Recaps

Cao Jinxing and his companions hid at Mi Nantian’s inn in Shaoxing while searching for Ma Boyi, whom they located at the Flowing Goblet Pavilion among several Faxiang experts. As they ate a meal prepared by the mute servant, White-Browed Daoist arrived at the inn, revealing himself as one of Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five’s invited Faxiang experts.

• Cao Jinxing, Bai Yunxiu, Lu Kunlun, and Yue Yang entered Shaoxing and stayed at the secluded inn run by Mi Nantian, a former Beggar Gang chief.
• Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu met the mute servant, whose fishing and hunting brought them excellent meals, while Lu Kunlun and Yue Yang searched for Ma Boyi.
• Lu Kunlun and Yue Yang found Ma Boyi at the Flowing Goblet Pavilion, where Wang Daozong and Master Kuxing were among several Faxiang experts.
• Bai Yunxiu gave Yue Yang a Wind-Listening Gu to place near the pavilion, and the mute servant returned with three rare Azure Jie and prepared them as porridge.
• White-Browed Daoist arrived at the inn asking for a bowl, and Cao Jinxing recognized him as one of the Faxiang experts invited by Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five.

White-Browed Daoist healed the mute servant at the inn, then met with the other masters plotting to capture the Qilin and revealed a formation that could contain Song Chengxi. Afterward, he secretly sent a letter, hoping the events at Tongyou Peak would help someone advance further.

• White-Browed Daoist drank Cao Jinxing's Azure Jie congee and used his true qi to cure the mute servant's hunched back, while Mi Nantian stopped Lu Kunlun from attacking him.
• White-Browed Daoist left the inn without harming Cao Jinxing or the others, and Cao Jinxing questioned whether the visit had been staged for him to witness.
• White-Browed Daoist joined Wang Daozong, Master Kuxing, and Ma Boyi to discuss locating Qilin Cave and the threat posed by Song Chengxi.
• White-Browed Daoist revealed the Earth-Bearing Formation and offered to combine it with his Kun Yuan Skill to hold off Song Chengxi.
• White-Browed Daoist called his former disciples discarded pawns and secretly sent a letter, hoping three people at Tongyou Peak would help someone advance another step.

After three days in hiding, Cao Jinxing went to Queting Mountain and uncovered an ambush by the Three Fiends and Xie Yunli. When they refused to reveal how they had tracked him, Cao Jinxing attacked them with his Pure Yang Palm.

• Xuan Yuan Fourteen returned to the inn with a haul of rare creatures and spiritual plants gathered while following the mute servant.
• Cao Jinxing climbed Queting Mountain, took shelter from a sudden storm, and recognized the herb-gathering family in the pavilion as the disguised Three Fiends.
• Cao Jinxing identified the fourth ambusher as Xie Yunli, the White-Browed Daoist's expelled disciple, and learned that he had poisoned the pavilion.
• The Three Fiends revealed their weapons and formed a Three Powers Formation around Cao Jinxing.
• Cao Jinxing demanded to know how they had found him, then unleashed his Pure Yang Palm when Earthly Deficient ordered the others to kill him.

Cao Jinxing defeated the Three Fiends of the Western Regions, discovered that Xie Yunli had lured them to him on White-Browed's orders, and advanced to the Tongyou Ninth Layer. At Dragon Pool, Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five and Zhang Mingyan prepared to enter Qilin Cave, while Li Chonglou and Ji Shaoqin discussed the gathered experts and missing Wandering Immortal Coin.

• Cao Jinxing used his Pure Yang Palm to break Human Calamity's arms, then defeated Earthly Deficient and Heavenly Disabled with Xiantian Astral Qi and counterattacks.
• Cao Jinxing exposed Xie Yunli hiding inside a tree and learned that White-Browed had revealed his location, but Xie Yunli escaped using the Earth Qilin's divine power.
• Cao Jinxing drained the three defeated fiends with Distance-Absorbing Power, reached the Tongyou Ninth Layer, and buried their bodies.
• Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five told Zhang Mingyan that he had broken Dragon Pool's water-curtain barrier, but warned that they should wait for the others before entering Qilin Cave.
• Ji Shaoqin told Li Chonglou that the Wandering Immortal Coin was missing and had fallen into Song Chengxi's hands, then discussed the Star Sect's young Beauty Ranking prodigy.

Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu traced the likely entrance to Heavenly Maiden Mountain to Dragon Pool and discussed the uncertain presence of another force there. Song Chengxi returned with the Eight Desolations Sun-Shooting Bow after freezing the Arrow God's Descendants and Divine Arrow Mountain, and Cao Jinxing began studying the bow and its techniques as the group prepared for what lay ahead.

• Xuan Yuan Fourteen returned to the inn with food, and Cao Jinxing gave it seven Jade Flowers that he had bought.
• Bai Yunxiu told Cao Jinxing that she had overheard Flowing Goblet Pavilion youths mention Heavenly Maiden Mountain's Dragon Pool as a likely entrance to a hidden realm.
• Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu considered whether the mountain's supposed immortals were real and discussed the threat posed by Xie Yunli and White Brows as a possible third force.
• Song Chengxi arrived early and revealed that he had frozen the Arrow God's Descendants and Divine Arrow Mountain after they refused to cooperate.
• Song Chengxi gave Cao Jinxing the Eight Desolations Sun-Shooting Bow, its thirteen arrows, and an archery manual, and Cao Jinxing began studying its techniques.

As powerful sect heirs arrived in the city, Lu Kunlun protected Cao Jinxing’s identity while confronting Li Chonglou, Ji Shaoqin, and Jiang Yuebai. Jiang Yuebai deduced that the disguised Xia Xueyi was Cao Jinxing, leaving the trio aware that he was connected to the Beggar Gang’s surveillance.

• Lu Kunlun and Yue Yang worried that the growing number of Faxiang experts and sect heirs endangered Cao Jinxing.
• Li Chonglou, Ji Shaoqin, and Jiang Yuebai entered the Beggar Gang courtyard with You Feng, whom Ji Shaoqin had injured for keeping watch on them.
• Lu Kunlun rebuked the visitors by invoking the Beggar Gang’s fight against the Wokou, prompting Li Chonglou and Ji Shaoqin to apologize and offer healing pills.
• Ji Shaoqin showed Lu Kunlun a portrait of Xia Xueyi, the suspected thief of the Wandering Immortal Coin, and asked him to help locate the man.
• Lu Kunlun recognized Xia Xueyi as Cao Jinxing’s new face but concealed his reaction and agreed to help.
• Jiang Yuebai reasoned that Cao Jinxing was Xia Xueyi and that Lu Kunlun’s hidden lookouts showed the Beggar Gang was helping him.

Jiang Yuebai exposed a suspicious message meant to send Ji Shaoqin away, but Ji Shaoqin was ambushed and captured by Cao Jinxing and Song Chengxi. Cao Jinxing learned the Ji Family’s secrets, assumed Ji Shaoqin’s identity, and arrived at Jian Lake just as Ji Runcheng’s carriage appeared.

• Jiang Yuebai used her mind-reading art on the waiter and confirmed that Ji Shaoqin’s grandfather had sent for him at Jian Lake.
• Cao Jinxing shot Ji Shaoqin with a pebble, and Song Chengxi forced him to reveal the [Tomb Tiger Talisman] and demonstrate the Formation-Breaking Overlord Spear.
• Cao Jinxing disguised himself as Ji Shaoqin and told Ji Wenfeng that Xia Xueyi was Cao Jinxing.
• Ji Wenfeng reassured Cao Jinxing that he should join the expedition and seek opportunities to strengthen himself in Qilin Cave.
• Ji Runcheng’s carriage arrived at Jian Lake, and Cao Jinxing greeted him while still disguised as Ji Shaoqin.

