Recaps

Xiao Hua used the Tongming Mirror to search for someone connected to his origins, triggering a vision and shattering the artifact. As Netherworld Wind poured through the broken hall, Ji Man accused Miss Zi Ming of betraying her, and a turbulent current trapped Xiao Hua and his companions.

• Xiao Mao saw someone on the Tongming Mirror and wept, while Li Zongbao and Fairy Hongxia saw no one because the person they sought was apparently still alive.
• Bohong looked into the mirror, saw something frightening, and confirmed it to Elder Xun Yu, who learned there was no time for another person to look.
• Xiao Hua thought of the name Meng and a faint beauty mark, then unleashed overwhelming light from the Tongming Mirror and glimpsed a vast black outline before darkness overtook him.
• The Tongming Mirror and its bone ring cracked apart, releasing a pillar of Netherworld Wind that tore through the hall’s roof.
• Miss Zi Ming questioned Xiao Hua about what he had seen, and Ji Man shouted through the hole that Miss Zi Ming had betrayed her.
• A powerful current surged into the hall and trapped Xiao Hua and his companions.

Jiman overpowered Xiao Hua and Ziming, accused Ziming of plotting against Houtu Village and killing Liu'er, and revealed she had Elder Shaman's token to invoke authority against them. After Jiman executed Ziming's captured attendants, Ziming denied confessing to anything, leaving Xiao Hua confused about why she concealed the truth.

• Jiman restrained Xiao Hua and the others with Soul Thorns, black-green pythons, and Soul-Locking Shackles.
• Xiao Hua admitted that he had destroyed the Tongming Mirror and offered to bear responsibility, but Jiman accused Ziming of conspiring against her and killing Liu'er.
• Jiman brought in Ziming's bloodied attendants and accused Ziming of using the celestial anomaly as a pretext to kill Liu'er.
• Jiman revealed Elder Shaman's token and declared she could take the captives to the ancestral shrine and exercise Elder Shaman's authority.
• Jiman ordered the guards to execute Ziming's captured attendants, then accused Ziming of admitting her guilt when she acknowledged they were her subordinates.
• Ziming denied the accusation, while Xiao Hua wondered why she did not reveal the soul artifact that could clarify the matter.

Ji Man used Ji Qing’s testimony and the millet seeds to condemn Zi Ming, while Xiao Hua realized Ji Man meant to kill them all. Zi Ming offered to surrender the seeds in exchange for Xiao Hua and the others’ release, leaving their fate in Ji Man’s hands.

• Ji Qing accused Zi Ming of killing Zi Yan and his followers, twisting the events around Yellow Sand Ridge into a case against her.
• Ji Man blamed Zi Ming for Zi Yan’s death and for withholding the drought-resistant millet seeds from the people of Meng Mountain.
• A Witch Elder from Qikong Village testified that Zi Ming’s millet seeds could withstand the drought, and Ji Man promised his village the first share once she obtained them.
• Ji Man silenced Xiao Hua and the others and declared that Daoist cultivators had led Zi Ming astray, while Xiao Hua prepared a possible counterattack through his Primordial Spirit.
• Zi Ming offered to hand over the millet seeds if Ji Man released Xiao Hua and the others, revealing she had kept them as leverage to save their lives.

Ji Man condemned Miss Zi Ming and the Daoist disciples to die, then led them toward Houtu Village’s ancestral shrine. As they arrived, the drought demon attacked Houtu Village, killing the defenders while Xiao Hua remained trapped and unable to act.

• Ji Man rejected Miss Zi Ming’s threat to destroy the millet seeds and declared that she would execute Miss Zi Ming and the Daoist disciples for Liu’er’s death.
• Miss Zi Ming insisted that Xiao Hua and the others had preserved the millet seeds to save starving people, while Ji Man dismissed her explanation and ordered the prisoners taken to the ancestral shrine.
• Xiao Mao struggled to reveal the truth, Fairy Hongxia and Li Zongbao recognized their helplessness, and Xiao Hua continued fighting the soul threads imprisoning him.
• Ji Man led the prisoners through Houtu Village to a bone-built hall on the rear mountain as dawn broke.
• A powerful soul sense swept over the shrine, and the drought demon attacked; Houtu Village’s soul warriors burst into flames or blood mist as they tried to stop it.
• Xiao Mao sensed the drought demon’s arrival, stopped struggling, and looked delighted while the attack intensified.

