Recaps

Xiao Hua learned that Zhong Haoran and four other Zhong family disciples had been expelled and were stranded near the Sword Tomb, where sword cultivators had recently grown more numerous. He accepted their plea to serve him and revealed that he could provide them with sword arts, cultivation techniques, and flying swords, leaving the five amazed by the resources he offered.

• Zhong Haoran told Xiao Hua that he and the others had struggled to reach Xuntian City and had been hiding from the increased numbers of sword cultivators near the Sword Tomb.
• Zhong Haoran explained that cultivation families had come to seek gains from the war, and that the Zhong family had repeatedly clashed with the domineering Yu Family.
• Zhong Haoran and the four other disciples begged Xiao Hua to take them in, fearing the Zhong family would later abolish their cultivation.
• Xiao Hua revealed pressure near the late Golden Core level, then withdrew it and clarified that he had not promised to place them in the Thunder Control Sect.
• Xiao Hua presented sword arts, Dao Sect flying-sword techniques, and dozens of flying swords, astonishing Zhong Haoran and the others.

Xiao Hua reconsidered founding a sect after Zhong Haoran argued that Xiao Hua’s improved seeds and standing among ordinary people created a rare opportunity. He agreed to discuss the idea, but warned that his Thunder Control Sect ties, powerful enemies, and dislike of administration could make founding a sect dangerous and burdensome.

• Xiao Hua gave Zhong Haoran and the others cultivation methods and flying swords, while declining to establish a sect at first.
• Zhong Haoran argued that the five rogue cultivators needed a group for protection and that Xiao Hua could use his prestige and improved seeds to shape the future of Xiaoyu Continent.
• Xiao Hua recognized the potential of founding a sect at the source of the changes caused by the improved seeds, though he worried it would be troublesome.
• Zhong Haoran and the others knelt and begged Xiao Hua to establish a sect, and Xiao Hua agreed to discuss the matter.
• Xiao Hua led the group to a secluded spot and warned that Thunder Control Sect, his powerful enemies, and the work of managing disciples made founding a sect risky.

Xiao Hua agreed to establish the Creation Sect, appointing Zhong Haoran to organize it while he remained its Supreme Sect Leader. The founding disciples formalized their roles, then debated whether the sect should follow seniority or cultivation realm for forms of address.

• Zhong Haoran argued that Xiao Hua could found a sect with the support of the people of Yuncheng City, Zhicheng City, and Fancheng City, while Zhong Haoran and the others handled its preparations.
• Xiao Hua agreed to entrust the founding work to Zhong Haoran and named Zhong Zhan, Qin Ji, Zhong Pei, and Fei Yunshu as founding disciples.
• Fei Yunshu proposed the name Creation Sect, and Xiao Hua accepted it.
• Xiao Hua appointed Zhong Haoran as sect leader and said he would guide Zhong Haoran's cultivation; Zhong Zhan and the others formally acknowledged Zhong Haoran as their senior brother.
• Xiao Hua proposed that forms of address in the Creation Sect follow seniority rather than cultivation realm, but Zhong Haoran explained the practical difficulties, leaving Xiao Hua reconsidering his idea.

Xiao Hua sent Zhong Haoran and his companions toward Xuntian City with supplies, protective treasures, and encouragement to establish the Creation Sect. After they departed, Xiao Hua was stopped by a patrol of Xuntian City guards and identified himself as a Thunder Control Sect cultivator with special authorization.

• Xiao Hua guided Zhong Haoran and the others in cultivation, then escorted them toward Xuntian City on the Flowing Cloud Flying Boat, frightening away sword cultivators with his Lightning Drawing Technique and the name Terrifying Phoenix.
• Xiao Hua stopped outside Xuntian City and gave Zhong Haoran’s group five storage bags filled with resources, warning them not to risk their lives to protect the contents.
• Xiao Hua gave Zhong Haoran a jade pendant bearing his image and voice, along with precious fire talismans for emergencies.
• Zhong Haoran and his companions vowed not to covet the sect’s resources and promised to build the Creation Sect into a great sect before flying away toward Meng Kingdom.
• Xiao Hua reflected that founding the sect would be difficult but would give the group a chance to cultivate, then encountered a patrol of Xuntian City guards and identified himself as Xiao Hua of the Thunder Control Sect.

