Recaps

Xiao Hua attended Xuntian City's Bidding Convention, where Zi Ye explained that spirit stones had grown more valuable amid the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi changes. Xiao Hua passed on bidding for pills and flying swords, found sword arts in a captured sword cultivator's storage bag, and watched the convention move on to other spoils of war.

• Xiao Hua warned Zi Ye that the rumored spirit artifact was likely a gimmick and that pursuing it could waste spirit stones or cost him his life.
• Zi Ye explained that magical artifacts had fallen in price because spirit stones had become precious, helping Xiao Hua understand the effects of the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi aberration.
• Xiao Hua declined to bid on Foundation Establishment pills, then eagerly inspected the flying swords and sword slips offered by Si Xinyu.
• Xiao Hua found a sword art in a captured sword cultivator's storage bag and avoided spending spirit stones on the auctioned sword arts.
• Si Xinyu concluded the flying sword bidding and announced that artifact cultivator and beast cultivator items would be next.

Xiao Hua bought a soul artifact to study, despite the other cultivators dismissing it as a worthless dried toad. Si Xinyu then introduced the Rejuvenation Pill, whose promise of restoring youthful beauty stunned the crowd and left Xiao Hua quietly proud.

• Si Xinyu presented a toad as a soul artifact and explained that no one knew how to use it.
• Xiao Hua bargained the soul artifact down to three hundred top-grade spirit stones and bought it.
• Ziye questioned Xiao Hua's purchase, and Xiao Hua claimed he wanted the battlefield fighter who captured it to receive the spirit stones.
• Si Xinyu announced the Rejuvenation Pill and said it could preserve young women's beauty and restore faded looks.
• Ziye marveled at the pill's promise while Xiao Hua secretly took pride in the attention it drew.

Si Xinyu presented a Rejuvenation Pill in an elaborate jade bottle, and its enchanting spectacle drove female cultivators to bid fiercely. Ziye ultimately gave up, while Xiao Hua wondered whether Tongmu City and Burial Flower Villa were connected to Chen Yi and her damaged Youth-Preserving Grass.

• Si Xinyu used the jade bottle’s spellwork to reveal the Rejuvenation Pill and depict its rejuvenating effects, captivating the auction audience.
• Female cultivators rapidly raised their bids, and Ziye struggled to compete despite Fu Lu warning that they lacked enough spirit stones.
• Xiao Hua tried to dissuade Ziye by pointing out that Tongmu City sold Youth-Preserving Pills, but Ziye explained they were auctioned only once a year.
• Ziye stopped bidding as the price climbed past three hundred and fifty thousand top-grade spirit stones, and Xiao Hua speculated that Tongmu City and Burial Flower Villa were tied to Chen Yi’s Youth-Preserving Grass.
• A Mihuan cultivator won the Rejuvenation Pill for three hundred and eighty thousand top-grade spirit stones, and Xiao Hua suggested that they leave.

Xiao Hua noticed a strange familiarity with the duckling presented as a beast cultivator at Xuntian City's bidding convention and suspected it was connected to what he had sensed at the Thunder Control Sect encampment. The duckling's bidding began at one hundred thousand top-grade spirit stones, and Si Xinyu predicted that its final price would surpass the Rejuvenation Pill's.

• Xiao Hua and Ziye started to leave the convention, but Si Xinyu announced the final item: a duckling said to be a beast cultivator's true form.
• Xiao Hua recognized the duckling as strangely familiar, and its gaze caused the Primordial Spirit in his Hand of Cause and Effect to ripple.
• Ziye explained that the duckling's soul rivaled that of an eighth-grade spiritual beast but might soon disperse, making it dangerous and difficult to extract.
• Xiao Hua said he opposed cruelty to any kind of cultivator, while Ziye teased him about his sympathy for the beast cultivator.
• Si Xinyu set the duckling's starting price at one hundred thousand top-grade spirit stones, and Xiao Hua abandoned the thought of bidding.
• A female cultivator objected to the price, but Si Xinyu insisted that the item was worth it and would ultimately sell for more than the Rejuvenation Pill.