Ji Man and thirty-six elders trapped the drought demon with a soul formation, while Xiao Hua tried to use Green Seal Script to break Soul-Locking. Ji Man suppressed both threats, leaving Xiao Hua and the others captive and the drought demon bound.

• Thirty-six elders formed a green net around the drought demon, but it killed one elder and resisted their attacks.
• Xiao Hua awakened and used Green Seal Script to stir dark clouds, but Ji Man stopped him with a ghost head cast into his mind.
• The drought demon unleashed a crimson phantom that began breaking through the elders’ binding net.
• Ji Man struck the phantom with a brilliant green light, shrinking it and binding the drought demon tightly.
• Xiao Mao and Zi Ming watched helplessly as the drought demon struggled against Ji Man’s restraints.

Ji Man brought Xiao Hua and the others into Houtu Village’s ancestral shrine to accuse Zi Ming and sentence her and the Dao Sect cultivators to death. The sacred beast Xiaohei recognized Xiao Hua as its long-sought Zhang Xiaohua, freed him from his bindings, and left Ji Man facing a choice over whether to obey its demand to release him and Zi Ming.

• Ji Man opened the ancestral shrine’s bone gates and had the guards drag Xiao Hua and the others inside.
• Ji Man accused Zi Ming of conspiring against Zi Yan and revealing Meng Mountain secrets, then declared that Zi Ming and the Dao Sect cultivators would be destroyed.
• Ji Man used the Witch Elder’s token and the gathered green light to reveal Great God Houtu’s statue and awaken the black sacred beast.
• The black dog ignored the prostrating crowd, flew to Xiao Hua, and joyfully called him its father; Ji Man recognized him as the Zhang Xiaohua the beast had sought.
• Xiaohei melted the dark-green light binding Xiao Hua and urged Ji Man to release him, while Ji Man hesitated and considered killing him.

The Shaman Elder freed Xiao Hua and heard Ji Man’s accusation against Zi Ming, then examined evidence proving that Zi Yan had been possessed by a Demonic being. He cleared Zi Ming, allowed Xiao Hua to take Xiaohei from Houtu Village, and left Ji Man and Zi Ming facing a breach that could not be undone.

• The Shaman Elder arrived at the ancestral shrine, freed Xiao Hua, and asked Ji Man to explain why she had accused Zi Ming.
• Xiao Hua told the Shaman Elder that Zi Yan had been possessed and that Zi Ming held evidence; Ji Man released Zi Ming and the others.
• Zi Ming recounted what had happened and presented a Soul Bead containing the Demonic being’s soul, which the Shaman Elder examined.
• The Shaman Elder confirmed Ji Man had been wrong, and Xiaohei consumed the Demonic being’s soul.
• The Shaman Elder permitted Xiao Hua to take Xiaohei, while Zi Ming said the trust between her and Ji Man could not return to how it had been.
• The Shaman Elder urged everyone to learn from past mistakes and keep Houtu Village united through future hardships.

Old Wu arranged for Xiao Hua and his companions to remain in Houtu Village while he handled the aftermath of the demonic attack, then summoned Ji Man and Zi Ming to Houtu Hall. Zi Ming urged Xiao Hua to take a Rejuvenation Pill after learning he had used a powerful witch incantation, and the group prepared to rest.

