Chapter Summaries

After Qin Mengwan left the Yuanji Sect, Gu Nian and Xue Fuyao went to watch the Sect Competition. Xue Fuyao recognized Qin Mengwan as the future Dreamwan Empress and Blood Demoness, then wondered whether their paths might eventually conflict.

• Xiao Fansheng dismissed Qin Mengwan's complaint and judged that Xue Fuyao had shown mercy, while Qin Mengwan left with Wenqin.
• Gu Nian and Xue Fuyao went to the Sect Competition using the reserved seats Xie Yichu had arranged.
• Gu Nian explained that Qin Mengwan had come south to seek refuge after becoming unable to survive in the Central Continent.
• Xue Fuyao recalled that Qin Mengwan would become the Dreamwan Empress, seize the throne, and massacre the former imperial family and court officials.
• Xue Fuyao decided not to target Qin Mengwan without cause, then lost interest in the competition's restrained matches.

Xue Fuyao entered seclusion to consolidate her cultivation and began widening her meridians, successfully completing the painful first step. After she rested in her pool, a disciple delivered several new Daoist robes arranged by Elder Lingmu.

• Xue Fuyao declined Gu Nian's invitation to watch the finals and returned to Green Bamboo Peak to tell Xie Yichu she would enter seclusion.
• Xie Yichu gave Xue Fuyao a Storage Bag of robes inherited from his master after noticing her old Daoist robe no longer fit.
• Xue Fuyao used the spiritual energy drawn in by the Five Elements Spirit Pearls to widen her meridians, enduring the pain until her first attempt succeeded.
• Xue Fuyao rested in her pool with Spirit Flower petals, then left when her formation was triggered.
• An Inner Sect Disciple told Xue Fuyao that Elder Lingmu had arranged for Elder Xu to make robes in several sizes, and delivered them to her.

Xue Fuyao studied formations and practiced pill refinement while waiting for the Central Continent Assembly, but repeated explosions on Green Bamboo Peak exasperated Xie Yichu. He banished her to Pill Peak to learn from Changqingzi, where she arrived convinced that her master was tired of her.

• Xue Fuyao finished reading the first volume of the Jade Slip and decided to master its contents before moving on to the next volume.
• Xue Fuyao's attempt to refine a third-tier pill caused an explosion, and Xie Yichu hauled her up from the mountainside as she promised to succeed next time.
• Xie Yichu tossed Xue Fuyao and her battered pill furnace out of Green Bamboo Peak and sealed the peak with a golden formation.
• Xie Yichu told Xue Fuyao to stay at Pill Peak and learn pill refinement from Changqingzi, then cast a Cleansing Spell on her before she left.
• Changqingzi welcomed Xue Fuyao to Pill Peak and took her to quarters next to his residence.

Xue Fuyao learned that her careless alchemy habits caused her furnace explosions, so she agreed to relearn pill refining from scratch on Pill Peak. Meanwhile, Qin Mengwan struggled to cultivate because her troubled thoughts kept her from achieving Qi Gathering.

• Xue Fuyao saw Qin Mengwan cleaning Changqingzi’s room, and Changqingzi rebuked Qin Mengwan for failing to achieve Qi Gathering before the Central Continent Assembly.
• Changqingzi explained that Qin Mengwan’s restless mind prevented her from guiding spiritual energy into her body, then advised Xue Fuyao to cultivate a steadfast Dao heart.
• After observing Xue Fuyao’s repeated furnace explosions, Changqingzi identified her habitual mistakes and warned that her flawed methods would make higher-tier pill refining dangerous.
• Xue Fuyao agreed to relearn alchemy from scratch and studied the Yuanji Sect’s Basic Alchemy Method in Introduction to Alchemy.
• Xue Fuyao practiced refining first-tier pills again and produced higher-quality pills, increasing her yield by thirty percent with the same ingredients.