Xiao Hua presented his Council Hall special permit to Captain Qu, who mocked his role in Qin Jian’s death after Xiao Hua left. A secret order then revealed the City Lord’s special interest in Xiao Hua, while Snowy Realm True Person sensed progress in his Xuezhan Mystic Art and listened to Fang Liebie’s report on the war.

• Captain Qu verified Xiao Hua’s special permit, praised him for Qin Jian’s death, and pressed him to tell the story, but Xiao Hua deflected the questions and learned Li Zongbao had left Xuntian City.
• Xiao Hua flew northwest to finish his mission, and Captain Qu and the other guards mocked him as lucky and weak.
• A communication talisman ordered every patrol to report sightings of Xiao Hua directly to the City Lord’s Mansion without alarming him, leaving Captain Qu and the guards stunned.
• Snowy Realm True Person felt his Xuezhan Mystic Art had advanced after years without progress and reflected on how the war had affected his cultivation.
• Fang Liebie entered the City Lord’s Mansion to report on the war, and Snowy Realm True Person criticized the Golden Core commanders for their lack of strategic skill.

Fang Liebie briefed Snowy Realm True Person on the Council Hall’s decisive battle order and the uncertain situation around the Sword Tomb. The report that three Foundation Establishment disciples had killed Qin Jian left Snowy Realm True Person questioning how they could have defeated an Illusion Sword Third Rank swordsman.

• Fang Liebie reported that the Council Hall had launched a decisive battle against the Huan Kingdom and dispatched more than eighty thousand Xuntian City disciples.
• Snowy Realm True Person questioned the Council Hall’s neglect of the Sword Tomb, while Fang Liebie described the limited intelligence Xuntian City had gathered there.
• Snowy Realm True Person and Fang Liebie discussed the war’s prospects, Tu Hong’s talent, and the loss of several Xuntian City spirit stone mines.
• Fang Liebie reported that Qin Jian had been killed after three Golden Core cultivators severely wounded him, and that Li Zongbao, Xiao Mao, and Xiao Hua had claimed the kill.
• Snowy Realm True Person doubted that the three Foundation Establishment disciples could have killed Qin Jian and questioned the report’s credibility.

Snowy Realm True Person learned from Tu Hong's records that Xiao Hua might have been behind Tu Hong's assassination and the survival of the Thunder Control Sect First Squad. He ordered the search for Xiao Hua, but the Council Hall had sent him elsewhere and did not disclose where.

• Snowy Realm True Person concluded that Tu Hong's killer had likely stayed in Xuntian City, impersonated Qin Jian, and used a soul-affecting sword formation.
• Jin Gang presented a jade slip containing Tu Hong's records of Li Zongbao, Xiao Hua, and Xiao Mao, including Tu Hong's warning that Xiao Hua might be terrifying.
• Snowy Realm True Person examined the jade slip and suspected that Xiao Hua had killed Tu Hong and might have broken the Spirit Howl Great Formation at Quanjin Mountain.
• Fang Liebie checked the records and confirmed that Li Zongbao, Xiao Mao, and Xiao Hua had returned to Xuntian City on the day Tu Hong was killed.
• Snowy Realm True Person declared that Xiao Hua was likely the main force behind Qin Jian's death and asked where he was.
• Fang Liebie reported that Xiao Hua had not returned to Xuntian City and that Li Zongbao had sent him elsewhere, though the Council Hall had not revealed the destination.

Snowy Realm True Person learned that Xiao Hua had killed Tu Hong and pursued him after discovering his ties to Cui Hongshen. At Xuyan Sect, Zhu Chenghe read the war reports and was astonished to find Xiao Hua alive and responsible for a major victory at Quanjin Mountain.

• Snowy Realm True Person ordered patrol disciples to report Xiao Hua’s whereabouts and sent Fang Liebie to investigate Xiao Hua’s relationship with Cui Hongshen.
• Fang Liebie learned that Xiao Hua and Cui Hongshen were martial brothers from the Myriad Thunder Valley lineage of Zhen Thunder Palace.
• Qu Heng reported spotting Xiao Hua, and Snowy Realm True Person rushed out of the hall to pursue him.
• At Xuyan Sect, Zhu Chenghe received orders to go to Xuntian City and requested copies of the war reports.
• Zhu Chenghe dismissed the first report as evidence of poor leadership, then read of Tu Hong’s ambush at Quanjin Mountain and Xiao Hua’s achievements, and was shocked that Xiao Hua was alive.