At Xuntian City's Bidding Convention, Xiao Hua realized the auctioned spirit beast might be Dai Er and began bidding against Li Chengxu of the Immortal Music Sect. The price reached one million spirit stones, and Si Xinyu announced the punishment for anyone who bid without being able to pay.

• Li Chengxu outbid another Mihuan-clad cultivator for the spirit beast, revealed himself as a Golden Core Mid-stage cultivator, and offered four hundred thousand spirit stones on behalf of True Person Lan Yu.
• The spirit beast cried out and bled blue; Ziye began to identify a connection to the Myriad Monster Realm, and Xiao Hua suspected it was Dai Er.
• Xiao Hua bid five hundred thousand, rejecting Li Chengxu's request to yield the spirit beast and arguing that Xuntian City had to uphold its auction rules.
• Li Chengxu continued bidding against Xiao Hua, who raised the price to one million spirit stones.
• Li Chengxu questioned whether Xiao Hua could pay, and Si Xinyu warned that reckless bidders could lose their possessions and suffer severe punishment, including having their cultivation abolished.

Xiao Hua faced off against Li Chengxu in the bidding for the beast cultivator, while Si Xinyu checked their funds. After the Immortal Music Sect’s gathered resources fell short, Si Xinyu prepared to determine whether Xiao Hua had enough to win.

• Li Chengxu challenged Xiao Hua’s ability to pay, and Ziye gave Xiao Hua his storage bag to support his bid.
• Xiao Hua had Si Xinyu inspect his funds and mocked Li Chengxu for lacking the remaining spirit stones.
• Li Chengxu gathered spirit stones and valuables from Immortal Music Sect disciples to strengthen his bid.
• Xiao Hua presented another storage bag, startling Si Xinyu, and asked that the winner be allowed to leave without being tracked.
• Si Xinyu found that Li Chengxu’s storage bag contained no more acceptable payment and turned to ask Xiao Hua.

Xiao Hua won the beast cultivator’s true body at Xuntian City’s bidding convention by producing rare spiritual herbs worth more than Li Chengxu’s bid. After the convention, Si Xinyu recognized the herbs’ scarcity and saw an opportunity for Xuntian City’s Rejuvenation Pills, while Ziye defended trading away his valuables to help Xiao Hua.

• Si Xinyu valued Xiao Hua’s first storage pouch below Li Chengxu’s bid, but Xiao Hua produced another pouch with enough value to win the beast cultivator’s true body.
• Si Xinyu awarded Xiao Hua the beast cultivator, gave him a special Xuntian City token, and sent him away from the bidding platform.
• Li Chengxu left frustrated, while Si Xinyu realized Xiao Hua had offered exceptionally rare spiritual herbs and decided to report the matter to the City Lord.
• Si Xinyu considered how ongoing Rejuvenation Pill auctions could help Xuntian City surpass Tongmu City.
• Fu Lu complained that Ziye had traded away all his spirit stones and valuables, but Ziye said he had done it to help Xiao Hua and because he admired him.

Ziye feared Xiao Hua had taken his storage bag and abandoned him, but learned Xiao Hua had waited nearby and regained his trust. Meanwhile, Xiao Hua brought the wounded duck into his hidden space, where its behavior suggested it was Dai Er, and worried about the Empress's fate.

• Fu Lu warned Ziye that Xiao Hua had taken advantage of him, and Ziye left Xuntian City with his attendants expecting to find Xiao Hua outside the market.
• An attendant recalled a cloaked cultivator who had silently gestured to them before heading back toward the market, and Ziye realized Xiao Hua had left a sign for him.
• Xiao Hua placed the wounded duck in his space, where its eye, its reaction to Little Yellow, and its attempt to rest beside it convinced him it might be Dai Er.
• Xiao Hua worried that the Empress might have fallen and vowed to find her killer and repay her kindness.
• Ziye found Xiao Hua in a teahouse, thanked him for restoring his trust in people, and left with him.

Xiao Hua gave Ziye his belongings back, supplied him with pills and rice seeds to distribute, and uncovered Li Chengxu’s plans to target him. Back at the Thunder Control Sect’s stronghold, Xiao Hua met with Qian Yuan and Qian Qian, who had a matter to discuss with him.

