Chapter Summaries

Ye Yunchi visited the Temple of Confucius and confessed her feelings for Xie Jinhuan, while Ye Sheng listened from the Black Abyss and threatened to break her legs once he escaped. Back at Jinhuan Pavilion, Lin Wanyi and Linghu Qingmo competed to practice with Xie Jinhuan, ending in a tussle beneath the covers as Volume Six concluded.

• Ye Yunchi reflected on her absent father, Ye Sheng, and confessed to the sages that she had fallen for a married man decades younger than her.
• In the Black Abyss, Ye Sheng heard Ye Yunchi’s confession and vowed to break her legs when he got out.
• Xie Jinhuan sensed that someone was cursing him, while Lin Wanyi tried to get him to take a break from reading.
• Linghu Qingmo arrived and challenged Lin Wanyi to practice with Xie Jinhuan, but blushed when he discovered what she meant.
• Lin Wanyi and Linghu Qingmo fought over Xie Jinhuan beneath the covers, and the chapter ended with Volume Six.

Lü Yan took over as Divination Sect Master and received the Five Elements Seal from Yellow Qilin True Person, who prepared to risk his life at Northern Darkness Lake. Meanwhile, Xie Jinhuan reached Huo Li City to meet the White-Haired Immortal, but encountered Jiang Xiao Biao and Shen Cang instead.

• Lü Yan held a grand ceremony to mark his Soul Fusion breakthrough and succession as Divination Sect Master.
• Yellow Qilin True Person warned Lü Yan about bearing the sect's legacy, then entrusted him with the Five Elements Seal before departing for Northern Darkness Lake.
• After Yellow Qilin True Person left, Lü Yan divined whether accompanying him would bring fortune and decided the omen promised good fortune amid misfortune.
• Xie Jinhuan traveled north to scout for the White-Haired Immortal and seek Shang Mingzhen's heart and lungs, while Guo returned to Yanjing to handle state affairs.
• Xie Jinhuan reached Huo Li City and waited outside the Big Bowl Tavern, where locals mistook him for a visitor drawn by the proprietress's reputation.
• Jiang Xiao Biao and Shen Cang appeared in the street, and Xie Jinhuan went to meet them.

Jiang Xian met Xie Jinhuan at the Big Bowl Bowl Tavern and invited him to join her investigation of the Immortal Transformation Sect and the northern tribes’ unrest. Meanwhile, Shang Mingzhen met Zitong, who planned to use a Death Formation to test Ye Sheng’s strength and draw out possible rescuers, leaving Shang wary of joining the scheme.

• Jiang Xian encountered Xie Jinhuan outside the Big Bowl Bowl Tavern and brought him inside to explain her investigation of the Immortal Transformation Sect and the Long River Tribe.
• Jiang Xian and Shen Cang suspected that the northern border king’s early tax demand was meant to provoke the tribes into rebellion, and Xie Jinhuan agreed to accompany them when Lord Huo Yi set out.
• Shang Mingzhen met Zitong in the barren mountains, where Zitong complained that Shang had failed to help at Dragonbone Shoal.
• Zitong explained that the Nether God Sect planned to use Sect Master Yang’s Death Formation to test Ye Sheng’s abilities and locate potential rescuers near Huo Li City.
• Shang Mingzhen remained wary of the plan but agreed to stay far away and watch.

Xie Jinhuan and his companions arrived in Huo Li City to investigate the Demon Bandits, where Zhao Ling briefly glimpsed Jiang Xian’s overwhelming divine soul before her memory was erased. The group settled in for the night, and Linghu Qingmo pulled Xie Jinhuan away to spend time with him.

• Bu Yuehua, Ye Yunchi, Zhao Ling, and Linghu Qingmo ate roast lamb and discussed their travels and cultivation in an inn in Huo Li City.
• Xie Jinhuan arrived with Jiang Xian, who greeted the group and sat down beside Coal Ball.
• Zhao Ling used her Heavenly Eye on Jiang Xian, saw her enormous divine soul, and then forgot what she had been about to say.
• Xie Jinhuan took Zhao Ling to her room to rest, while Jiang Xian became distracted and remarked that Ye Yunchi looked familiar.
• Linghu Qingmo led Xie Jinhuan to the neighboring room and kissed him while Zhao Ling remained behind.