Zhu Chenghe learned that Xiao Hua had survived the Spirit Howl Great Formation and hurried away, while Xiao Hua unknowingly flew toward the Sword Tomb. At its flower-covered edge, Xiao Hua sensed the danger within and settled down for the night as the purple gardenias glowed blood-red.

• Zhu Chenghe discovered that Xiao Hua had survived alongside the Thunder Control Sect First Squad and immediately left his cave.
• Xiao Hua escaped pursuit by Snowy Realm True Person and flew north for more than ten days while studying the Nascent Soul Sword Riding Technique.
• Xiao Hua reached the Sword Tomb and saw its vast fields of purple gardenia flowers, reflecting on the cultivators buried there.
• Xiao Hua probed the Sword Tomb with his Buddhist sense, felt a sharp force threaten it, and withdrew without entering the dangerous battlefield.
• Xiao Hua followed the edge of the flower field to a hillock and rested on a boulder as night turned the flowers’ glow blood-red.

Xiao Hua cultivated in the Sword Graveyard, strengthened Little White Dragon’s soul, and practiced his swords while wondering how Fairy Hongxia was faring. The chapter ended as he disguised himself as Kun Shuai and awaited two approaching visitors, including a Golden Core cultivator he recognized as True Person Jinglü’s disciple.

• Xiao Hua used the Eye of Delusion Breaking to see resentful souls gathering around him and sent Little White Dragon’s soul out to absorb them through the night.
• Xiao Hua spent more than ten days cultivating, practicing his Formless Golden Thread Sword, and discovering that Zhi Ma reverted to Lingzhi inside his space.
• Xiao Hua learned a secret technique that greatly increased the speed of Dream Slayer and Mountain Splitting when used together.
• Xiao Hua thought about Fairy Hongxia, Xue Xue, and the dangers that could separate loved ones.
• Xiao Hua transformed his appearance into Kun Shuai’s and watched two visitors approach; one was a white-haired early Golden Core cultivator he recognized as True Person Jinglü’s disciple.

Xiao Hua, posing as Kun Shuai, met Hu Guanqiu and an envoy of an unnamed Alliance Leader, then discovered that Hu Guanqiu and his master True Person Jinglü had been plotting against Xiao Hua himself. The chapter ended with Xiao Hua realizing he was the hidden target of their plans.

• Xiao Hua prepared to attack Hu Guanqiu and the Mihuan-clad envoy, but changed course when Hu Guanqiu told him to welcome the envoy.
• The envoy presented an Alliance Leader's token, whose immense pressure startled Xiao Hua, and claimed he had come to observe the battle near Xuntian City.
• Hu Guanqiu exchanged artifact-refining techniques and the Great Universe Shifting Token repair method for Kun Shuai's thunder boat refining method.
• Xiao Hua pretended he had left the additional repair materials at the Thunder Control Sect's encampment, and Hu Guanqiu told him to retrieve them for True Person Jinglü.
• Hu Guanqiu warned Xiao Hua to suspend their plan against a powerful Foundation Establishment disciple, identifying that target as Xiao Hua of the Thunder Control Sect.

Xiao Hua discovered that Hu Guanqiu had arranged to have him attacked and killed Hu Guanqiu when the trap was sprung. The mysterious envoy escaped after recognizing Xiao Hua’s Shapeshifting Technique, leaving Xiao Hua determined to investigate the envoy and the alliance leader’s secret business.

• Xiao Hua concealed his anger as Hu Guanqiu said that Kun Shuai had been summoned to Xuntian City and offered him a magic treasure.
• Hu Guanqiu produced a Nascent Soul hand spirit talisman, while the envoy used a tower magic treasure to trap Xiao Hua.
• Xiao Hua evaded the attacks and struck Hu Guanqiu with the As-You-Wish Staff, then killed him with Dream Slayer and Mountain Splitting.
• The envoy recognized Xiao Hua’s Shapeshifting Technique, escaped using a strange technique, and vanished beyond Xiao Hua’s pursuit.
• Xiao Hua searched for the envoy with the Eye of Delusion Breaking, failed to find him, and retrieved the Nascent Soul hand spirit talisman from the battlefield.

Xiao Hua killed Hu Guanqiu, found a clue in a hidden cauldron, and headed deeper into the Sword Tomb while evading Zhang Zhihao. Zhang Qingxiao learned of Xiao Hua’s actions and realized his junior brother was surrounded by powerful enemies.

