ji Ming that Lu Changfeng had reached the Sixth Realm in less than a year and ordered him to summon Demon Slayer and prepare to strike the Featherfolk Kingdom.

Ji Xian saved Lu Changfeng from the bone-eroding soul-consuming gu with Qilin blood, then allowed Bai Qianqian to visit him while she mobilized Southern Mo against the Sun-Eater Alliance. Scouts later traced Sun Demon Ji Ming to the western border, and Ji Xian and Lu Changfeng prepared to pursue him.

• Ji Xian found the Qilin blood in Lu Changfeng's Heaven-Earth Bag and fed it to him, cleansing the poison and waking him.
• Lu Changfeng reassured Ji Xian, who scolded him for hiding his life-saving treasures and then promised to share them with her.
• Ji Lan reported that Bai Sheng had survived and that Bai Qianqian was forcing her way into the palace, so Ji Xian let Bai Qianqian enter and left to deal with the Sun-Eater Alliance.
• Bai Qianqian found Lu Changfeng alive, embraced and kissed him, while Ji Xian ordered Southern Mo's forces to hunt down the alliance and Sun Demon Ji Ming.
• Scouts reported repeated sounds of mountains shattering in the western borderlands, leading Ji Xian and Lu Changfeng to consider their next move against Ji Ming.

Lu Changfeng and Ji Xian tracked down Ji Ming and fought him in the Western Border. They killed the Sun-Eater Alliance demon, leaving two of the Four Demons dead.

• Lu Changfeng and Ji Xian secretly traveled to the Western Border while Ji Xian concealed Lu Changfeng’s survival.
• Ji Ming killed a group of Southern Mo Herb Gatherers with a heaven-burning arrow as he mourned Xiao Chaochen.
• Lu Changfeng transformed into a white dragon to draw Ji Ming’s attention while Ji Xian attacked from underground, and they struck him into a mountain.
• Ji Ming took the form of the Calamity Hound and fought back as Ji Xian wielded the mountain and Lu Changfeng’s Demon Blade unsettled his mind.
• Ji Xian trapped the Calamity Hound, and Lu Changfeng killed Ji Ming with the Great Void Finger after his Demon Blade failed to pierce Ji Ming’s defenses.

After avenging Ji Ming, Lu Changfeng left Ji Xian and returned from Hongfang to Dragon-Slaying City with Bai Qianqian, then set out for Chang'an. In Chang'an, Li Lingyue learned he was safe and on his way home, but also that he was returning with another beauty.

• Lu Changfeng and Ji Xian spent two months together before he departed, and Ji Xian warned him that Heart Demon might follow him into the Central Lands.
• Lu Changfeng left Jade Splendor Mount with Bai Qianqian, visited the Longbo Tribe, and praised A Nian's progress before Qi Zhong escorted them across Guixu.
• At Dragon-Slaying City, Lu Changfeng reunited with the city's leaders, collected treasures from Lu Huanzhang, and summoned Lingbo to carry him and Bai Qianqian toward the Central Plains.
• In Chang'an, Li Lingyue received Yuan Tiangang's letter confirming Lu Changfeng was safe and returning, then grew furious when it mentioned a beauty accompanying him.

Lu Changfeng returned to Chang'an with Bai Qianqian, reunited with Luo Qingge, and learned that Li Lingyue was pregnant with his child. Luo Qingge accepted Bai Qianqian and urged him to visit Li Lingyue while she went to welcome Bai herself.

• Lu Changfeng brought Bai Qianqian into Chang'an, where her fox-demon aura overwhelmed the Eastern Market and knocked several lecherous young men unconscious.
• Lu Changfeng settled Bai Qianqian at an inn and went to the Moon-Gathering Tower to reunite with Luo Qingge.
• Lu Changfeng gave Luo Qingge the Deathless Elixir and promised they would remain together for thousands of years.
• Luo Qingge agreed to welcome Bai Qianqian at the Moon-Gathering Tower and told Lu Changfeng that Li Lingyue was pregnant.
• Luo Qingge urged Lu Changfeng to visit Li Lingyue at the Princess's Residence and ordered a carriage so she could welcome Bai Qianqian.

Lu Changfeng returned to the Princess of Zhen Guo's Residence after six months away and reunited with the pregnant Li Lingyue, reassuring her that he cared for her and their child. He gave her a Deathless Elixir to take after the birth and promised to handle the political threats while she focused on her pregnancy.

• Lu Changfeng arrived at the residence, where Snow Robe, Mo Li, Jinghong, and Qing Dai welcomed him; he learned Li Lingyue was waiting in the Gathered Elegance Garden.
• Lu Changfeng found Li Lingyue sitting by the cold waterside and drew her into his arms, where she cried and voiced her fears about his return and the woman he had brought back.
• Lu Changfeng showed Li Lingyue a Deathless Elixir from Guixu and told her to take it after their child was born, reassuring her that he cared for both mother and child.
• Lu Changfeng carried Li Lingyue to her bedchamber, massaged her sore legs, and told her not to sit in the cold; she explained that political rivals were spreading rumors and conspiring against her.
• Lu Changfeng promised to handle the court's threats while Li Lingyue focused on her pregnancy, and they shared a tender moment in the bedchamber.

Li Changfeng resolved the court’s accumulated military and administrative matters while Li Lingyue resumed leadership at the Princess’s Residence. After receiving a warning that the Heart Demon had come, Lu Changfeng ordered surveillance of key passes, while a mysterious figure approached Li Longji and offered help against their common enemy.