• Xiao Hua realized that Old Wu and Ji Man knew his title and worried that his identity as Wu Ming had spread among cultivators.
• Old Wu told the villagers that Meng Mountain’s calamities had tested them and warned that outsiders were treating its people as pawns, then sent guards to deal with village affairs.
• Old Wu asked Xiao Hua and his companions to stay in Houtu Village, summoned Ji Man to Houtu Hall, and instructed Zi Ming to join him after resting.
• Zi Ming, shaken by Old Wu’s words, struggled to understand what had changed, while Xiao Hua encouraged her to reflect and Fairy Hongxia tried to comfort her and Li Zongbao.
• Zi Ming gave Xiao Hua a Rejuvenation Pill, warning that his half-cast Rain-Summoning Art could consume his life essence; Xiao Hua accepted the pill but planned to wait before taking it.
• Xiao Hua reassured Zi Ming that their meeting and his witch incantation were guided by Great God Houtu, and Fairy Hongxia urged the group to rest.

Xiao Hua learned how Life Spirit Tablets could be used to control Daoist cultivators and discussed Million Meng Mountain’s history with Zi Ming. The group then considered whether Cai Zhuoxia might still be alive, and Li Zongbao resolved to return to Luyang to find out.

• Zi Ming explained that Mengshan Soul Masters avoided Life Spirit Tablets because blood essence could let others control or kill them, and warned that Daoist sects used the tablets to control their disciples.
• The group left the ancestral shrine, and the drought demon greeted Xiao Mao before flying away; Xiao Hua wondered why it could not leave Million Meng Mountain.
• Zi Ming described how Houtu Village had expanded from its ancestral shrine, then parted from the group after Fairy Hongxia urged her to shoulder her duties as the next Ji Man.
• Xiao Hua redirected Fairy Hongxia’s teasing by asking why they had never found Cai Zhuoxia’s soul, despite having recovered and buried her remains.
• Li Zongbao said he would return to Luyang to investigate whether Cai Zhuoxia was still alive and acknowledge his feelings for her.

After the Tongming Mirror raised hopes that Cai Zhuoxia might be revived, Xiao Hua rested and continued investigating his mysterious powers and lost memories. He recognized the unchanged willow branch as a possible soul-preserving treasure but kept it secret, then glimpsed the Heavenly Pattern Earth Deed surrounding his mysterious dark cloud.

• Li Zongbao and Fairy Hongxia hoped that Cai Zhuoxia could be revived, while Xiao Hua suspected the Tongming Mirror had malfunctioned and wondered about the black silhouette and strange sounds.
• Xiao Hua returned to the quiet chamber, fell asleep, and his Primordial Spirit continued experimenting with Green Seal Script pronunciations as extraterrestrial stellar force enveloped him.
• Elder Witch appeared, observed the green lights, and vanished after muttering in Witch language; Xiao Hua woke from a dream of the black beastly silhouette and worried about his sealed memories and dangerous enemies.
• Xiao Hua remembered using a strange willow branch to summon a soul and examined it, but decided not to show it to Elder Witch in case it stirred greed.
• Xiao Hua resumed cultivating and discovered runes surrounding the mysterious dark cloud; after briefly sensing their immense power, he recognized them as the Heavenly Pattern Earth Deed that protected souls.

Xiao Hua advanced his understanding of green seal characters and tried to form the character for the Dao giving birth to One, then met with the Witch Elder. The Witch Elder explained that Witch Meng Mountain’s drought had baffled its leaders and that Xiao Hua’s millet seeds might be relevant to their search for a solution.

• Xiao Hua saw green seal characters transform Qi Heaven and Spirit Cleansing Heaven, and realized that comprehending them was part of the Nine Heavens of Spiritual Essence.
• Xiao Hua sent another Primordial Spirit into Qi Heaven to study the first green seal character, but it failed to form before he withdrew.
• Xiao Hua turned to Master Ke Qin’s soul artifact-refining method, hoping to repair the Tongming Mirror, but a guard summoned him and the others to the Witch Elder.
• The Witch Elder thanked Xiao Hua for helping purge about two thousand possessed soul cultivators from Houtu Village and Shebi Village.
• The Witch Elder told Xiao Hua and the others that he had consulted the Twelve Witch Villages about Witch Meng Mountain’s worsening celestial changes, but their proposed solutions had failed.
• The Witch Elder said Shebi Village’s Cloud Rain Summoning technique might ease the drought, but only ancient shamans who understood green seal characters could control it.