• Xiao Hua took Hu Guanqiu’s storage pouch, burned his corpse, and fed his Golden Core to the duckling after Little Yellow rejected it.
• Xiao Hua discovered a silver cauldron concealed beneath stones and used it to reveal a message in a jade slip that pointed deeper into the Sword Tomb.
• Xiao Hua feinted to check whether the envoy was following him, then left after finding no trace of him.
• Zhang Zhihao emerged from hiding, puzzled by Xiao Hua’s identity and abilities, and decided to report him to Zhang Qingxiao.
• Zhang Zhihao learned that Xiong Huasong had found a clue to the Great Universe Shifting Token and complained that Xiao Hua had survived despite seeming destined to die.
• Zhang Qingxiao considered reports about Xiao Hua and concluded that Luo, True Person Jinglü, and other enemies were closing in on his junior brother.

Zhang Qingxiao received Yin Meng, the Heavenly Demon Sect’s First Vice Sect Master, and learned that Yin was pressing for the sect to publicly establish itself while the Daoist cultivators were distracted by the Great Sword Dao Battle. Yin left after urging Zhang to complete the preparations and asking about the sword cultivator woman Zhang had sent away.

• Zhang Qingxiao received Yin Meng’s communication talisman and invited him inside the Jingming Bell’s barrier.
• Zhang Qingxiao poured Yin Meng Yun Gan Liquid, and they discussed the wine before Yin asked about establishing the Heavenly Demon Sect.
• Zhang Qingxiao voiced concern that establishing the sect too soon could provoke the Daoist sects, but Yin insisted it was the ideal opportunity and said people from elsewhere would soon arrive.
• Zhang Qingxiao agreed to proceed and thanked Yin for promising to support him when those people came.
• Yin asked about the little sword cultivator lady, and Zhang Qingxiao said he had sent her touring toward Meng Kingdom with several disciples.
• Yin Meng departed after telling Zhang Qingxiao to handle the sect’s establishment properly.

Zhang Qingxiao concealed his anger at Yin Meng while discussing the Heavenly Demon Sect’s expansion with Ye Yin. He explained why he was establishing three separate foundations across the Three Cultivation Kingdoms, leaving the sect’s strategy clear but its true center undisclosed.

• After Yin Meng departed, Zhang Qingxiao destroyed the furnishings he had used and reflected on enduring insults while secretly relying on his hidden ties to Xiao Hua.
• A communication talisman arrived, and Zhang Qingxiao read it before a disciple delivered a demonic jade slip from an honored person.
• Ye Yin reported that the Heavenly Demon Sect had gained influence among families in Xi, Meng, and Lian Kingdoms, and Zhang Qingxiao ordered him not to fear resistance from rival sects.
• Ye Yin asked why Zhang Qingxiao was establishing three bases despite the sect’s shallow cultivation and divided strength.
• Zhang Qingxiao explained that three foundations would disperse Daoist attention, increase the sect’s apparent momentum, and complicate efforts to identify and attack its true center.

Zhang Qingxiao learned that Jiang Liuer had fallen unconscious after cultivating the Prajna Paramita Heart Sutra and decided to seek Xiao Hua’s help. Meanwhile, Xiao Hua ventured deep into the Sword Tomb, where a remnant sword formation attacked him and burdened his As-You-Wish Staff.

• Zhang Qingxiao praised Ye Yin’s work, gave him a reward for the Heavenly Dipper Sect, and encouraged him to develop the Heavenly Brahma Sect.
• Zhang Qingxiao discovered that Jiang Liuer had fallen unconscious while cultivating the Prajna Paramita Heart Sutra and decided to contact his junior sister and seek Xiao Hua’s help.
• Xiao Hua followed the jade slip deeper into the Sword Tomb, enduring blood-red vegetation, cutting winds, and a strange torrential rain without thunder.
• Xiao Hua sensed a remnant sword formation closing in, dodged its first strike, and blocked its five-colored sword lights with the As-You-Wish Staff.
• The sword formation’s attacks steadily increased the weight of the As-You-Wish Staff, leaving Xiao Hua questioning whether the demonic artifact truly lay outside the Five Elements.

Xiao Hua followed the sword cries deeper into the Sword Tomb, where his flying swords stirred and he resolved to continue his journey. A powerful spell array trapped him, but he broke through it with the Sea-Overturning Seal, revealing crimson vegetation in the rain.

