Recaps

Huang Xiao broke through to the fifth layer of the Heavenly Demon Skill while fighting Cao Wuxin, turning the tide and forcing Cao Wuxin to flee. Huang Xiao pursued him, while Xiao Yan stayed behind with the three wounded experts.

• Cao Wuxin's palm strike triggered a violent surge of Heavenly Demon True Qi in Huang Xiao's meridians, and Huang Xiao risked his life by attempting the fifth-layer method.
• As Cao Wuxin attacked again, Huang Xiao forced the true qi into his Dantian, broke through to the fifth layer, and blocked Cao Wuxin's palm before striking him back.
• Huang Xiao used his new strength to suppress Cao Wuxin in their exchange and nearly crippled his leg, then warned him that he would die that day.
• Huang Xiao unleashed the fifth-layer force of the Heavenly Demon Subduing Tiger Fist and sent Cao Wuxin flying, but could not kill him in one blow.
• Cao Wuxin fled, and Huang Xiao chased after him; Xiao Yan remained behind after the three wounded experts urged her to leave the area with them.

Huang Xiao defeated Cao Wuxin but had to abandon the pursuit when his internal injuries flared. Gui Jiu, the Sect Master of Ghost Gate, confronted him over the Heavenly Demon Skill, but Ran Chou arrived and challenged Gui Jiu as Huang Xiao was told to escape.

• Xiao Yan withdrew toward Kaifeng with her injured party, reflecting that Huang Xiao had surpassed Cao Wuxin among the younger generation.
• Huang Xiao caught Cao Wuxin and defeated him in a second clash, but stopped pursuing when his meridian injuries worsened.
• Gui Jiu appeared, revealed that he wanted Huang Xiao dead because of the Heavenly Demon Skill and its threat to his plans, and blocked his escape.
• Ran Chou arrived and reminded Gui Jiu that he had defeated him ten years earlier, then ordered Huang Xiao to leave.
• Gui Jiu charged at Huang Xiao despite Ran Chou's challenge.

Ran Chou fought Gui Jiu to protect Huang Xiao, but Huang Xiao was badly injured after running into Jin Yi of the Taixuan Sect. Wan Qingteng arrived and attacked Jin Yi, leaving Ran Chou to face Gui Jiu while carrying the unconscious Huang Xiao.

• Huang Xiao escaped while Ran Chou blocked Gui Jiu, and the two old rivals fought at full strength.
• Gui Jiu revealed that he had mastered Tuoba Xiongzhen's Soul-Severing Finger and wounded Ran Chou.
• Huang Xiao returned while fleeing Jin Yi, who struck him with Palm Force; Ran Chou caught him and suppressed the force but feared for his life.
• Gui Jiu and Jin Yi proposed joining forces against Ran Chou, who refused to abandon the unconscious Huang Xiao.
• Wan Qingteng arrived and attacked Jin Yi, while Gui Jiu continued to threaten Ran Chou and Huang Xiao.

Mu Jingfei intervened to let Ran Chou carry the injured Huang Xiao away, then confronted Gui Jiu over their old enmity. Elsewhere, Tuoba Xing killed Cao Wuxin with a single word, and Jin Yi later found the corpse without discovering who had done it.

• Mu Jingfei blocked Gui Jiu and told Ran Chou to take Huang Xiao away, citing Ling Tianya as the reason.
• Mu Jingfei and Gui Jiu began fighting as Mu Jingfei spoke of his plans for vengeance against the power behind the Ghost Gate.
• After fleeing Huang Xiao, Cao Wuxin resolved to return to Taixuan Island and train before seeking revenge.
• Tuoba Xing confronted Cao Wuxin, who attacked him, but Tuoba Xing said “Die!” and killed him with a word.
• Two hours later, Jin Yi found Cao Wuxin dead and realized an unknown expert had shattered every meridian in his body.

After the battle at Shaolin, the survivors searched for Huang Xiao while news of the massacre and his lineage spread across the Wulin. Liaochen found no corpse and hoped Huang Xiao had survived, while Zhao Yunhui asked Zhao Yunya what had happened to him.