Nangong Ye, Bu Yuehua, and Zhao Ling were caught in an awkward encounter at the inn, while Qixia True Person recovered her memories and planned the hunt for Yang Huaxian. The next day, Jiang Xian and Xie Jinhuan met Huo Yi, and Ye Yunchi spotted someone she suspected was Madam Han leaving the city, sending Coal Ball to alert the others.

• Zhao Ling walked in on Xie Jinhuan and Nangong Ye, then returned with Bu Yuehua, who drew Zhao Ling into their encounter.
• Ye Hongshang spoke with Qixia True Person about hunting Yang Huaxian and Daoist Kongkong, and Qixia True Person left with Coal Ball to seek information.
• Jiang Xian read diary tasks involving Liu Danggui and Shang Mingzhen, then went with Xie Jinhuan to meet Huo Yi at the City Lord's Residence.
• Ye Yunchi recognized Madam Han's scent in the market and followed a cloaked figure leaving the city, while Coal Ball flew toward the City Lord's Residence to alert the others.

At Huo Yi’s request, Jiang Xian and Xie Jinhuan agreed to investigate the Northern Border royal court, while receiving valuable treasures as payment. After a black eagle summoned them outside Huo Li City, they followed a suspicious figure into the mountains and discovered that Shang Mingzhen and Zitong were watching them from an ambush.

• Huo Yi described the Long River Tribe’s crisis and offered black profound gold and a page of the Reflecting Bodhi Sutra to secure Jiang Xian and Xie Jinhuan’s help.
• Jiang Xian promised to find the culprit, and the group agreed to attend the gathering at Red Mountain the next day.
• A black eagle led Xie Jinhuan away from the banquet, and Jiang Xian followed him outside the city.
• Ye Yunchi identified a distant cloaked figure as possibly Madam Han and suspected the encounter was a trap; A Piao advised the group to follow and investigate.
• Shang Mingzhen and Zitong watched from a snowy mountain and discussed how their formation might lure Ye Sheng or Qixia True Person into acting.

Ye Yunchi, Xie Jinhuan, and Jiang Xian were lured into a trap using the image of Ye Yunchi’s mother, but Xie Jinhuan escaped Yang Huaxian’s array with A Piao’s guidance. The group fled, while Zitong went underground to restore the array.

• A cloaked woman revealed a face resembling Ye Yunchi’s mother, then was struck by a sword as Ye Yunchi and Xie Jinhuan tried to help her.
• The apparent woman transformed into a black-and-red octopus carrying jewelry, and Jiang Xian recognized it as her spirit pet.
• Yang Huaxian’s Light-Devouring Spirit-Severing Array enclosed the valley, cutting off the group from the outside and the power of heaven and earth.
• Following A Piao’s guidance, Xie Jinhuan used an earth art to sever the array channels and bring down the black barrier.
• Xie Jinhuan led Ye Yunchi and Jiang Xian away, while Shang Mingzhen identified how the array had been broken and ordered Zitong to restore it.

Xie Jinhuan and his companions were trapped in Yang Huaxian’s deadly array, where an underground cultivator kept repairing its channels. Xie Jinhuan discovered that concealing their qi could halt the array, but as Ye Yunchi reunited with him, a warning shout came from the darkness and Jiang Xian’s whereabouts were unclear.

• Xie Jinhuan rejected the disguised Sister Guo and tried to retreat, but a black eagle’s trick delayed the group until the Light-Devouring Spirit-Severing Array activated again.
• Xie Jinhuan used the Zhenglun Sword to send lightning into the ground, but Ye Hongshang sensed that Zitong was repairing the array channels underground.
• Yang Huaxian’s array unleashed attacks of thunder, fire, wind, and cold, forcing Xie Jinhuan to evade with Ye Yunchi and Jiang Xian.
• Xie Jinhuan realized the array targeted fluctuations of qi, gave Ye Yunchi an Invisibility Pill, and then had Jiang Xian and himself conceal their qi as well, stopping the attacks.
• Xie Jinhuan crept toward Ye Yunchi and borrowed her Nihility Sword; when she asked where Jiang Xian was, an urgent warning sounded from the darkness.

Xie Jinhuan discovered how to fool the Light-Devouring Spirit-Severing Array and used the formation’s attacks to locate and trap Zitong. Yang Huaxian and Daoist Kongkong watched from outside but chose not to intervene, leaving Xie Jinhuan fighting the earth rat behind a hill.