• A distant sword shriek roused Zhu Meng, Mountain Splitting, and the surrounding swords, and Xiao Hua decided to venture farther into the Sword Tomb.
• Xiao Hua sensed that the broken swords deserved reverence and abandoned the idea of digging them up.
• Xiao Hua rode Zhu Meng and Mountain Splitting toward the Sword Tomb's center and encountered a spell array that confined the space and stopped the rain.
• Xiao Hua used the Sea-Overturning Seal and his true essence to shatter the spell array, restoring the rain and exposing crimson vegetation beneath him.

Xiao Hua followed the jade slip to Wu Jiazi Gui, where he learned that the route had been abandoned and was now filled with shifting formations and spatial rifts. After a brief exchange with a Huanhua Sect elder, he received a new jade slip and continued northwest, breaking through powerful sword intent.

• Xiao Hua encountered a spatial rift while searching for a place to rest, then discovered that his jade slip activated a stone formation and flew away as a communication talisman.
• Xiao Hua disguised himself as Feng Ying and suppressed his cultivation while waiting for a response at Wu Jiazi Gui.
• A Huanhua Sect elder appeared in a mirror and warned Xiao Hua that Wu Jiazi Gui had been abandoned and its route was riddled with damaged formations and spatial rifts.
• The elder mistook Xiao Hua's mention of Yu Tong for Yu Dong before the communication failed, and Xiao Hua concluded that the Huanhua Sect was pursuing a secret plan in the Sword Burial Grounds.
• Another jade slip arrived at the stone formation and revealed the location of a subsidiary gui, so Xiao Hua took it and flew northwest.
• Xiao Hua crossed several strands of sword intent with the Sea-Overturning Seal and exclaimed at their power.

Xiao Hua reached the Stone Transformation Token’s hidden meeting point and met a cautious cultivator who led him to a concealed entrance beneath the Sword Mound. As Xiao Hua descended through a passage of Golden Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, the force pulling him downward intensified and began cutting into him.

• Xiao Hua found the stone pile marked with the character "quan" and activated the jade gui with his jade slip.
• A masked cultivator arrived, questioned Xiao Hua about his identity and jade slip, then explained that it was a Stone Transformation Token and returned it.
• Xiao Hua followed the cultivator along a winding route through the Sword Mound, avoiding its formations and spatial rifts.
• The cultivator used a silver triangular object to open a passage beside another stone pile and directed Xiao Hua to enter first.
• Xiao Hua descended into the silver passage, where Golden Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi drew him deeper and began piercing his skin.

Xiao Hua was teleported into a guarded room, where two cultivators challenged his identity and the Stone Transformation Token he carried. Yu Ping intervened, and the guards appeared ready to let him pass without uncovering his deception.

• Xiao Hua was teleported through the passageway into a small room, where two Foundation Establishment cultivators demanded his identity and Stone Transformation Token.
• Xiao Hua claimed he was Feng Ying and explained that Yu Dong and Yu Bing had sent him, but the guards recognized the token as Yu Bing’s and grew suspicious.
• Unable to inspect the room with his Buddhist sense, Xiao Hua produced Feng Yi’s token but hesitated to hand it over.
• Yu Ping arrived and rebuked the guards, arguing that he had already inspected Xiao Hua and that the Yu family’s Stone Transformation Plan should continue.
• The guards backed down after Yu Ping warned them not to involve him if they failed to inspect Xiao Hua properly, and Xiao Hua sensed that their conflict might let him avoid further scrutiny.

Xiao Hua followed Yu Ping into the Duojin Mountain Yu Family’s vast silver complex and learned that he had been brought to its Turning Stone into Gold event. He encountered Yu Huo, the cultivator who had taken the Emerald Bird from him years earlier, but Yu Huo did not recognize him and left after urging him to work hard.

• Xiao Hua used his token to persuade the two cultivators to let him follow Yu Ping, while they discussed Yu Ping’s efforts to meet the Sect Leader’s requirements.
• Xiao Hua suspected the site belonged to the Duojin Mountain Yu Family and wondered how it was connected to the Huanhua Sect and Sword Burial Mound.
• Yu Ping showed Xiao Hua the enormous silver complex and said the Yu Family expected him to give his all whenever it had a need.
• Xiao Hua told Yu Ping he would not take part if the Yu Family’s plans harmed the Huanhua Sect, and Yu Ping began to reassure him before Yu Huo interrupted.
• Yu Huo corrected Yu Ping’s claim that Duojin Mountain and the Huanhua Sect were bound together, then addressed Xiao Hua as a beneficiary of Turning Stone into Gold without recognizing him.