• Xiao Hua returned Ziye’s storage bag and gave him Rejuvenation Pills and spiritual herbs, asking him to distribute rice seeds among nearby common folk.
• Ziye gave Xiao Hua a jade token, accepted his communication talisman, and left Xuntian City with Fu Lu.
• Li Chengxu revealed that he had followed Ziye and planned to obtain the beast cultivator’s soul while seeking a chance to kill Xiao Hua.
• Xiao Hua, who had secretly watched Li Chengxu, returned to the Thunder Control Sect’s stronghold without encountering him.
• Qian Yuan and Qian Qian greeted Xiao Hua at the stronghold, and Cui Hongshen persuaded him to hear Qian Yuan out.

Xiao Hua refused Qian Yuan and Qian Qian’s request to join his squad, then studied the demonic jade slip and realized he needed a way to use spirit fire and lightning to repair Qiu Yin Liu. He went to Xuntian City’s artifact-refining site and confronted a guard who had abandoned his post, leaving the guard alarmed as Xiao Hua continued into the cave.

• Qian Yuan apologized to Xiao Hua and asked to join Cui Hongshen’s First Squad, but Xiao Hua rejected the request and left the decision to Cui Hongshen.
• Cui Hongshen let Qian Yuan and Qian Qian depart, while Zhen Huo marveled that two Dry Thunder Palace disciples had sought a place in the squad.
• Xiao Hua checked the injured duckling and read the demonic jade slip, then considered how to use his spirit fire and lightning to fuse Qiu Yin Liu’s broken sections.
• Xiao Hua decided to visit Xuntian City’s artifact-refining site and told Zhen Huo he would remain within the stronghold before leaving.
• Xiao Hua entered the cave and argued with a Xuntian City guard who accused him of trespassing; when Xiao Hua continued deeper inside, the guard realized his absence from the entrance might be exposed.

Xiao Hua paid to enter Xuntian City's Alchemy Cave and secured a quiet room for repairing his magic artifact, while his commanding manner made the city guard suspect his true strength. At the Immortal Music Sect stronghold, Li Chengxu grew impatient over missing reports and sent Huang Yong to trace Zheng Jie, who had been tracking possible Sword Cultivator swordsmen.

• Xiao Hua confronted the city guard over his treatment of Thunder Control Sect disciples, paid for an extended stay, and received token thirteen for a quiet room.
• The city guard reflected that Xiao Hua's bearing seemed more like that of a Golden Core cultivator than an early Foundation Establishment cultivator.
• Li Chengxu received no useful information about Xiao Hua and worried that Zheng Jie had not returned from tracking several cultivators.
• Li Chengxu ordered Huang Yong to use his identification token at Xuntian City's teleportation array to find Zheng Jie's destination and trail.
• Li Chengxu warned Huang Yong that Zheng Jie might be tracking Sword Cultivator swordsmen, then angrily demanded updates about the Fire Fierce Mountain stronghold.

Li Chengxu investigated the disappearance of Zheng Jie and two other Immortal Music Sect cultivators while plotting to seize the spirit beast’s true body from Xiao Hua. Unaware of the investigation, Xiao Hua continued deeper into Xuntian City’s silent underground avenues.

• Li Chengxu suspected Xiao Hua had passed the spirit storage pouch to Huo Ping and vowed to kill Xiao Hua if he could not recover the beast cultivator’s true body openly.
• Huang Yong reported that Zheng Jie’s mark led to an empty frozen area, and Li Chengxu ordered him to keep the three cultivators’ disappearance secret.
• Li Chengxu confirmed that Zheng Jie and the other two cultivators’ Life Spirit Tablets had shattered, proving they had died.
• A disguised Qi Cultivation disciple told Li Chengxu that Xiao Hua had not left the Thunder Control Sect’s stronghold and belonged to the First Squad; Li Chengxu ordered the disciple to watch for him.
• Xiao Hua followed the city guard’s directions deeper into Xuntian City and reached several broad, silent avenues lined with gates and courtyards.