Elder Witch explained that the Witch King’s Divine Connection Technique had identified Xiao Hua as crucial to Meng Mountain’s survival and offered him a crystal skull ring. The group discussed Xiao Mao’s unknown parents and the Tongming Mirror, while Elder Witch told Li Zongbao that the mysteries of life and death reached deep into the Heavenly Dao.

• Elder Witch said the Witch King had used the Divine Connection Technique to receive guidance from the Great Gods and sent him to Houtu Village with a gift for Xiao Hua.
• Xiao Hua accepted the crystal skull ring but said he needed the millet seeds for his own plans, and Elder Witch warned that the Witch King Order could not control the Twelve Main Villages.
• Elder Witch and Ji Man found Xiao Mao’s mother unfamiliar, and Ziming reasoned that Xiao Mao’s father likely resembled him because Fu Man had targeted him before he reached Shebi Village.
• Elder Witch agreed to ask Shebi Village’s witch elder about Xiao Mao’s father during Ziming’s Soul Falling Lamp ceremony and gave Xiao Hua the Tongming Mirror’s remnants and refining method.
• Li Zongbao asked whether the Tongming Mirror’s inability to find someone meant that person was alive, and Elder Witch challenged him to define life and death before explaining their profound connection to the Heavenly Dao.

Elder Wu explained how the Tongming Mirror revealed that Cai Zhuoxia’s soul had not remained in the Netherworld, and he proposed that a power of life and a special soul treasure might have drawn it out. Xiao Hua suspected the willow branch was involved, but the cause remained unknown as he and his companions prepared to investigate Cai Zhuoxia’s remains.

• Elder Wu explained that a soul could not be detected by the Tongming Mirror if it had never entered the Netherworld, and said Cai Zhuoxia’s soul might be wandering or have been seized.
• Xiao Hua said he had returned Cai Zhuoxia’s remains himself and wondered why her soul had not gone to the Netherworld; Fairy Hongxia said Cai Zhuoxia had never learned Ghost Cultivator techniques.
• Ziming noted that the Tongming Mirror’s green light had differed in Li Zongbao’s and Fairy Hongxia’s cases, prompting Elder Wu to suggest that a powerful force might have pulled a soul back out of the Netherworld.
• Elder Wu said a power of life and a special Dutian Spiritual Treasure might resist Netherworld power, and identified the Soul Falling Lamp as a soul treasure with such an effect.
• Xiao Hua suspected the willow branch might be an extraordinary soul treasure, but Elder Wu dismissed the possibility that a great expert had intervened in Xi Country and advised them to examine Cai Zhuoxia’s remains again.
• Elder Wu asked about Xiao Hua’s soul cultivation, and Xiao Hua said he had reached Spirit Cleansing Heaven through the Cloud-Gathering and Rain-Making Technique.

Xiao Hua negotiated with Elder Wu and Ziming over exchanging his Cloud-Gathering and Rain-Making Technique, while seeking an inheritance of Confucian cultivation and asking about Million Meng Mountain’s talismans. Elder Wu explained that talismans came from the Twelve Great Gods and that only someone with a Demigod Physique could use them without losing life essence, leaving Xiao Hua to question what Elder Wu truly wanted from the exchange.

• Ziming offered to trade with Xiao Hua for his Cloud-Gathering and Rain-Making Technique, which Million Meng Mountain needed during its drought.
• Xiao Hua asked Ji Man for an inheritance of Confucian cultivation in exchange, but Ji Man refused and Elder Wu said it was outside Houtu Village’s power to offer.
• Elder Wu proposed exchanging a treasured talisman for Xiao Hua’s technique, admitting that he did not know what the talisman did and that testing it required Rejuvenation Pills.
• Elder Wu explained that Million Meng Mountain’s talismans were the words of the Twelve Great Gods and that using them consumed life essence unless the user possessed a Demigod Physique.
• Elder Wu described a Demigod Physique as a body like a Great God’s without a godhead, and said such a physique could not be cultivated and had become only a legend as the ancient bloodlines weakened.
• Xiao Hua suggested Elder Wu might be trying to exchange talismans for talismans and began asking what he expected him to do.