After preparing pills for the Central Continent trip, Xue Fuyao joined Gu Nian and Chu Yunzhe at a crowded night market. She wandered off on her own and bought a large supply of monster beast flesh and bones after her Demon-Suppressing Bracelet reacted to it.

• Xue Fuyao finished refining the pills she needed and returned to Green Bamboo Peak two days before the group’s departure for the Central Continent.
• Gu Nian invited Xue Fuyao to the annual night market, where Chu Yunzhe carried her through the crowd.
• Gu Nian briefly disappeared, then returned with flower crowns and rabbit lanterns for Xue Fuyao and Chu Yunzhe.
• Xue Fuyao asked Chu Yunzhe to put her down and slipped away to browse the market by herself.
• The Demon-Suppressing Bracelet led Xue Fuyao to a stall selling monster beast remains, and she paid the owner thirty thousand upper-grade Spirit Stones for all his flesh and bones.

Xue Fuyao bought flesh and bones for the Demon-Suppressing Bracelet, then followed the Silver-Thread Gu Bracelet’s urging to purchase a beehive at the night market. After reuniting with Gu Nian and Chu Yunzhe, she went with them to a Spirit Plant shop to find seeds for hardy wild Spirit Flowers.

• Xue Fuyao accepted the flesh, bones, and a mysterious box from a stall owner, then stored the flesh and bones in the Demon-Suppressing Bracelet.
• The Silver-Thread Gu Bracelet led Xue Fuyao to a stall selling Monster Beast cubs, where she bought an overlooked beehive.
• A woman bought the white fox cub for ten thousand mid-grade Spirit Stones after the seller named his price.
• Gu Nian and Chu Yunzhe found Xue Fuyao, teased her for leaving them alone, and asked what she wanted to buy.
• Xue Fuyao explained that she needed seeds from hardy wild Spirit Flowers, so the three visited a Spirit Plant shop.

Xue Fuyao traveled with Xie Yichu and the Yuanji Sect disciples to Central Continent for the assembly and the opening of the Qiming Secret Realm. As they arrived, Xie Yichu warned that the vast realm held unknown dangers and that the disciples would face assigned tasks inside.

• Gu Nian bought common spirit flower seeds at the Night Market and gave them to Xue Fuyao.
• Xue Fuyao boarded the Spirit Boat with Xie Yichu and the Yuanji Sect delegation, including Qin Mengwan, who had reached the qi refining first layer.
• Gu Nian told Xue Fuyao that the Crimson Feather Dynasty's Chancellor and his family had been imprisoned on charges of treason, though Qin Mengwan did not know.
• After several days of travel, the group neared Central Continent, where Xue Fuyao spotted flocks of Hongfujin spirit birds.
• Xie Yichu explained that the Central Continent Assembly would include exploration of the Qiming Secret Realm, where disciples would undertake tasks and could withdraw by calling for help.
• Xie Yichu warned Xue Fuyao that the Qiming Secret Realm had no cultivation restrictions and might contain unknown monster beasts.

Xue Fuyao recalled a devil’s notebook that pointed her toward a secret involving the Ming Household, then arrived in Beidou City with the Yuanji Sect for the Central Continent Assembly. She planned to visit the Ming Household through her master’s connection, but her arrival at Wutong Valley also caught the attention of Princess Lin Yanran, who ordered Hu Santian to find her so they could become friends.

• Xue Fuyao remembered that a notebook from her previous life listed treasures, secret realms, and people targeted by the Devil Race, and realized its contents matched a rumor about the Central Continent.
• Xue Fuyao asked Xie Yichu about Beidou City and learned he was friends with the head of the Ming Household, so he offered to take her there.
• Xie Yichu and the Yuanji Sect arrived in Beidou City and were escorted to Wutong Valley, their lodging for the Central Continent Assembly.
• Lin Yanran tried to enter Wutong Valley, then calmed down after attendants told her Venerable Spiritwood was staying there.
• Lin Yanran saw Xue Fuyao leave the valley and ordered Hu Santian to find her so she could make friends with her.