Xiao Hua tested the facilities in Xuntian City’s thirteenth quiet chamber and found that Lingmou Zhu Fire could help repair Qiu Yin Liu. He then deciphered the white bones he had bought, discovering that they contained authentic, if mostly incomplete, soul cultivation techniques.

• Xiao Hua opened the thirteenth quiet chamber, inspected its earth fire and artifact-refining materials, and complained that the materials were overpriced.
• Xiao Hua tried to use his spirit fire on Qiu Yin Liu, realized it could not refine artifacts, and turned to Lingmou Zhu Fire instead.
• Lingmou Zhu Fire began reacting with Qiu Yin Liu’s broken sections, so Xiao Hua decided to attempt a full repair after returning to Myriad Thunder Valley.
• Xiao Hua used his soul threads to read the green-seal-script writing on the white bones and spent half a day identifying their contents.
• After ten days of reflection, Xiao Hua realized that earlier translations had distorted the soul cultivation techniques and learned that the bones held mostly incomplete methods, with some reaching Qi Heaven cultivation.

Xiao Hua cultivated his soul and tested a toad soul artifact that greatly enhanced his Soul Capturing Bells, then reviewed a strange secret art and prepared to try refining the Azure Spirit Pill. The chapter ended with him inspecting and tasting the required spirit herbs beside his pill furnace.

• Xiao Hua used the Primordial Spirit's fluctuations and dancing soul threads to advance his soul cultivation toward the second layer of heaven.
• Xiao Hua activated the dried toad soul artifact, whose tongue struck the Soul Capturing Bells and made them powerful enough to disrupt or capture nearby cultivators' souls.
• Xiao Hua reconsidered a damaged jade talisman's strange body-tempering secret art and assigned it, along with several related techniques, to a Primordial Spirit fragment for further study.
• Xiao Hua examined the Azure Spirit Pill formula and found that it listed the spirit herbs but omitted the refining method.
• Xiao Hua summoned his Three-legged Vermilion Bird Phoenix Pattern Furnace, lit Samadhi True Fire, and inspected and tasted the herbs needed for the pill.

Xiao Hua uncovered a hidden soul artifact inside the Medicine King Cauldron and glimpsed Yaonong Peak, though he could not yet reveal its mysteries. He also studied sword cultivators’ techniques and learned how they temper the Primordial Spirit through flying swords, leaving him with a new insight into controlling multiple swords.

• Xiao Hua reconsidered the complexity of pill formulas, then suspected the Medicine King Cauldron concealed something connected to the legend of Yaonong Peak.
• Xiao Hua used artifact-refining techniques to strip away the cauldron and reveal an incense burner, then struck it through the toad with his soul threads and briefly saw Yaonong Peak in its green radiance.
• Xiao Hua put the incense burner away, refined Azure Spirit Pills, and found several more sword jade slips among the storage bags from Jiming Mountain.
• Xiao Hua studied the sword arts and realized they trained cultivators to temper their Primordial Spirits while cultivating flying swords; he practiced by controlling Zhu Meng.
• Xiao Hua concluded that sword cultivators could control multiple swords by placing imprints of the Primordial Spirit on other Sword Pellets, rather than splitting the Primordial Spirit further.

After more than two months in the Alchemy Cave, Xiao Hua realized he might be able to use his Primordial Spirit to refine pills in his space, but he lacked the necessary secret arts. As he waited for the city guard, he encountered Li Chengxu and prevented an attack by claiming he had already summoned the guards.

• Xiao Hua received Cui Hongshen’s order to return, then realized that Primordial Spirit hand seals might let him refine pills inside his space.
• Xiao Hua searched a sword jade slip but found that the secret arts for Primordial Spirit sword seals were beyond the Bright Sword Swordsman realm.
• Xiao Hua collected artifact-refining and yellow-talisman materials before leaving the quiet chamber and summoning the city guard.
• Xiao Hua recognized Li Chengxu, who intended to seize and kill him to learn the whereabouts of the beast cultivator’s true body.
• Xiao Hua greeted Li Chengxu and said he had already summoned Xuntian City’s guards, making Li Chengxu lower his raised arm.