Xiao Hua agreed to exchange the Cloud-Gathering and Rain-Making Technique for Elder Wu’s talismans and learned more about how green seal script was recorded. After realizing he could use the millet seeds to seek help for himself, he gave them to Elder Wu and prepared to ask for assistance with two grave matters.

• Elder Wu offered Xiao Hua a bone segment bearing a green seal script talisman in exchange for the Cloud-Gathering and Rain-Making Technique, and Xiao Hua accepted.
• Xiao Hua tried to record the technique but learned from Zi Ming and Elder Wu that the bone segment contained only a shortcut, not the true method for recording green seal script.
• Elder Wu offered to help Xiao Hua with any requests Houtu Village could fulfill, while Xiao Mao urged him not to make the request about returning to Shebi Village.
• Xiao Hua realized he could use the millet seeds and Meng Mountain’s power to seek help with his own troubles, including the seals on his Niwan Palace and middle dantian.
• Xiao Hua handed Elder Wu more than a dozen storage bags of millet seeds, and Zi Ming was astonished by how many they contained.

Xiao Hua asked Elder Wu to recover his lost memories and unseal his middle dantian, but Elder Wu discovered that Xiao Hua’s unusual body carried the breath of a Great God and warned him that others might try to seize it. The chapter left Xiao Hua facing a hidden threat connected to his erased memories and sealed cultivation.

• Elder Wu ordered the people of Houtu Village to withdraw from the Sword Domain after learning that the millet seeds could help Mount Meng recover sooner.
• Xiao Hua asked Elder Wu to investigate his lost memories, but hesitated because doing so could expose his secrets and those of Fairy Hongxia and Zi Ming.
• Xiao Hua asked Elder Wu to examine the seal on his middle dantian, and Elder Wu probed it with a soul art.
• Elder Wu sent Zi Ming, Fairy Hongxia, and the others away, then warned Xiao Hua never to let anyone examine his body or ask about his memories again.
• Elder Wu told Xiao Hua that someone had likely searched his soul and erased his memories to prepare to seize his body, which contained the breath of a Great God.

Elder Wu explained that Xiao Hua’s seals were deadly interlocking traps that would be difficult to break, leaving Xiao Hua convinced he was trapped. The Witch King’s message gave him hope that a solution awaited at Witch King Village, though Xiao Hua chose to delay the visit until Million Meng Mountain’s disaster had passed.

• Elder Wu warned Xiao Hua that his body was coveted and revealed that breaking the interlocking seals on his middle dantian and Niwan Palace could kill him and anyone who tried to help.
• Xiao Hua despaired at the danger of the seals and concluded that he could not safely seek help without powerful allies and a way to conceal his Buddhist cultivation.
• Xiao Hua asked Elder Wu for unusual flowers, grasses, or objects, prompting Elder Wu to give him a Soul Nest containing the Witch King’s Divine Connection Technique.
• Elder Wu suggested that the Witch King might know how to break Xiao Hua’s seal and had invited him to Witch King Village for that purpose, restoring Xiao Hua’s hope.
• Xiao Hua asked when he could visit Wumeng, then decided to wait a few years until Million Meng Mountain’s disaster had passed and use the time to cultivate.

Elder Witch arranged Ziming’s Lamp Lighting Ceremony for eighty-one days later and ordered Houtu Village’s forces to withdraw from the Sword Domain. At Emerald Lake, a gathering of elderly sword cultivators watched a powerful newcomer emerge from a greatsword.