Xue Fuyao learned that the Central Continent Assembly could put Su Yang and Yang Tianqi in danger, since the Rabbit Tribe would later target the two sects that had oppressed it. After two snake demons entered the restaurant and discussed stone slabs, she listened for clues.

• Xue Fuyao avoided a snake demon boy being chased as a thief and went to a restaurant to gather information.
• Restaurant patrons discussed the increase in male snake demons and debated whether Su Yang or Yang Tianqi would win the Central Continent Assembly.
• Xue Fuyao recalled that the Rabbit Tribe would later kill Su Yang and Yang Tianqi in revenge against the Heavenly Mystery Sect and Saint Sun Sect.
• Xue Fuyao considered warning Su Yang and Yang Tianqi if she found them agreeable.
• Two cloaked snake demons entered the restaurant and quietly discussed their failure to discover where some stone slabs came from.

Xue Fuyao watched Central Continent cultivators expose and hunt disguised Snake Demons, then used Spirit Plants to neutralize a venomous Snake Demon’s poisonous mist and Bloodthirsty Vines to restrain the fleeing demons. As the chaos subsided, talk of a powerful Two-Headed Snake Demon in the Northern Suburb Forest left his existence and purple treasure as a looming mystery.

• Xue Fuyao realized the people in the restaurant had recognized disguised Snake Demons and coordinated a hunt, then followed the spectators outside.
• People across the street discussed a Two-Headed Snake Demon in the Northern Suburb Forest and a purple bead that could absorb poisonous gas.
• A Snake Demon tried to escape through a window, then transformed and spat poisonous mist at two cultivators, sending the crowd into a panic.
• Xue Fuyao summoned Spirit Plants with the Jade Glass of the Azure Moon, and their flowers absorbed the poisonous mist.
• Xue Fuyao used Bloodthirsty Vine tendrils to trap the Snake Demons who tried to escape amid the chaos.

Xue Fuyao used her Bloodthirsty Vines to stop the poisonous mist, then returned to Wutong Valley and became caught between Lin Yanran and Qin Mengwan. When Gu Nian summoned her to Venerable Spiritwood, Xue Fuyao left Lin Yanran with Gu Nian to see her out.

• Xue Fuyao’s Bloodthirsty Vines neutralized the poisonous mist, and the others attacked the Snake Demons while she slipped away unnoticed.
• Lin Yanran waited for Xue Fuyao and declared that they were friends, but Xue Fuyao told her that she would not make friends by acting so arrogantly.
• Qin Mengwan insulted Lin Yanran, and the two argued over Qin Mengwan’s disgraced family and her grandfather’s alleged treason.
• Qin Mengwan charged at Lin Yanran, but Xue Fuyao caught her strike and stopped her from killing Lin Yanran.
• Xue Fuyao rebuked Qin Mengwan and let Lin Yanran follow her to her room, where Lin Yanran explained that she wanted to befriend Venerable Spiritwood’s disciple.
• Gu Nian summoned Xue Fuyao to Venerable Spiritwood, and Xue Fuyao left Lin Yanran in Gu Nian’s care before rushing out.

Xue Fuyao accompanied Xie Yichu to Ming Cen’s wedding and met the troubled groom in the garden. After warning him to trust his unease, she offered to take him to see Jin Ling'er before he fetched the bride.

• Xie Yichu told Xue Fuyao that they would attend Ming Cen’s wedding at the Ming Residence.
• The head of the Ming Household gave Xue Fuyao a first-meeting gift and sent her to see the groom.
• Xue Fuyao found Ming Cen dressed in white, feeding fish in the garden, and heard him confess that he loved Jin Ling'er but regretted their marriage.
• Xue Fuyao urged Ming Cen to trust his misgivings, and he admitted that he could not call off the alliance that day.
• Xue Fuyao stopped Ming Cen from leaving and offered to take him to see Jin Ling'er early; Ming Cen recognized her as Venerable Spiritwood’s disciple.