• A disguised octopus ambushed Ye Yunchi, stole her shoe, and poisoned her ankle before Xie Jinhuan arrived and helped seal the venom.
• Xie Jinhuan realized he could imitate the Qi signature of the formation’s allies, allowing him to move without triggering its attacks.
• Xie Jinhuan deliberately damaged the formation’s channels to track Zitong underground and drove him toward a hill’s granite layer.
• Xie Jinhuan raised a qilin pillar that trapped Zitong, then struck the pillar and seized the battered rat spirit.
• Yang Huaxian and Daoist Kongkong watched Xie Jinhuan from outside the formation, but Daoist Kongkong decided against attacking him and left.

Xie Jinhuan and his companions defeated a Demon Person but failed to capture the shapeshifting Spirit Beast, then mistook Empress Dowager Guo for another fake and tackled her. Back in Huo Li City, Lin Zisu found that Ye Yunchi’s poison threatened her Divine Soul, leaving Xie Jinhuan asking how to save her.

• Xie Jinhuan buried the fallen Daoist, took his Mountain-Piercing Nail, and discovered his cultivation had risen to five-point-four.
• Xie Jinhuan returned to Ye Yunchi and Jiang Xian, and the three headed toward Huo Li City while discussing the escaped Spirit Beast.
• Xie Jinhuan tackled Empress Dowager Guo after A Piao identified her as a fake, and Ye Yunchi and Jiang Xian joined in before realizing their mistake.
• Empress Dowager Guo explained that she had come to the Northern Region searching for Yang Huaxian, and the group returned to Huo Li City.
• Lin Zisu examined Ye Yunchi’s poison and warned Xie Jinhuan that it could destroy her Divine Soul, prompting him to ask how it could be cured.

Lin Zisu explained that the octopus toxin could be overcome by a powerful Divine Soul controlling Ye Yunchi’s body, so Xie Jinhuan summoned the Grandmaster to possess her. Ye Yunchi’s body began recovering, but the Grandmaster’s control led to an embarrassing series of movements and Xie Jinhuan’s advances before Ye Hongshang punished him through their shared possession.

• Lin Zisu explained that the octopus toxin impaired Ye Yunchi’s body by numbing her Divine Soul, and that a stronger Divine Soul could keep her body functioning until the toxin wore off.
• Xie Jinhuan summoned the Grandmaster, and Zhao Ling saw the Red-Robed Goddess descend before withdrawing her Heavenly Eye Search after being warned.
• The Grandmaster possessed Ye Yunchi, restored circulation in her body, and left her conscious but unable to control her movements.
• Ye Yunchi’s body danced and stretched while she protested, and Xie Jinhuan helped massage her legs to improve circulation.
• Xie Jinhuan tried to touch Ye Yunchi more intimately, but Ye Hongshang struck and pinched him through their shared possession.

Qixia True Person and Empress Dowager Guo discussed their next move against Yang Huaxian, while Qixia discovered Xie Jinhuan secretly kissing Ye Yunchi and erased the sight from her memory. She then summoned Nangong Ye and proposed that he help bring Xie Jinhuan and Ming Ji together as Dao Companions.

• Empress Dowager Guo accused Qixia True Person of making Xie Jinhuan mistake her for a demon, and the two traded insults before turning to Yang Huaxian’s plans.
• Qixia True Person proposed sending Xie Jinhuan to Wolf City to eliminate Yang Huaxian’s allies and then waiting for the Black Tortoise Divine Gift.
• Qixia True Person found Xie Jinhuan kissing Ye Yunchi in her room, erased the scene from her memory, and called Nangong Ye outside.
• Nangong Ye tested Qixia True Person’s identity by asking about an ancient precept, but she redirected him and praised his caution.
• Qixia True Person asked Nangong Ye how he would repay Xie Jinhuan for the Azure Dragon Divine Gift, then suggested arranging for Xie Jinhuan and Ming Ji to become Dao Companions.

Nangong Ye confessed to Qixia True Person that he had fallen in love with Xie Jinhuan, and she agreed to help make his relationship with Qingmo legitimate if he arranged a match between Xie Jinhuan and Ming Ji. Meanwhile, Xie Jinhuan cared for immobilized Ye Yunchi and entertained her with an animated booklet, leaving her conflicted but quietly anticipating what came next.