Xiao Hua left the Alchemy Cave after narrowly avoiding a fight with Li Chengxu and befriending the city guard Chang Shu. He rejoined Thunder Control Sect’s First Squad as they set out for an undisclosed mission, arriving with other cultivators at a northern Teleportation Array where a huge crowd was already gathered.

• Li Chengxu recognized Xiao Hua and hid his hostility, then left after handing his token to the city guard.
• The city guard Chang Shu inspected Xiao Hua’s Alchemy Cave, accepted his spirit stones, and exchanged communication talismans with him.
• Xiao Hua returned to the pavilion, where Cui Hongshen reprimanded him for arriving late before the squad was ordered to depart.
• Xiao Hua learned that neither Cui Hongshen nor the other squad members knew their destination or mission.
• The Thunder Control Sect squads traveled through Xuntian City to a northern Teleportation Array and found a vast crowd waiting there.

Xiao Hua and the Thunder Control Sect First Squad prepared to enter the Teleportation Array for a secret mission against the sword cultivators. Cui Hongshen led his squad through the array’s defensive barrier, while Xiao Hua remained wary of Li Chengxu.

• Yuan Zhongyu ordered the squads’ Captain’s Tokens collected and their missions sealed so the sword cultivators could not learn the operation’s purpose.
• The sect squads entered the mountain peak in sequence, and Xiao Hua noticed that Li Chengxu did not seem to recognize him.
• A city guard explained that only squads carrying marked tokens could pass the Teleportation Array’s barrier and that squads had to enter in order.
• Cui Hongshen claimed the First Squad’s place at the front, exchanged a hopeful promise with Senior Brother Gan, and stepped into the barrier.

Xiao Hua’s team passed through Xuntian City’s secret teleportation network and arrived at a concealed temporary array in a frozen region of Xi Kingdom. After emerging onto a glacier, they followed the Captain’s Token’s route toward their objective, with Xiao Hua taking charge of the team’s safety.

• Cui Hongshen, Zhen Minghui, and Xiao Hua passed through the guarded light barrier and were sent through a Teleportation Array without knowing its destination.
• Xiao Hua remained steady after the long teleportation, impressing the Golden Core cultivator who explained that the arrival array was temporary and would soon be moved.
• The Golden Core cultivator gave Xiao Hua’s team Evasion Talismans and warned him to bring every disciple back alive.
• Xiao Hua led the recovered team out of the cavern and onto a remote glacier, where he found no nearby sword cultivators.
• Cui Hongshen consulted the Captain’s Token, and Zhen Minghui steered the Flowing Cloud Flying Boat northwest toward their assigned destination.

Cui Hongshen's group learned that they were headed to the secret Quanjin Mountain spirit stone mine vein to reinforce its defense. Xiao Hua warned that the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi aberration could make spirit stones scarce and draw sword cultivators to the mine, then spotted a reason to change the flying boat's course.

• Cui Hongshen told the group that their mission was to defend the Quanjin Mountain spirit stone mine vein alongside Xuntian City disciples.
• Xiao Hua explained that the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi aberration could prevent spirit stones from regenerating, making the mine especially valuable and a likely target for sword cultivators.
• Xiao Hua gave Dui Qimeng a storage bag of pills to distribute among the group.
• Cui Hongshen joined Zhen Minghui in channeling magic power into the flying boat, while snow began falling beneath the dark clouds.
• Xiao Hua told Zhen Minghui to lower the flying boat by thirty meters and turn left.

Xiao Hua led the flying boat on a winding route to avoid nearby sword cultivators, then directed the group into an ambush by more than thirty Bright Sword swordsmen. When the swordsmen attacked, Xiao Hua killed their leader with a swift strike, and the battle began.

• For more than ten days, Xiao Hua repeatedly changed the flying boat’s direction and altitude, keeping the group away from sword cultivators near Xuntian City.
• Xiao Hua sensed danger ahead, ordered the group to prepare for battle, and guided the flying boat toward more than thirty approaching Bright Sword swordsmen.
• Xiao Hua told Zhen Minghui to pretend to flee, and the swordsmen pursued the boat toward the snow-covered hills.
• The leading swordsman attacked Zhen Minghui and Dui Qimeng, while Cui Hongshen countered with lightning pearls that the swordsman overcame.
• Xiao Hua rushed at the leader, evaded his flying sword, restrained him, and cut him in half with a flash of golden light.