Cao Jinxing infiltrated the group of nine Faxiang experts preparing to enter the immortal mountain beneath Heavenly Maiden Dragon Pool, carrying the [Wind-Listening Gu] so Song Chengxi and Bai Yunxiu could follow. After Xie Yunli secretly gave him five green stones and cryptic instructions, Cao Jinxing entered the pool, leaving their purpose uncertain.

• Cao Jinxing joined Ji Runcheng and Ji Wenfeng in the carriage, passed Ji Runcheng's test, and learned the details of Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five's plan to enter the immortal mountain and kill the Qilin.
• The nine Faxiang experts gathered at the Flowing Goblet Pavilion and decided to enter Heavenly Maiden Dragon Pool that afternoon, ahead of the starry night needed to use the Star Sect's treasure at full strength.
• Cao Jinxing collected the [Wind-Listening Gu] and set out with the group, while Song Chengxi and Bai Yunxiu followed behind and the real Ji Shaoqin remained imprisoned in a farmhouse courtyard.
• At Dragon Pool Pit, Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five led the experts into the water toward the submerged entrance, and Xie Yunli gave Cao Jinxing five green stones with instructions to wear them and injure himself in the darkness.
• Cao Jinxing passed Xie Yunli's message to the [Wind-Listening Gu], hid four stones among the rocks, and plunged into the icy pool.

Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five opened the hidden entrance beneath Dragon Pool, and the group entered the cavern in search of the Qilin and the [Great Dao Stele]. After the White-Browed Daoist blocked the passage against Song Chengxi, an ambush in the corridor killed Murong Bai, leaving the group facing unseen Faxiang attackers.

• Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five used the [Heaven-Covering Formation] to open the Nine-Palace Lock and led the group through the underwater passage into a limestone cavern.
• The group entered a lamp-lit corridor, where Murong Bai identified the fragrant fuel as [Merfolk Oil].
• At Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five's request, the White-Browed Daoist used the [Earth-Carrying Formation] to raise a mountain that concealed and blocked the passage beneath the pool.
• The corridor's lamps went out, and hidden Faxiang experts launched a sword attack from the walls.
• Wang Daozong and Ma Boyi fought back and relit the lamps, revealing that Murong Bai had been killed with a cut to his throat.

An unseen attacker killed Murong Bai with a powerful Earth-Traveling Technique, but Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five reassured the Faxiang practitioners and led them onward. The group entered a dense forest toward Qilin Cave and the Great Dao Stele, bracing for battle.

• An attacker emerged from the earth, beheaded Murong Bai, and vanished without leaving damage to the passage.
• Zhao Xizhen and the White-Browed Daoist concluded that the attacker’s Earth-Traveling Technique was a divine power, possibly linked to the Qilin.
• Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five argued that few mountain refugees could master Immortal-Grade Manuals and persuaded the group that their nine Faxiang practitioners could prevail.
• Murong Hua took Dragon Abyss and led the group forward to avenge Murong Bai, while Cao Jinxing criticized the failed ambush plan.
• At the end of the corridor, Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five pointed the group east toward the Qilin’s dwelling, and they entered the forest under the night sky.

The group encountered a trap near Qilin Cave, where four mountain elders used the Earth Marsh Scripture and a beast attack to restrain them. Zhao Xizhen’s powerful counterattack broke the formation, but a hidden attacker pierced his chest as he tried to save Jiang Yuebai, leaving his Faxiang shattered.

• Jiang Yuebai spotted a five-hundred-year-old Fire Ganoderma and the group found many other ancient medicinal herbs as they approached Qilin Cave.
• Li Chonglou discovered a marker for Kangle Village, and the group discussed whether its inhabitants were descendants of Xie Lingyun who had inherited the Earth Marsh Scripture.
• Four Tongyou Peak elders emerged from underground, summoned Shennong Faxiang, and used the Earth Marsh Scripture to trap the group while beasts attacked from all sides.
• Cao Jinxing climbed a tree to avoid the underground restraint and watched as Jiang Yuebai and Li Chonglou were dragged down while the others fought off the beasts.
• Zhao Xizhen struck the elder due north with Vast Star Returning Flow, breaking the formation, but a hidden attacker pierced his Faxiang and chest when he tried to rescue Jiang Yuebai.