Xue Fuyao and Ming Cen discovered that Jin Ling'er had fled before the wedding and that the Jin Household planned to substitute a maid for her. Ming Cen decided to expose the deception and flee the wedding, while Xue Fuyao informed Xie Yichu and sought to prevent Jin Ling'er and Yang Lin from entering the Qiming Secret Realm.

• Xue Fuyao and Ming Cen entered the Jin Household under cover and overheard the Jin Household head and Madam Jin plan to have Yun Liu impersonate Jin Ling'er at the wedding.
• Xue Fuyao recalled that Jin Ling'er had fled to join Yang Lin and that Ming Cen later vanished after being humiliated at the wedding.
• Xue Fuyao urged Ming Cen to tell his father about the deception, flee the wedding, and expose the Jin Household; Ming Cen agreed to let his father handle it.
• Ming Cen contacted his father with a Communication Talisman, while Xue Fuyao reported what had happened to her master.
• Xue Fuyao and Ming Cen returned to the Ming Household, where Xie Yichu praised Xue Fuyao for her actions.

Ming Cen and the Ming Household exposed the Jin Household’s attempt to substitute a maid for Jin Ling'er at the wedding, while Ming Yi punished Yang Lin and condemned the Jin Household. Jin Ling'er arrived too late to change the outcome and learned that Ming Cen had already abandoned the marriage.

• Ming Cen revealed himself at the wedding and explained that Jin Ling'er had fled and the Jin Household had sent a maid in her place.
• Ming Yi denounced the Jin Household and used his pressure on Yang Lin to secretly alter his meridians.
• Jin Ling'er arrived, rushed to Yang Lin, and accused the disguised stand-in of mistreating her.
• Xue Fuyao explained the deception to Jin Ling'er, who struggled to accept that Ming Cen had left the wedding.
• Ming Yi dismissed the guests and declared that the Jin Household would disappear from Beidou City.

Ming Cen ended his engagement to Jin Ling'er, cut off the support he had given her lineage, and withdrew the Qiming Secret Realm entry slots he had promised her. Xue Fuyao stayed with him by the pond as he quietly dealt with the heartbreak.

• Jin Ling'er confronted Ming Yi, assuming Ming Cen did not know she had fled their wedding, but Ming Cen revealed himself and said he knew.
• Jin Ling'er begged Ming Cen to take her back, but he rejected her and declared that he no longer wanted her.
• Ming Cen ended their relationship, withdrew his support for Jin Ling'er and her lineage, and canceled her two Qiming Secret Realm entry slots.
• Ming Cen left the confrontation, and Xie Yichu sent Xue Fuyao to check on him before the punishment continued.
• Xue Fuyao found Ming Cen feeding fish by a pond, caught and grilled a koi, and the aroma began to reach him as he sat in silence.

Xue Fuyao and Ming Cen bonded over a daylong grilled-fish feast, though their meal left Ming Yi furious about his expensive koi. After Xie Yichu brought Xue Fuyao back to Wutong Valley and eased her overfull stomach, she woke refreshed and joined the disciples’ training, where Gu Nian asked about the Ming Household wedding.

• Xue Fuyao ate the grilled fish without inviting Ming Cen, then ignored his complaint and rested in the sun.
• Ming Cen and Xue Fuyao took turns catching and grilling fish until night, drinking tea and spirit wine as their relationship grew closer.
• Ming Cen got drunk and clung to Xue Fuyao’s leg, while she plugged her ears and let him cry.
• Xie Yichu and Ming Yi found Ming Cen and Xue Fuyao passed out beside the fish bones; Ming Yi realized they had eaten his Ten-Thousand-Longevity Koi, and Xie Yichu took Xue Fuyao away.
• Xie Yichu returned Xue Fuyao to Wutong Valley and used spiritual power to ease her stomach; the next morning, she woke feeling energetic and joined the disciples’ training.
• Gu Nian asked Xue Fuyao about the Ming Household wedding and discussed the varied reactions to Ming Cen and Jin Ling’er’s flight from it.