• Jin Yi carried Cao Wuxin's corpse away, intending to ask the Taixuan Sect's Sect Master to identify the killer, while Gui Jiu fled after Mu Jingfei defeated him.
• Ling Tianya withdrew from Shaolin after the Righteous Path forces drove back his side, leaving many dead and wounded; Master Kongming treated Liaochen, who worried that Cao Wuxin had killed Huang Xiao.
• Liaochen searched Mount Song for Huang Xiao's body until nightfall but found no trace of him, leaving him hopeful that Huang Xiao was alive.
• News of the Shaolin battle, Pudu's death, the Medicine King Hall's destruction of Medicine God Valley and Poison God Valley, and Huang Xiao's identity as Ling Tianya's grandson spread through the Wulin.
• Zhao Yunya told Zhao Yunhui that Ling Tianya had discovered Huang Xiao years earlier and secretly assigned Jiang Ying to protect him; Zhao Yunhui asked where Huang Xiao was and what had happened after Cao Wuxin pursued him.

Zhao Yunhui worried that Huang Xiao was missing and might be in danger, while Zhao Yunya promised to seek reliable news from Shaolin. At the Soul-Devouring Demon Sect, Jin Yi used its Sect Master Token to demand a meeting with Tu Zhangyuan, then headed toward the sect master's cave after receiving no reply.

• Zhao Yunya told Zhao Yunhui that Huang Xiao was probably safe but his whereabouts were unknown, and Zhao Yunhui asked her to share any news she found.
• Zhao Yunya proposed sending Dugu Sheng to ask Liaochen for information about what had happened at Shaolin.
• Jin Yi arrived at the Soul-Devouring Demon Sect with its Sect Master Token, and Lu Wang verified it and agreed to lead him to Tu Zhangyuan's seclusion cave.
• Jin Yi called for Tu Zhangyuan twice but got no response, then suggested that the sect master might be dead and questioned Lu Wang's motives.
• Jin Yi ignored Lu Wang's warning and strode toward the cave entrance to find out whether Tu Zhangyuan was alive.

Tuoba Xing slipped into Tu Zhangyuan’s cave and learned that the sect master had emerged from seclusion and was heading back to Wei Family Fort. There, Gui Jiu seized the Tuoba family’s inherited martial arts manuscripts and entered Tuoba Xiongzhen’s secret training chamber, where he found an unexpected intruder.

• Jin Yi delivered the Taixuan Sect sect master’s warning to Tu Zhangyuan to watch the Ghost Gate, the Thousand Demons Sect, and the Heavenly Demon Guard, while Tuoba Xing secretly hid in the cave.
• Tuoba Xing left for Wei Family Fort, and Tu Zhangyuan told Lu Wang to keep his emergence from seclusion secret and manage the sect as usual.
• Tuoba Hu brought Gui Jiu three books of his family’s inherited cultivation methods, and Gui Jiu warned him not to disappoint him again.
• Tuoba Hu returned to his room in tears, knowing he had surrendered the family’s remaining supreme arts to protect his lineage from Gui Jiu.
• Gui Jiu read the incomplete manuscripts and went to Tuoba Xiongzhen’s underground training chamber to study them.
• Gui Jiu found an unknown man standing in the secret chamber, retreated against the sealed stone door, and recognized the danger.

Tuoba Xing revealed that he was alive and confronted Gui Jiu for turning against him and targeting his descendants. After punishing Gui Jiu and restoring his obedience, Tuoba Xing ordered him to help plunge the Jianghu and several countries into chaos, while he planned to remove every obstacle to his ambitions.

• Gui Jiu knelt before the man he believed dead, then recognized him as Tuoba Xing and questioned how he had survived.
• Tuoba Xing rebuked Gui Jiu for plotting against his descendants and seeking his cultivation methods, while Gui Jiu claimed his increased power made him difficult to defeat.
• Tuoba Xing revealed that he had poisoned Gui Jiu and withheld the true Ghost Spirit Nine Transformations Art, then triggered Gui Jiu's agony.
• Tuoba Xing's aura briefly turned violent as he recalled Li of the Taixuan Sect, then he kicked Gui Jiu through the stone door and spared him because he still had a use for him.
• Gui Jiu pledged obedience, and Tuoba Xing ordered him to stir up conflict across the Jianghu and several countries while he considered how to eliminate every obstacle.