White-Browed Daoist revealed that he was Xie Tianjing, the Xie Clan’s Sun Elder, and turned against Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five’s group during the battle on Heavenly Maiden Mountain. After the beasts withdrew, Song Chengxi approached from behind, leaving the group facing another threat.

• Li Taibai’s Green Lotus Sword emerged from the ground, and Wang Daozong helped Zhang Mingyan capture its gray-robed wielder, Xie Tianxing.
• White-Browed Daoist ambushed Wang Daozong with Withered Glory Hand, shattered his Faxiang, and revealed himself as Xie Tianjing, the Sun Elder of the Xie Clan.
• Xie Tianjing explained that he had faked his death as Old Man Bianjiang and had joined Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five’s group to monitor them.
• Xie Tianqing used a whistle to call off the beasts, while Master Kuxing rescued the people trapped underground and Jiang Yuebai treated Zhao Xizhen.
• Xie Tianxing and Xie Tianqing revealed their identities and demanded that the Central Plains group leave Heavenly Maiden Mountain.
• Xie Tianjing warned that more of his allies were coming, and Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five saw Song Chengxi approaching from behind.

Song Chengxi arrived as the battle for the Qilin scales intensified, forcing Ma Boyi to intercept him while the others fought the Xie clan’s elders. As Cao Jinxing watched the clashes and kept his cover intact, Song Chengxi struck Ma Boyi with overwhelming Cold Toad True Qi, leaving the fight’s outcome uncertain.

• Ma Boyi volunteered to hold off Song Chengxi while Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five ordered the others to defeat the Xie clan quickly.
• Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five revealed the Chengying and Xiaolian swords, Master Kuxing and Murong Hua engaged Elder Star and Elder Moon, and Ji Runcheng used the Tomb Tiger Talisman to trap and attack the Four Great Elders.
• Cao Jinxing noticed Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five was concealing another weapon and answered Ji Wenfeng’s test about his father’s birth date without exposing himself.
• Ji Wenfeng threw four knives at the Four Great Elders while Cao Jinxing stayed back to observe the battle and protect his cover.
• Song Chengxi refused Ma Boyi’s offer to cooperate, then unleashed his Cold Toad True Qi and struck Ma Boyi’s Faxiang with a powerful palm.

The Ji father and son killed three of the Four Great Elders while Cao Jinxing watched the battle, and the Xie Clan’s defenders faced mounting danger. At the cave, Xie Yunli prayed for the Qilin to escape, then saw it emerge as his scale grew warm.

• The Ji father and son used the terracotta battle formation and flying sabers to kill Elders Huangxing, Xuanxing, Tianxing, and Dixing, while Cao Jinxing reflected on the cost of fighting over treasures.
• Ji Runcheng joined Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five against White-Browed Daoist, worsening the defenders’ predicament as Zhao Xizhen recovered and Zhang Mingyan neared freedom.
• Xie Yunli heard Elder Tianxing’s dying roar and rushed underground to the cave where the Xie Clan honored the Qilin.
• Xie Yunli prayed for the Qilin to flee and offered his own life in gratitude, but the scale on his chest gave no response at first.
• As Xie Yunli left the cave, his scale grew warm and the Qilin emerged amid flourishing life and blooming flowers.

White-Browed Daoist and the Star and Moon Elders fought desperately against Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five’s group, but Zhang Mingyan and Ji Runcheng overwhelmed them. As their enemies moved in to finish them, the Qilin emerged from beneath the earth and attacked Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five.