Xiao Hua slaughtered a force of Bright Sword cultivators with his Phoenix Dharma Body, lightning, and other techniques while Cui Hongshen’s group joined the fight. The battle ended with the swordsmen defeated, and Xiao Hua discovered that one fleeing swordsman carried an object capable of shielding the soul from his Soul Capturing Bell.

• Xiao Hua killed four swordsmen, then used the Phoenix Dharma Body to repel their flying swords and strike several more down with lightning.
• Xiao Hua and the Phoenix Dharma Body attacked the swordsmen while Cui Hongshen and the others watched in shock, then joined in to finish off the wounded.
• The remaining swordsmen fled, but Xiao Hua pursued them, using the Soul Capturing Bell to stop four and chasing down the one who resisted it.
• Xiao Hua examined a swordsman’s soul and found a withered-leaf-like object that appeared to protect the soul from the Soul Capturing Bell.
• Dui Qimeng and Su Qing trapped a wounded Second Grade Bright Sword cultivator with their lightning vial and Fire Control Fan.

Xiao Hua and the Thunder Control Sect First Squad defeated more than thirty sword cultivators, then divided their spoils before continuing their journey. On the flying boat, Xiao Hua awakened the Spirit Guard Armor with soul silk and used it to protect the mysterious dark cloud.

• Xiao Hua and the squad wiped out more than thirty Bright Sword Swordsmen, with Xiao Hua noting that thirty was the most he could defeat while concealing his full strength and protecting the others.
• Xiao Hua ordered the corpses burned and the spoils divided, then accepted Dui Qimeng's share and distributed flying swords and magic artifacts among the squad.
• Xiao Hua erased the sword cultivators' Primordial Spirits from the captured flying swords before Zhen Minghui piloted the squad onward in the Flowing Cloud Flying Boat.
• Xiao Hua examined a sword slip, recognized the withered leaf as the Spirit Guard Armor, and activated it with soul silk until it flew into his Dharma Eye.
• Xiao Hua shaped the Spirit Guard Armor around the mysterious dark cloud, where it expanded into a rune-covered green armor and made the cloud's surface more solid.

Xiao Hua and Thunder Control Sect’s First Squad encountered the aftermath of a massacre and buried the Daoist cultivators killed by sword cultivators. After days of fighting, they rushed to aid a Taiqing Sect squad surrounded by strange enemies, whose shocking appearance left the battle unresolved.

• Xiao Hua found the mangled bodies of dozens of Daoist cultivators, and Dui Qimeng and the others buried them.
• Cui Hongshen collected the dead squads’ tokens, while Xiao Hua took the discarded storage pouches.
• Xiao Hua guided Thunder Control Sect’s First Squad through several days of battles, helping them grow stronger and coordinate better.
• Xiao Hua sensed a fight ahead, hurried to the scene, and disappeared from Cui Hongshen’s sight.
• Cui Hongshen led his squad to help ten Taiqing Sect disciples surrounded by sword cultivators, including three who attacked with their bodies.
• The three strange sword cultivators turned around and made Cui Hongshen and the others recoil in shock.

Cui Hongshen and the others fought avian and artifact cultivators, and Xiao Hua arrived to help turn the battle around. After killing an avian cultivator, he joined the ongoing struggle as Dui Qimeng and a Taiqing Sect disciple faced a dangerous fire bird.

• An avian cultivator rushed Cui Hongshen, but Qiu Xu trapped him with a lightning net while He Fangyuan bound him with the Qing Huan.
• Xiao Hua used the Town Cloud Seal to crush the trapped avian cultivator, revealing the remains of a Spirit Bird and a human beneath it.
• He Fangyuan told Xiao Hua about Changbai Sect’s missing Sea-Overturning Seal, then asked him to help fight the remaining enemies.
• Dui Qimeng used her thunder bottle to suppress a fireball artifact cultivator while a Taiqing Sect disciple attacked with a hook.
• The fireball transformed into a blue fire bird, which pierced the Taiqing Sect disciple’s hook with its beak.