• Nangong Ye confessed that he had fallen for Xie Jinhuan and asked Qixia True Person to punish him.
• Qixia True Person told Nangong Ye that his feelings were not a wrongdoing so long as he stayed true to the Righteous Path, and offered to make Qingmo his legitimate fellow disciple.
• Qixia True Person asked Nangong Ye to help bring about a match between Ming Ji and Xie Jinhuan, and he promised to do so.
• Xie Jinhuan held the immobilized Ye Yunchi and explained that he was helping her recover while her poison ran its course.
• Xie Jinhuan drew stick figures in a booklet and used Quantum Reading to make them move, entertaining Ye Yunchi as she watched.

Jiang Xian traveled with Xie Jinhuan’s caravan toward the Red Mountain Tribe while secretly plotting to ignore the Xian'er Diary’s warning. In Wolf City, Chaochitai and Dugu Yue prepared to confront the Righteous Path over the opportunities at Northern Darkness Lake, with the Immortal Transformation Sect aiming to seize them all.

• Jiang Xian sat beside Xie Jinhuan on the journey and watched him show Coal Ball his illustrated booklet of Tom and Jerry.
• Empress Dowager Guo watched Jiang Xian and Xie Jinhuan draw close, while Nangong Ye decided to encourage Xie Jinhuan to pursue Miss Ming Ji for A Huan’s sake.
• Dugu Yue warned Chaochitai that Xie Jinhuan and Huo Yi’s forces could soon reach Wolf City and threaten his rule.
• Dugu Yue explained that the Immortal Transformation Sect intended to secure two Northern Darkness Lake opportunities and strive to take all three by forcing the Righteous Path’s elders into action.
• Chaochitai recognized that he and Dugu Yue were being used as pawns and accepted that his indulgent life might soon end.

While traveling across the Grasslands, Xie Jinhuan agreed to consider pursuing Miss Ming Ji after Nangong Ye urged him to define their relationship. Three days later, at the Red Mountain Alliance, Xie Jinhuan spotted Lü Yan among the spectators and quietly approached him.

• At their riverside camp, Nangong Ye pulled Xie Jinhuan into a tent and urged him to stop treating Miss Ming Ji as an elder or outsider.
• Nangong Ye threatened to leave Xie Jinhuan if he did not keep Miss Ming Ji in his thoughts, and Xie Jinhuan agreed to try to win her over.
• Three days later, Xie Jinhuan and Zhao Ling attended the Red Mountain Alliance gathering with the Long River Tribe and surveyed the tribes for signs of danger.
• Xie Jinhuan recognized Lü Yan among the spectators, sent Zhao Ling back to their group, and quietly approached the old Daoist.

Lü Yan encountered Xie Jinhuan at a Grasslands gathering, where they discussed an unpaid debt before watching Northern Border King Chaochitai arrive. Xie Jinhuan and Zhao Ling discovered that Chaochitai and State Preceptor Dugu Yue were powerful Demon Persons, and they left to plan how to eliminate them.

• Lü Yan searched the gathering for promising youngsters before Xie Jinhuan surprised him, and the two exchanged news about an unpaid bill owed to the Azure Nether Sword Manor.
• Lü Yan warned Xie Jinhuan about the Grasslands’ dangers, then offered help for a fee as they watched Chaochitai arrive with Dugu Yue.
• Lü Yan explained that he would not interfere in Chaochitai’s rule unless the king committed major crimes involving demonic practices or mass violence.
• Chaochitai and Dugu Yue discussed Huo Yi’s suspected assassination plot, their collection of taxes and Blood Essence, and their plan to invite Huo Yi to a banquet where their forces could confront the Righteous Path.
• Zhao Ling used the Qilin Heavenly Eye to identify Chaochitai as a powerful Wei Goat half-demon and Dugu Yue as a ghost cultivator, and Xie Jinhuan kissed the Landlady before leaving with Zhao Ling to plan their next move.

After Xie Jinhuan’s party discussed Chaochitai’s invitation, Ye Yunchi’s possessed body served tea to the women gathered at the mansion, accidentally making them treat her as the fifth concubine. The chapter ended with Xie Jinhuan arriving and being scolded and shocked by the others while Ye Yunchi remained confused about her place among them.