• White-Browed Daoist used Riding the Wind Through Emptiness and Dragon Thorn seeds to destroy Ji Runcheng’s soldier figurines, but Ji Runcheng and Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five forced him onto the defensive.
• Zhang Mingyan joined the battle with the Five Thunder Celestial Master Token, and Ji Runcheng and Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five worked with him to grievously injure White-Browed Daoist and wound the Star and Moon Elders.
• Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five ordered his allies to finish off the three elders, while the Star and Moon Elders accepted that they might die protecting the Qilin.
• The Qilin raised five stone walls to shield the elders, then charged from the forest as Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five’s sword case trembled.
• The Qilin fixed its gaze on Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five’s sword case, roared, and turned the ground beneath him into a mire filled with rising stone spikes and earthen spears.

Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five used the [Celestial Star Formation Diagram] to trap the Qilin, then revealed the [Kunlun Sword] and attacked it. Cao Jinxing stabbed Zhao Xizhen to break the formation, but Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five still wounded the Qilin before vines pierced him.

• Zhao Xizhen activated the [Celestial Star Formation Diagram], restraining and disorienting the Qilin so the Faxiang experts could attack.
• The Faxiang experts failed to penetrate the Qilin’s defenses, while Xie Yunli returned to help the injured elders.
• Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five drew the [Kunlun Sword], revealed his powerful Immortal Grade cultivation, and charged at the Qilin.
• Cao Jinxing stabbed Zhao Xizhen, causing the formation to collapse and freeing the Qilin.
• The Qilin raised earthen walls and sent vines after Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five, who pierced the walls and wounded the Qilin with the [Kunlun Sword] before the vines ran him through.

Cao Jinxing ambushed Zhao Xizhen and disabled several opponents while the Qilin and Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five lay gravely wounded. As the Faxiang experts rushed to claim the Qilin, Song Chengxi intervened with his powerful ice technique.

• Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five wounded the Qilin with the [Kunlun Sword], but the Qilin's counterattack left him gravely injured.
• Zhang Mingyan, Master Kuxing, Murong Hua, and Ji Runcheng charged toward the fallen Qilin as Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five tried to recover.
• Cao Jinxing struck Zhao Xizhen unconscious, wounded Jiang Yuebai, and disabled Li Chonglou and Ji Wenfeng.
• Bai Yunxiu revealed that her gu insects had poisoned Ji Wenfeng, while Cao Jinxing stood unharmed.
• Song Chengxi appeared before the Qilin and unleashed [Ice-Seal Three Thousand Li].

Song Chengxi froze the battlefield and attacked the four Faxiang masters before confronting Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five and the others over the Qilin. As the six Faxiang clashed, Cao Jinxing prepared a shot with the Eight Desolations Sun-Shooting Bow, aiming at Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five.

• Song Chengxi unleashed Ice-Seal Three Thousand Li, freezing everyone in the forest except Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu, then struck the four Faxiang masters and wounded them.
• Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five and Murong Hua challenged Song Chengxi over the Qilin, while Ji Runcheng demanded to know where Ji Shaoqin was.
• Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five convinced Ji Runcheng that Ji Shaoqin was likely alive, and Ji Runcheng joined the others against Song Chengxi.
• Song Chengxi manifested Chiyou, and he fought Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five, Murong Hua, Ji Runcheng, and the other Faxiang masters inside the Ice Lotus.
• Cao Jinxing recognized that Song Chengxi could not sustain the battle for long, drew the Eight Desolations Sun-Shooting Bow, and aimed at Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five.

Cao Jinxing and Song Chengxi fought the four Faxiang practitioners while trying to protect the Qilin, and their attacks killed Murong Hua and Ji Runcheng. As the surviving three began draining the Qilin’s vital blood, a fire phoenix rose from the mountain.