Tuoba Xing ordered Gui Jiu to locate the Seven Spirit Blades while planning to use other powers to weaken the Taixuan Sect. Meanwhile, Huang Xiao recovered at the Heavenly Demon Guard’s base in Uyghur territory, where Ran Chou told him he was qualified to become Heavenly Demon Sect Master; Huang Xiao accepted and resolved to use the position to pursue revenge.

• Tuoba Xing told Gui Jiu he would avoid confronting the Taixuan Sect directly and ordered him to find the remaining Seven Spirit Blades.
• Tuoba Xing destroyed the three books Gui Jiu brought, then sent him away from Wei Family Fort.
• Ran Chou told Huang Xiao he had been unconscious for five days and explained that the Heavenly Demon Guard’s base was in Uyghur territory, where the Heavenly Demon Sect’s main altar had once stood.
• Ran Chou said Huang Xiao’s mastery of the Heavenly Demon Skill qualified him to become Heavenly Demon Sect Master and command the sect’s former forces.
• Huang Xiao agreed to follow Ran Chou’s arrangements, then told Duan Ren he would call on him if needed.
• Huang Xiao thought of Zhao Xin’er and resolved to recover, secure his position as Sect Master, and use the Heavenly Demon Sect’s power for revenge against the Medicine King Hall.

Ran Chou presented Huang Xiao as the candidate for Heavenly Demon Sect Master, but Fang Dong challenged his qualifications and opposed his appointment. Fang Jin and Fang Min returned to oppose Fang Dong, and Ran Chou began arranging a vote among the lineages.

• Huang Xiao entered the Heavenly Demon Guard's main hall and endured the experts' pressure without losing his composure.
• Ran Chou announced that Huang Xiao knew the Heavenly Demon Skill and had reached its fifth layer, making him qualified to become Sect Master.
• Fang Dong objected that Huang Xiao's martial power was too weak, while several lineages aligned with the Fang Family supported his opposition.
• Fang Jin and Fang Min entered the hall, challenged Fang Dong's authority over the Fang Family, and declared their support for Huang Xiao.
• Ran Chou asked the experts whether they had authority to vote for their lineages, then turned to Fang Dong for the Fang Family's position.

Fang Dong tried to block Huang Xiao’s appointment as Heavenly Demon Sect Master, but Ran Chou’s maneuver made Fang Jin the Fang Family’s representative and Huang Xiao won an overwhelming majority. Huang Xiao took the throne and called on the reunited Lineages to restore the sect’s strength.

• Fang Dong challenged the voting process, and Ran Chou agreed that Lineage representatives would decide how votes were allocated while the Heavenly Demon Guard stayed neutral.
• Ran Chou made the Fang Family choose one representative from Fang Dong, Fang Jin, and Fang Min; Fang Min backed Fang Jin, securing Fang Jin’s selection over Fang Dong.
• Fang Dong denounced the appointment and left after Fang Min blocked him briefly and Ran Chou ordered everyone to stand down.
• The remaining Lineages voted overwhelmingly for Huang Xiao, who became the new Heavenly Demon Sect Master and received the experts’ salute.
• Huang Xiao asked Ran Chou to oversee the sect’s integration and urged the Lineages to unite; Ran Chou then asked Old Madam You to have a girl from her family attend the Sect Master.

Five years after becoming Sect Master, Huang Xiao had reached the eighth stage of the Heavenly Demon Skill with help from You Lian'er and the Heavenly Demon Sect’s experts. He told Ran Chou and the five Banner Envoys that he planned to leave for a while, leaving his next move unresolved.

• Five years earlier, Huang Xiao admitted to Ran Chou that the sect’s experts obeyed him mainly because of Ran Chou’s authority.
• Huang Xiao broke through to the eighth stage after years of cultivation, power transfers from sect experts, and six rejuvenations that strengthened his meridians.
• You Lian'er entered Huang Xiao’s training chamber, and they kissed before a disciple summoned him to meet Ran Chou and the five Banner Envoys.
• Huang Xiao went to the Main Hall and reflected that the sect’s experts now respected and feared him, while Ran Chou remained his only serious potential rival.
• Huang Xiao told Ran Chou and the five Banner Envoys that he wanted to leave the sect for a while as he stabilized his eighth-stage cultivation.