• Li Lingyue summoned her officials, revealed her pregnancy, and invited Lu Changfeng to advise on court business.
• Lu Changfeng recommended building three Surrendering Cities in Shuofang and resolved the court’s other accumulated affairs, winning the officials’ respect.
• Lu Changfeng ordered Jinghong to have the Plum Blossom Guards monitor key chokepoints for Göktürk troop movements.
• Fu Rong delivered a letter from Immortal Master Yuan, and Lu Changfeng told Li Lingyue that the Heart Demon had come.
• Li Longji read reports of Lu Changfeng’s decisions and despaired at the strength of his aunt’s faction.
• A mysterious figure appeared before Li Longji and offered help, claiming they shared a common enemy.

Lu Changfeng warned Luo Qingge and Bai Qianqian that the Seventh Realm Heart Demon Yu Zhou had reached the Central Lands and could manipulate others to destroy what Lu treasured. He ordered the women to take refuge at the Princess's Residence while he moved to find Yu Zhou before the demon could put his schemes into motion.

• Luo Qingge and Bai Qianqian bonded over stories of Lu Changfeng learning the Thunder Marsh Dance in Hongfang.
• Lu Changfeng arrived, embraced both women, and revealed that Yuan Tiangang's divination and his own had confirmed Heart Demon's arrival.
• Bai Qianqian explained that Yu Zhou was a Seventh Realm member of the Sun-Eater Alliance who could exploit people's deepest desires and fears.
• Lu Changfeng told the women to go to the Snow Listening Tower and explained that Yu Zhou might use the emperor, the Jianghu, or the Göktürks against him.
• Luo Qingge and Bai Qianqian agreed to leave with Lu Changfeng and face the threat together.

Lu Changfeng brought Luo Qingge and Bai Qianqian to the Princess's Residence and worried that their presence would spark a conflict with Li Lingyue while he prepared to face the Heart Demon. On Mount Hua, Yu Zhou gathered seven powerful martial figures and declared that they had assembled to eliminate a traitor to the realm.

• Lu Changfeng welcomed Luo Qingge and Bai Qianqian to the Princess's Residence, where Qing Dai showed them to separate bedrooms.
• Lu Changfeng worried that Bai Qianqian and Li Lingyue would clash, blamed Yu Zhou for forcing everyone together, and went to the study to plan his response.
• Xiao Changchun, Shen Lingyue, Li Lingkui, Xiao Juelou, Wang Shaoyuan, Cui Han, and True Person Xuancheng arrived at Mount Hua to face Yu Zhou.
• Li Lingkui asked Yu Zhou whether he was the man the Crown Prince had mentioned.
• Yu Zhou confirmed it and said he had summoned them in the Crown Prince's name to eliminate the traitor to the realm.

Heart Demon Yu Zhou used the Deathless Elixir and his power from Hongfang to control seven Jianghu masters, then recruited Li Longji to help eliminate Lu Changfeng. At the Princess's Residence, Li Lingyue and Lu Changfeng learned that the emperor had urgently summoned her to the palace, confirming that their enemies had made a move.

• Shen Lingyue challenged Yu Zhou's implication that Lu Changfeng was a traitor, and Yu Zhou revealed the Deathless Elixir and claimed to come from Hongfang.
• Yu Zhou summoned a Qiongqi dharma form, subdued Xiao Changchun, Shen Lingyue, Li Lingkui, Xiao Juelou, Wang Shaoyuan, Cui Han, and True Person Xuancheng, then pierced them with black-vapor-wreathed needles that made them his puppets.
• Li Longji emerged from hiding and regretted his bargain with Yu Zhou, but Yu Zhou persuaded him to proceed by revealing that he had come to kill Lu Changfeng and warning that Lu Changfeng could match his power.
• Li Longji agreed to follow Yu Zhou's instructions and stake everything on becoming emperor.
• At the Princess's Residence, Li Lingyue asked Lu Changfeng whether his arrangements were ready, and he said they would wait for a chance to settle matters.
• Jinghong reported that the emperor had urgently summoned Li Lingyue to the palace, and Lu Changfeng said their enemies had made their move.

Li Lingyue entered Taiji Palace, where Li Longji and seven peak Fifth Realm masters had prepared to capture her. After confronting him over his betrayal of Lu Changfeng and his seizure of the Imperial Seal, she chose to resist, and Li Longji prepared to attack.

• Li Lingyue traveled from her residence to the Hall of a Hundred Blessings, where she found the courtyard deserted.
• Li Longji appeared above the palace wall with the Imperial Guard archers, while Xiao Changchun, Shen Lingyue, Li Lingkui, Xiao Juelou, Wang Shaoyun, Cui Han, and Zhang Yanli surrounded Li Lingyue.
• Li Longji urged Li Lingyue to surrender and promised that she and her unborn child would be spared, while saying someone would kill Lu Changfeng.
• Li Lingyue accused Li Longji of cooperating with Dragon-Slaying City against Lu Changfeng and revealed that she knew he had taken the Imperial Seal.
• Li Longji claimed control of the Great Array of the Celestial Stars and demanded that Li Lingyue yield, but she answered by summoning her starlight true qi.
• Li Longji decided to fight Li Lingyue rather than leave her alive and raised the Imperial Seal to begin the confrontation.