• Cao Jinxing’s Vermilion Bird Arrow forced Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five backward, opening a gap that Song Chengxi used to kill Murong Hua.
• Master Kuxing’s mantra briefly disrupted Song Chengxi, allowing Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five and Ji Runcheng to injure him while Zhang Mingyan deflected Cao Jinxing’s arrows.
• Cao Jinxing fired all four Sun-Shooting Arrows; Song Chengxi’s black ice and Lice Gu trapped Ji Runcheng, and the arrow pierced him before Song Chengxi beheaded him.
• Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five, Zhang Mingyan, and Master Kuxing reached the Qilin, broke its ice shell, and began drawing its vital blood.
• A cry rang out, golden flames burst above the cave, and a fire phoenix soared into the sky.

The Fire Phoenix rescued the Qilin, and the two divine beasts drove the intruders into a desperate retreat across Heavenly Maiden Mountain. Song Chengxi forced Zhang Mingyan and Master Kuxing to surrender their Qilin Blood Pearls before letting them into the cave, while Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five fled alone; Song Chengxi, Cao Jinxing, and Bai Yunxiu then concluded that the Great Dao Stele was not at Qilin Cave and prepared for the fallout.

• The Fire Phoenix healed the wounded Qilin with its essence blood, and together they attacked the fleeing intruders as Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five fought back with the Kunlun Sword and escaped toward the cave.
• Song Chengxi sealed the cave entrance with ice and demanded Zhang Mingyan and Master Kuxing hand over their Qilin Blood Pearls in exchange for passage.
• Zhang Mingyan and Master Kuxing surrendered their pearls and entered the cave, while Song Chengxi and Cao Jinxing blocked Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five, who turned west and fled from the pursuing divine beasts.
• Xuan Yuan Fourteen shared seven rare spirit herbs with Cao Jinxing, and Song Chengxi led the group back after declaring their mission accomplished.
• Song Chengxi reasoned that the Great Dao Stele was not at Qilin Cave and warned Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu that other sects and clans might question them after Zhang Mingyan and Master Kuxing returned.

Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five escaped the Qilin and Fire Phoenix by transplanting a Qilin scale into his chest, while the divine beasts joined forces with Qiongqi. The chapter ended with the beasts infusing five survivors with their blood essence and commanding them to break open the Qin Mausoleum and release the Three Fiends.

• Song Chengxi, Cao Jinxing, and Bai Yunxiu left the Heavenly Maiden Mountain Secret Realm while Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five continued fleeing the Qilin and Fire Phoenix.
• Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five cut away his burning right side, transplanted a Qilin scale into his chest, and escaped by diving into a river.
• The Qilin and Fire Phoenix returned to the battlefield with Qiongqi, the second of the Four Fiends.
• The Qilin revealed Zhao Xizhen, Wang Daozong, Ji Wenfeng, Jiang Yuebai, and Li Chonglou frozen beneath the earth, while Murong Hua, Ji Runcheng, and Ma Boyi were already dead.
• The Fire Phoenix burned the three corpses to ash and healed the five survivors with phoenix blood essence; Qiongqi then infused them with its own blood essence.
• The five survivors opened their eyes as a voice commanded them to break open the Qin Mausoleum and release the Three Fiends.

After the Dragon Pool Secret Realm was found ruined and the Faxiang masters vanished, Cao Jinxing and his companions divided the spoils in a secluded cave. Cao Jinxing absorbed qilin blood, reached Tongyou Peak, and formed a Faxiang modeled on Lü Dongbin.

• Dong Fuliang and Zhao Cheng watched Kuxing and Zhang Mingyan emerge from the Dragon Pool, then saw White Dragon Gu carry three people away and suspected Cao Jinxing was among them.
• At dawn, the factions entered the Secret Realm and found a scorched wasteland with no people, bodies, or treasures; prominent sects and families headed to Shaoxing to question the surviving witnesses.
• Cao Jinxing, Bai Yunxiu, and Song Chengxi divided the qilin blood and spiritual herbs in a secluded cave on Kuaiji Mountain, and Song Chengxi gave the two younger cultivators the blood pearls and herbs first.
• Cao Jinxing absorbed a blood pearl, broke through to Tongyou Peak, and used the surplus energy to condense a false Faxiang of Lü Dongbin.
• Cao Jinxing opened his eyes as the newly formed Faxiang did the same, filling the cave with golden light and sword qi.

After Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu reached Tongyou Peak, Song Chengxi returned to Miao territory while Cao Jinxing sent the Pacification Commission an account of the battle at Heavenly Maiden Dragon Pool. Liu Zhenyuan ordered Lu Yi to travel to the Southeast and join Cao Jinxing, both to assist with unrest and to protect him from possible retaliation.

• Cao Jinxing advanced to Tongyou Peak and formed a false Faxiang, while Bai Yunxiu also reached Tongyou Peak after absorbing a blood pearl.
• Song Chengxi gave Cao Jinxing another portion of the ice containing Qilin Blood, warned him that sects might target him, and departed with Bai Yunxiu for Miao territory.
• Cao Jinxing watched Song Chengxi and Bai Yunxiu leave, then decided to write to the Pacification Commission because he suspected the events were not simple.
• At the Northern Pacification Office, Lu Yi reported that only Kuxing and Zhang Mingyan had emerged from the Heavenly Maiden Dragon Pool, and Liu Zhenyuan assigned officers to several urgent missions.
• Liu Zhenyuan, Han Xinting, Zhu Jingzhong, and Lu Yi discussed Cao Jinxing's letter and questioned whether the Xie clan and the missing Faxiang practitioners had truly died.
• Liu Zhenyuan sent Lu Yi to join Cao Jinxing in the Southeast, where they would assist General Qi's forces and help guard Cao Jinxing against retaliation.

Cao Jinxing returned to Shaoxing, learned that the Wokou were hiding at Black Jade Studio, and went there alone in his Flying Fish Uniform. After arresting Zhu Lu, he confronted the Japanese warriors sheltering inside as Kitahara Ryusei led them in an attack.

• Cao Jinxing reunited with Lu Kunlun and the others, then secretly told Lu Kunlun the truth about the deadly expedition and warned him to keep his distance in public.
• A Beggar Gang disciple reported that the Wokou were hiding at Black Jade Studio, where Zhu Lu had been secretly feeding dozens of people.
• Cao Jinxing sent his token to the Shaoxing prefect's office to summon officials, put on his Flying Fish Uniform, and headed to the workshop alone while Lu Kunlun followed at a distance.
• Cao Jinxing smashed through Black Jade Studio's storefront and ignored Zhu Lu's bribe and threats about his powerful connections.
• Cao Jinxing accused Zhu Lu of harboring Wokou for Yan Shifan, paralyzed him with a finger strike, and called the hidden warriors out.
• Kitahara Ryusei charged from the guest rooms with Futsu-no-Mitama, followed by thirty warriors who rushed at Cao Jinxing.

Cao Jinxing slaughtered the Wokou at Black Jade Studio and captured Kitahara Ryusei and the other survivors, uncovering their connection to Zhu Lu and the God of Wealth Gang. He ordered the Shaoxing authorities to guard the prisoners and search for stolen treasures while he awaited Lu Yi and a full investigation.

• Kitahara Ryusei attacked Cao Jinxing with [Futsu-no-Mitama], but Cao Jinxing severed his arm and killed the thirty Wokou fighters in a single pass.
• Cao Jinxing restrained Kitahara Ryusei, summoned Xuan Yuan Fourteen to control the courtyard, and identified himself as the man who had chipped [Futsu-no-Mitama].
• Lu Kunlun watched the fight as Wan Heqing arrived, then Wan Heqing brought Wu Shixun to Cao Jinxing and presented him as Zhu Lu's brother-in-law and a God of Wealth Gang hall master.
• Fan Zikun arrived with soldiers and arrested everyone in the courtyard, while Cao Jinxing warned him to protect the three survivors and search for the Wokou's stolen treasures.
• Cao Jinxing told Fan Zikun that Lu Yi would arrive to investigate, then accepted the prefect's offer to stay at his residence.