Huang Xiao decided to leave the Heavenly Demon Sect after five years in order to find Zhao Xin'er, but learned that Du Tianchou and his master had been captured in Xiping Prefecture. After saying farewell to You Lian'er, he set out first to confront them and seek news of Qingfeng.

• Huang Xiao insisted on leaving despite Envoy Jin and the other Banner Envoys urging him to consolidate his eighth-level cultivation, while Ran Chou supported his decision.
• Ran Chou reported that Du Tianchou and his master had been captured by Li Jiqian's men and imprisoned in Xiping Prefecture.
• Huang Xiao left to go to Xiping Prefecture, and Ran Chou told him that Li Jiqian's health was failing after being poisoned five years earlier.
• At the sect gate, You Lian'er learned Huang Xiao was leaving to find Zhao Xin'er and encouraged him to go, while he promised not to let her down.
• Huang Xiao told You Lian'er he would try to prolong Li Jiqian's life and hoped to learn Qingfeng's whereabouts from the prisoners; You Lian'er gave him a sable cloak before he departed.

Huang Xiao returned toward Xiping Prefecture, rescued a Xiazhou patrol from Tubo pursuers, and entered the city after punishing Jianghu practitioners who mistreated commoners. He sought out Li Deming before going to the imperial prison to see Du Tianchou.

• Huang Xiao left You Lian'er and traveled east toward Xiping Prefecture.
• Huang Xiao killed the Tubo pursuers with a shout, rescued the Xiazhou patrol, and healed its wounded commander.
• At Xiping Prefecture’s gates, Huang Xiao secretly injured a Jianghu practitioner who was kicking commoners, prompting the group to behave themselves.
• Huang Xiao wondered why so many Jianghu practitioners were gathering in Xiping Prefecture, then went to find Li Deming before visiting Du Tianchou.
• Li Deming greeted Huang Xiao as Sect Master, then asked whether he could call him Brother Huang.

Huang Xiao confronted Du Tianchou and his master in the Heavenly Prison to learn what happened to his eldest senior brother. After learning that his master had knocked the senior brother off a cliff into a pool, Huang Xiao killed the master and executed Du Tianchou, leaving the senior brother’s fate uncertain.

• Li Deming led Huang Xiao to the Heavenly Prison, where Huang Xiao confronted Du Tianchou and his master.
• Huang Xiao confirmed that he had obtained the Heavenly Demon Canon, and Du Tianchou admitted that he and his master had sought to use his eldest senior brother to threaten him.
• Du Tianchou’s master confessed that he had gravely wounded Huang Xiao’s eldest senior brother and knocked him off a cliff into a pool at the foot of Green Ox Temple Mountain.
• Huang Xiao questioned whether his eldest senior brother might have survived, but Du Tianchou’s master said the fall and injuries left no hope.
• Huang Xiao gave Du Tianchou’s master a quick death, then refused Du Tianchou’s pleas for mercy and killed him with an ice shard.

Huang Xiao punished Du Tianchou with a tormenting poison, then examined Li Jiqian and discovered that the King of Xia had gained years of life from the Ageless Spring. Huang Xiao planned to investigate the ancient tomb beneath the pool at Green Ox Temple, where he hoped his Eldest Senior Brother Qingfeng might still be alive.

• Huang Xiao cursed Du Tianchou with unbearable itching and ordered Li Deming's men to keep him from killing himself, warning that the poison would flare every six hours.
• Huang Xiao told Li Deming he might help Li Jiqian live longer and went with him to the palace.
• On the way, Huang Xiao reasoned that Qingfeng might have survived in the ancient tomb beneath the pool and resolved to search it.
• Huang Xiao examined Li Jiqian and found that his condition was better than expected, with at least three years left to live.
• Li Jiqian revealed that he had drunk from the Ageless Spring three years earlier.

Huang Xiao learned that Li Jiqian had traded the You Family’s Seven Spirit Blade to the Medicine King Hall for Ageless Spring, but he chose not to punish the family. After leaving, he heard that Jianghu fighters were gathering at a nearby mountain because of a rumored treasure.