• Lord Huo Yi’s party debated whether Chaochitai’s hunting-ground banquet was a trap, while Xie Jinhuan listened without joining the discussion.
• Ye Yunchi’s body moved on its own and carried tea to Lin Wanyi, Linghu Qingmo, Zhao Ling, and Empress Dowager Guo.
• The women interpreted Ye Yunchi’s tea service as her acknowledging their positions, and Ye Yunchi feared she had been recognized as the Xie Household’s fifth concubine.
• Xie Jinhuan arrived and tried to take Ye Yunchi back to rest, but her body acted aloof toward him.
• Lin Wanyi, Linghu Qingmo, and Zhao Ling blamed Xie Jinhuan for upsetting Ye Yunchi, while Ye Yunchi wondered whether she could accept being a younger wife.

Huo Yi attended Chaochitai’s banquet at the hunting grounds with Xie Jinhuan and their allies, while Lü Yan secretly watched from outside. Chaochitai demanded that Huo Yi surrender his recruited warriors and beg forgiveness, and Jiang Xian challenged him to fight.

• Xie Jinhuan and disguised allies escorted Huo Yi to Chaochitai’s banquet, where they found Liu Danggui and a Great Zhou envoy among the guests.
• Lü Yan secretly followed the gathering and used divination to check Xie Jinhuan’s fate, receiving an auspicious result.
• Chaochitai accused Huo Yi of opposing the spring tax policy and recruiting warriors, then demanded that he hand them over and kowtow for forgiveness.
• Huo Yi refused to accept the tax demands and explained that the herders could not bear the burden during the animals’ birthing season.
• Jiang Xian slapped the table, called Chaochitai a sheep demon, and challenged him to fight outside.

Xie Jinhuan confronted Chaochitai as a suspected fiend, and Lü Yan used imperial authorization to clear the way for an investigation. Chaochitai revealed that the banquet had been a trap, and Dugu Yue activated a vast array that left Lü Yan protecting the civilians while the others moved to attack.

• Jiang Xian accused Chaochitai of being a sheep demon, and Xie Jinhuan publicly backed her and challenged Liu Danggui to oppose him.
• The Northern Zhou envoy demanded evidence, but Lü Yan arrived and claimed that he had reported the fiendish activity to Yanjing and obtained the Empress Dowager's permission.
• Liu Danggui and the envoy backed away from Chaochitai, who admitted that the banquet had been prepared as a trap for Xie Jinhuan.
• Dugu Yue activated a vast Light-Devouring Spirit-Severing Array, distorting the area and plunging the soldiers and civilians into chaos.
• Xie Jinhuan ordered Lü Yan to protect the civilians while he dealt with Chaochitai and Dugu Yue; Lü Yan raised the Five Elements Seal, and Empress Dowager Guo, Nangong Ye, and Bu Yuehua helped strengthen its protection.
• The others charged toward Chaochitai and Dugu Yue as the array's thunder and fire threatened the encampment.

Xie Jinhuan fought Chaochitai while Ye Yunchi attacked Dugu Yue through the Blood Sacrifice Grand Formation, and he nearly defeated Chaochitai with the Seven Absolutes of the Xu Sage. The array’s master intervened, but Empress Dowager Guo broke Xie Jinhuan free and blocked Old Daoist Kongkong’s Flying Sword as Ye Hongshang captured Dugu Yue; Xie Jinhuan then sensed Blood Baleful Qi approaching from behind.

• Zhao Ling located Dugu Yue underground, and Xie Jinhuan sent Ye Yunchi to disrupt the formation while he confronted Chaochitai.
• Xie Jinhuan wounded Chaochitai with the Horse-Slaying Saber, but Chaochitai healed with gathered Blood Qi and fought back with Dugu Yue’s formation support.
• Xie Jinhuan took Ye Yunchi’s Nihility Sword and used the Seven Absolutes of the Xu Sage to overwhelm Chaochitai, until the array dragged Chaochitai underground and trapped Xie Jinhuan in midair.
• Empress Dowager Guo freed Xie Jinhuan and severed the array’s control, while Ye Hongshang attacked Yang Huaxian and excavated Dugu Yue.
• Empress Dowager Guo blocked Old Daoist Kongkong’s Flying Sword, snapping its tip, and Xie Jinhuan was left dazed but alive as Ye Yunchi flew to help the buried camp.
• Ye Yunchi sensed Blood Baleful Qi behind her as Xie Jinhuan recovered, leaving the approaching threat unresolved.