• Elder Witch told Xiao Hua that Li Zongbao should seek help from the Joyful Sect, then set Ziming’s Lamp Lighting Ceremony for eighty-one days later.
• Elder Witch and Ji Man discussed the demonic possession crisis, the purge of Meng Mountain’s villages, and their hopes of being recorded in the Witch Canon.
• Ji Man reported that the soul warriors had been ordered to withdraw from the Sword Domain, and Elder Witch reflected that the Dao Sword Great Battle might soon end.
• Elder Witch urged Ji Man to reconcile with Ziming and said their private desires could help drive Meng Mountain’s growth.
• More than a dozen elderly sword cultivators gathered above Emerald Lake, where a tall, gaunt old man appeared from a greatsword.

The five Sword Masters revealed that the five Green Light Swords had been completed and credited Jiu Xia with guiding the Sword Domain’s plans. They realized her two promises were tied to ending the Dao Sword Great Battle and countering the Soul Cultivators, then prepared to use the Tianyi Green Light Sword Array to capture Xuntian City.

• Ruo Tian presented the completed Taihe Green Light Sword, and Chong Taixu, Cheng Minghua, Qi Liandie, and Zuo Ming displayed the other four Green Light Swords.
• The five swords’ auras shook the sky above Emerald Lake before settling back into their blades.
• The Sword Masters recounted the dangers of tempering the swords and how Jiu Xia had found the needed materials and planned the campaign.
• Ouyang Mingxiu asked when Jiu Xia would address the Soul Cultivators, and Chong Taixu explained that her two promises were connected through the Sword Domain’s advance into Dao Sect territory.
• Chong Taixu revealed that he had already begun secretly arranging the Tianyi Green Light Sword Array within a hundred li of Xuntian City.

The Sword Masters planned to trap Xiao Hua near Liuyun Lake after learning of his hidden identities and powerful Sword Essence. Their plans were upended when Lu Ruochang reported that the soul cultivators had withdrawn from the Sword Domain, as Jiu Xia had predicted.

• Chong Taixu and the other Sword Masters agreed to set up the Tianyi Green Light Sword Array in Xuntian City while the rest made a show of advancing there.
• Chong Taixu revealed that Xiao Hua might be Nascent Soul Wuming, possessed Sword Essence nearing Sword Transformation, and had entered Meng Mountain.
• Chong Taixu, Qi Liandie, and Zuo Ming sent Sword Master Tokens ordering Sword Transformation second grade swordsmen to intercept Xiao Hua near Liuyun Lake.
• Lu Ruochang delivered news from Xiao Jianping that every soul cultivator had withdrawn from the Sword Domain.
• Lu Ruochang said Jiu Xia had gone to Meng Mountain and predicted the soul cultivators would withdraw within two years; Qi Liandie asked why Jiu Xia had visited Sword Tomb.

Lu Ruochang advised the Sword Masters to weigh the risks of attacking Xuntian City, but learned that the Sword Domain planned to rely on the Tianyi Green Light Sword Array and reinforcements to seize it. Chong Taixu and Qi Liandie then sent her to join Feng Suiwu in intercepting Nameless One near Liuyun Lake, revealing that he might be Xiao Hua.

• Lu Ruochang assessed the Dao Sect defenses and said the Sword Domain should withdraw, though she personally favored capturing Xuntian City if the Sword Masters had a decisive weapon.
• Qi Liandie revealed the Tianyi Green Light Sword Array, and Chong Taixu declared that the Sword Domain would attack Xuntian City with help from returning forces led by Sword Master Xiao.
• Lu Ruochang prepared to return to Sword Tomb, but Chong Taixu stopped her and asked whether she wanted to kill Nameless One.
• Qi Liandie told Lu Ruochang that Feng Suiwu had been ordered to intercept Nameless One near Liuyun Lake, and Chong Taixu revealed that Nameless One might be Xiao Hua.

Lu Ruochang learned that Chong Taixu suspected Wuming of killing Tu Hong and serving the Heavenly Demon Sect, so the Sword Domain chose to hide its suspicions from the Dao Sect. Meanwhile, Xiao Hua found Xiaohei dazed and unable to explain his origins, stored him with Xiaohuang, and began examining the Witch King’s gifts and Elder Witch’s Green Seal Script.