Xue Fuyao agreed to meet Lin Yanran after learning she was the Regent’s daughter, and found her confronting Qin Mengwan outside Wutong Valley. Lin Yanran whipped two young men who challenged her, then warmly invited Xue Fuyao to go somewhere with her.

• Xue Fuyao recalled the delicious koi from the Ming Household’s garden and considered asking Ming Cen how they were raised.
• Xue Fuyao initially told the Wutong Valley maid to turn Lin Yanran away, but changed her mind after learning Lin Yanran’s father was the Regent of the Crimson Feather Dynasty.
• Xue Fuyao came outside and saw Lin Yanran demanding that Qin Mengwan kneel and kowtow to get back a crystal sphere holding a peach blossom.
• Two young men defended Qin Mengwan and demanded an apology, so Lin Yanran whipped them and accused the Lin Household of treason.
• Lin Yanran noticed Xue Fuyao, took her hand, and offered to show her somewhere she would like.

Xue Fuyao noticed living black vein patterns on Lin Yanran’s neck and suspected the crystal ball Lin Yanran had given her was connected to them. She told Lin Yanran and Ming Cen what she had seen, leaving them to investigate the unexplained patterns.

• Lin Yanran gave Xue Fuyao a crystal ball containing a plum blossom, then took her to the Market to hunt for overlooked treasures.
• While Lin Yanran browsed the stalls, Xue Fuyao noticed shifting black vein patterns covering her neck and wondered why only she could see them.
• Xue Fuyao told Lin Yanran that a wooden bird carving was ordinary, then asked her and Ming Cen to speak somewhere private.
• In a restaurant private room, Xue Fuyao explained what she had seen and suspected the crystal ball was responsible for the black vein patterns.
• Ming Cen questioned when the patterns appeared, while Lin Yanran pointed out that she had felt nothing unusual when holding the crystal ball.

Xue Fuyao and Ming Cen confirmed that a crystal ball caused black veins to appear on Lin Yanran, leading them to suspect the Qin Household was behind the Crimson Feather Imperial Clan’s declining cultivation aptitude. They sought another imperial clan member to test whether Lin Yanran was an isolated case, but learned that Lin Changge had already left Beidou City.

• Ming Cen held the crystal ball near Lin Yanran, and black veins spread across her exposed skin below the head.
• Lin Yanran tried to tell her father, but Ming Cen and Xue Fuyao urged her to be cautious in case she was an isolated case or the culprit noticed.
• Lin Yanran said the crystal ball came from the Chancellor’s residence, and Ming Cen explained the Qin Household’s history and its rise to power.
• The three suspected the Qin Household was behind the Crimson Feather Imperial Clan’s predicament and went to the Ming Residence to find Lin Changge.
• They learned Lin Changge had already left Beidou City, and Lin Yanran complained that he had departed unusually quickly.

Xue Fuyao rescued Lin Changge from a staged attempt to drive him over a cliff and recognized signs that he might become a powerful Devil Race general. Ming Cen saw black veins covering Lin Changge and said the matter was beyond their ability to handle, leaving them to return and contact the emperor.

• Xue Fuyao stopped Lin Yanran from sending messengers after Lin Changge and set out with Ming Cen to catch him.
• Lin Changge explained that he disliked staying in Beidou City because cultivators reminded him that he had no spiritual root.
• Someone frightened Lin Changge's horse, sending it charging toward a cliff, but Xue Fuyao caught him with a blue silk-like binding.
• Xue Fuyao recognized a faint trace of devil qi in Lin Changge and suspected a heart demon had entered his body.
• Xue Fuyao brought Lin Changge to Ming Cen, who saw black veins covering him and told him to contact his Imperial Father.