• Li Jiqian told Huang Xiao that the Ageless Spring came from the Medicine King Hall and that You Lian’er’s mother had secretly traded one of the Seven Spirit Blades for it.
• Huang Xiao recognized the blade as the You Family’s and said he would not hold them responsible, since the Seven Spirit Blades’ mystery could not be solved without all seven.
• Li Jiqian worried Huang Xiao might later punish the You Family, but Huang Xiao reassured Li Deming that he would keep his word.
• Huang Xiao left Li Jiqian’s residence and asked about the Jianghu fighters gathering in Xiping Prefecture, but Li Jiqian and Li Deming knew nothing about it.
• Huang Xiao overheard Jianghu fighters say that experts had gathered at a mountain several dozen li away because of a rumored treasure, and two of them set out to investigate.

Huang Xiao followed a group of Tubo lamas to a supposed treasure trove and discovered it was the Golden-Winged Roc’s home, where Jianghu experts had attacked the Roc family. He intervened to save Brother Peng from Jin Yi, but the Golden-Winged Roc’s life was fading, and Huang Xiao could not heal him.

• Huang Xiao overheard Tubo lamas discussing a treasure trove that the Great Song sects had dismissed as a minor affair, so he followed them.
• Huang Xiao recognized the mountains as the Golden-Winged Roc’s home and rushed toward a mournful cry.
• Huang Xiao found the Roc’s mate dead, while Dugu Sheng and Hong Yi protected her corpse and the grieving young bird from the Jianghu crowd.
• Huang Xiao saw Jin Yi fighting the badly wounded Golden-Winged Roc and knocked Jin Yi away before the Roc fell from the sky.
• Huang Xiao caught Brother Peng and tried to give him true qi, but the Roc’s life was slipping away and Huang Xiao could not treat his injuries.

After Jin Yi killed the Golden-Winged Roc, Huang Xiao promised to care for the orphaned fledgling and challenged Jin Yi to avenge its parents. Their opening exchanges revealed that Huang Xiao could match the Taixuan Sect elder, leaving Jin Yi determined to kill him.

• The dying Golden-Winged Roc entrusted his fledgling to Huang Xiao, who promised to take care of it.
• Hong Yi and Dugu Sheng led the fledgling away, and Hong Yi explained that Dugu Sheng had been injured trying to save the Roc family.
• Huang Xiao confronted Jin Yi and attacked him, provoking a reaction when he mentioned Cao Wuxin, whose death Jin Yi had investigated.
• Huang Xiao and Jin Yi exchanged powerful attacks, but Huang Xiao blocked Jin Yi’s techniques and forced him to retreat.
• Jin Yi realized Huang Xiao’s strength exceeded his expectations and decided that he had to kill him before he grew stronger.

Hong Yi intercepted Dalzha to stop him from joining Jin Yi against Huang Xiao and challenged the Esoteric Sect elder with the Dragon-Capturing Divine Palm. When Hong Yi revealed follow-up palms beyond the eighteenth, Dalzha became wary and threatened to kill him.

• Dalzha mocked Jin Yi and charged toward Huang Xiao, but Hong Yi stepped in and challenged him to a fight.
• Hong Yi and Dalzha exchanged palm strikes, and Dalzha was surprised by Hong Yi’s strength.
• Dalzha used the Wild Elephant Esoteric Sect Divine Skill to counter Hong Yi’s Dragon-Capturing Divine Palm and dispersed his eighteenth palm.
• Hong Yi unleashed a nineteenth palm that forced Dalzha to dodge, then struck with a twentieth palm that made Dalzha step back.
• Dalzha recognized Hong Yi’s palm technique as a threat and said he could no longer let him live.

Hong Yi and Dalzha continued their escalating palm battle while Dugu Sheng kept the Jianghu fighters away from the cliff cave. Huang Xiao defeated Jin Yi in a clash of internal power, but Jin Yi wrongly concluded that Huang Xiao had received an Empowerment Method and could never advance further.

• Dalzha unleashed the seventh layer of the Wild Elephant Esoteric Sect Divine Skill and attacked Hong Yi, who answered with his Twenty-First Palm.
• Hong Yi and Dalzha exchanged increasingly powerful palms, while Dugu Sheng realized Hong Yi had developed the Twenty-Third Palm.
• Several Jianghu fighters tried to reach the cliff cave, but Dugu Sheng drove them back and killed those who tried to pass him with sword qi.
• Huang Xiao struck Jin Yi back in a contest of internal power, leaving Jin Yi astonished by his cultivation.
• Jin Yi accused Ran Chou of using the Empowerment Method to raise Huang Xiao's strength and concluded that Huang Xiao could no longer make further progress.