• Lu Ruochang proposed luring Dao Sect cultivators into an ambush by announcing a plan to kill Xiao Hua and his companions, but Chong Taixu rejected her scheme.
• Chong Taixu suggested that Wuming might have killed Tu Hong using the Demon Sect’s concealment technique, and Lu Ruochang concluded that Wuming could be a Heavenly Demon Sect disciple who infiltrated the Thunder Control Sect.
• Chong Taixu and Qi Liandie decided to conceal their suspicions from the Dao Sect and let the Heavenly Demon Sect cause trouble behind its back.
• Xiao Hua questioned the bleary-eyed Xiaohei, who recognized Xiaohuang and recalled that someone called Xiao Hua Zhang Xiaohua, but knew nothing about home or family.
• Xiao Hua put Xiaohei and Xiaohuang in his space, then found the Witch King’s Soul Nest filled with unfamiliar plants and objects and assigned puppets to plant its contents.
• Xiao Hua reviewed the Green Seal Script recorded on Elder Witch’s bone joint and prepared to practice the witch spell.

Xiao Hua struggled to record the Cloud-Gathering and Rain-Making Technique using the Soul Cultivators’ exacting Green Seal Character method. Elsewhere in Lian Kingdom, four Dao Sect strategists gathered at the Nine-Eyed Hot Springs during the Dao Sword Great Battle.

• Xiao Hua discovered that recording Green Seal Characters required him to understand the text and reproduce every stroke precisely.
• Jiang Feiyan played the zither at the Nine-Eyed Hot Springs, where Gu Yun and Zhu Chenghe praised her music.
• Jiang Feiyan urged Pan Dongmin to stop calculating and rest, while Zhu Chenghe teased her and Pan Dongmin about their closeness.
• Gu Yun arrived, declined to judge Zhu Chenghe’s teasing, and relaxed in a hot spring, where his breath cleared the mist in the shape of a flying crane.

Pan Dongmin and Jiang Feiyan compared the Dao Sword Great Battle to the mountainside’s hot springs, trees, and spreading ice, and they suspected Huan Kingdom’s swordsmen had hidden allies guiding them. The group had no clear information about Million Meng Mountain, and Gu Yun revealed that Li Zongbao and his companions had disappeared after crossing Sword Tomb.

• Gu Yun joked with Jiang Feiyan and Zhu Chenghe while Pan Dongmin ignored Zhu Chenghe’s teasing and studied the mountainside.
• Pan Dongmin said the landscape reflected the changing battle, with Dao sect forces gaining ground like ice spreading across the mountainside.
• Jiang Feiyan and Pan Dongmin reasoned that Huan Kingdom’s swordsmen might have support from soul cultivators or other hidden forces.
• Zhu Chenghe said Dao sect disciples had infiltrated Huan Kingdom but had returned no information about Million Meng Mountain.
• Gu Yun said Li Zongbao, Cai Hongxia, Xiao Mao, and Xiao Hua had crossed Sword Tomb years earlier and vanished without sending further news.

Zhu Chenghe and the others examined reports of the sword cultivators’ movements but could not determine their objective. The elders suspected a major attack was coming, while Zhu Chenghe concealed his reaction to one report.

• Zhu Chenghe received nine jade slips from Xi Kingdom and Lian Kingdom and found one report of renewed fighting at Tongmu Peak puzzling.
• Zhu Chenghe reacted with disbelief to another jade slip, secretly put it away, and skimmed the remaining reports before joining the others.
• Gu Yun teased Jiang Feiyan and Pan Dongmin as the elders gathered to discuss the reports.
• Gu Yun, Jiang Feiyan, and Pan Dongmin concluded that the sword cultivators’ chaotic troop movements masked a real offensive, though they could not identify its target.
• Pan Dongmin hoped their preparations would help them find the Nine-Eyed Hot Spring before the sword cultivators’ final attack, and Jiang Feiyan asked Zhu Chenghe where the other jade slip was.