Xiao Hua entered a sealed room in Duojin Mountain to study the secret art needed for the dangerous Stone Transformation process, while Yu Ping revealed that a powerful elder was overseeing thousands of Foundation Establishment cultivators. The silver-robed elder planned to begin the process once the participants were assembled.

• Yu Ping complained about Yu Huo, then explained that the Huanhua Sect had refused to accept him and that he had become a Duojin Mountain elder.
• Yu Ping led Xiao Hua through a labyrinthine corridor and used a token to open a hidden room with Xiao Hua’s Stone Transformation Token.
• Yu Ping warned Xiao Hua that he needed to master a secret art to guide innate metal qi into his meridians, and said the process could begin within days or weeks.
• Sensing an unseen watcher and suspecting danger, Xiao Hua chose to enter the room; Yu Ping sealed the entrance behind him.
• An icy voice questioned Yu Ping about sending the Huanhua Sect disciple Feng Ying and threatened him if the cultivator caused trouble or exposed the secret.
• A silver-robed Golden Core elder surveyed more than ten thousand Foundation Establishment cultivators through a tiger-shaped magic artifact and decided to wait until the numbers were complete before activating Stone Transformation.

Yu Qingtian opened a hidden space and summoned a woman from behind a sealed sphere, while Xiao Hua studied the Yu family's secret art and found a way out of his room. Meanwhile, Dao cultivators advanced toward Moqing Cave for a decisive battle, wary that the sword cultivators had prepared another trap.

• Yu Qingtian used a silver tiger to melt the azure-threaded sphere, and a woman addressed him as Sect Master Yu Qingtian from within the opening.
• Xiao Hua studied the Yu family's secret art and a sword jade slip, then suspected the Yu family wanted to use its formation to build its own cultivation force.
• Xiao Hua discovered that his room's silver walls blocked Earth Evasion, but used Rabbit Spirit Talismans to make an opening and confirm he could escape.
• The Council Hall's Golden Core cultivators finalized their battle plans and led their disciples toward Moqing Cave.
• Yuan Zhongyu and Ji Hong worried that Moqing Cave was a sword cultivator trap, while Qian Mo dismissed Xiao Hua's fame as unremarkable.

Qian Mo took command of the three sects’ forces as they reached Moqing City, an enormous ice-walled stronghold built by the sword cultivators at Moqing Cave. The attack halted when Lu Ruochang appeared and unleashed a powerful sword formation, leaving the cultivators to face the threat of her Illusion Sword Rank Three strength.

• Qian Mo dismissed Yuan Zhongyu and Ji Hong’s concerns about the sword cultivators and accepted command of the coming battle, promising to divide its credit equally among the three leaders.
• Qian Mo led tens of thousands of disciples to Moqing Cave, where they saw a vast ice city whose walls blocked their divine senses.
• Qian Mo ordered the Thunder Control Sect to attack the front, the Kunlun Sect to strike the left flank, and the Cheng Ye Sect to attack the right.
• Lu Ruochang flew out of the city and challenged the cultivators for daring to approach Moqing City.
• Lu Ruochang unleashed her Phoenix Sword Intent as the city’s flying swords formed a soul-piercing sword formation, making Qian Mo, Yuan Zhongyu, and Ji Hong recognize her strength as an Illusion Sword Rank Three swordsman.

Lu Ruochang taunted Qian Mo and the other Council Hall commanders, exploiting their doubts about why only mid-stage Golden Core cultivators had been sent to Xuntian City. As sword cultivators launched their ambush, the Dao Sect forces hurried to form teams and counterattack.

• Lu Ruochang mocked Qian Mo's confidence and asked whether he knew the Terrifying Phoenix's identity.
• Lu Ruochang questioned why the Council Hall had no late Golden Core cultivators, leaving Qian Mo, Yuan Zhongyu, and Ji Hong shaken.
• Qian Mo insisted that mid-stage Golden Core cultivators were sufficient, but Lu Ruochang claimed they would have died against Qin Jian and suggested they had been sent to die.
• Lu Ruochang revealed that she had used the conversation to delay the commanders and test their knowledge, then signaled the sword cultivators to attack.
• Dozens of sword lights struck toward the unprepared disciples, and Qian Mo, Yuan Zhongyu, and Ji Hong ordered their forces to form teams and counterattack.