Huang Xiao confronted Jin Yi and revealed control of the Heavenly Demon Skill’s eighth stage, while Hong Yi fought Dalzha as both battles escalated. Jin Yi fled toward the cliff cave with Huang Xiao in pursuit, and Hong Yi and Dalzha ended their clash injured and evenly matched.

• Jin Yi challenged Huang Xiao, and the Jianghu martial artists learned that Huang Xiao was the Heavenly Demon Sect Master.
• Huang Xiao concealed his aura and demonstrated the eighth stage of the Heavenly Demon Skill, alarming Jin Yi.
• Huang Xiao struck Jin Yi, who sacrificed the strength in his arms to escape the blow and then fled toward the cliff cave with Huang Xiao chasing him.
• Dalzha tried to pursue Jin Yi toward the cave, but Hong Yi blocked him, prompting Dalzha to unleash the eighth level of the Wild Elephant Esoteric Sect Divine Skill.
• Hong Yi countered with his twenty-fifth palm, and the clash left both him and Dalzha bleeding and injured.

Hong Yi fought Dalzha and revealed a powerful twenty-sixth palm, severely injuring them both before Dalzha withdrew with his lamas. As the remaining Jianghu fighters kept their hopes on the Seven-Spirit Disc, Huang Xiao pursued Jin Yi toward the cliff-top cave.

• Hong Yi and Dalzha exchanged attacks, and Hong Yi claimed he had developed a twenty-sixth palm after matching Dalzha's eighth-level technique.
• Hong Yi's twenty-sixth palm overwhelmed Dalzha's Palm Force and damaged his meridians, but Dalzha's deeper internal power dissolved much of Hong Yi's attack.
• Both fighters ended the exchange bloodied, and Dalzha decided to leave rather than risk a fight for the Seven-Spirit Disc while injured.
• Dalzha ordered his lamas to withdraw, prompting some Jianghu people to leave while others stayed to pursue the treasure.
• Dugu Sheng checked on Hong Yi, and they watched Huang Xiao close in on the fleeing Jin Yi near the cave at the top of the cliff.

Huang Xiao pursued Jin Yi into a cave, where they discovered that Gui Jiu had found the Seven-Spirit Disc. Huang Xiao learned that the disc was connected to the Seven Spirit Blades and the hidden treasure they could reveal, while Gui Jiu began to suspect Huang Xiao was someone significant.

• Hong Yi and Dugu Sheng accepted Huang Xiao's position as Heavenly Demon Sect Master and waited below while he pursued Jin Yi.
• Jin Yi rushed into the cave searching for the Seven-Spirit Disc, and Huang Xiao followed him inside.
• Gui Jiu emerged carrying the Seven-Spirit Disc, and Jin Yi blocked his escape.
• Huang Xiao recognized the disc from his earlier stay in the cave and connected its seven depressions to the Seven Spirit Blades.
• Jin Yi told Huang Xiao that placing all seven Spirit Blades on the disc could reveal a hidden treasure or martial arts manual.
• Gui Jiu noticed that Jin Yi feared Huang Xiao and wondered who the young man really was.

Huang Xiao confronted Gui Jiu over the Seven Spirit Disc and proved his strength had grown enough to challenge him directly. Their battle left Gui Jiu shocked by Huang Xiao’s power and resistance to his vitality-draining art, while Huang Xiao grew more experienced and gained the upper hand.

• Gui Jiu recognized Huang Xiao and mocked his claim that he could challenge him, while Huang Xiao demanded the Seven Spirit Disc and threatened to join Jin Yi against him.
• Jin Yi attacked Gui Jiu, and Huang Xiao joined the fight with a palm strike that matched Gui Jiu’s force and forced him to retreat.
• Huang Xiao pressed the attack with the Heavenly Demon Subduing Tiger Fist, and Gui Jiu countered with the White Bone Ghost Claw.
• Gui Jiu’s claw force invaded Huang Xiao’s meridians and tried to drain his vitality, but Huang Xiao’s Everlasting Spring Ageless True Qi neutralized it.
• After exchanging more than a dozen moves, Gui Jiu withdrew in disbelief as Huang Xiao continued to grow more confident and gain the upper hand.