Chapter Summaries

At the Clear-Talk Assembly, Song Yan questioned the purpose of the Demon Ruins Cultivators’ attack at Two Realms Mountain and suggested Cloud-Parting Valley had been a hidden objective. His deduction changed Yu Xiu and Wu Guan’s assessment of the battle, while Song Yan was left distracted by a scent that reminded him of Xiao He.

• Yu Xiu and Wu Guan debated whether the Immortal Dao Alliance’s cautious strategy or Wu Guan’s aggressive plan would have better served the battle at Two Realms Mountain.
• Yu Xiu invited Song Yan to discuss the Eastern Wilderness, and Song Yan said he knew little about the war but would help resist the Demon Ruins Cultivators if given the chance.
• As the elders reviewed the battle, Song Yan suggested the enemy’s costly attacks might have been meant to draw attention away from Cloud-Parting Valley.
• Yu Xiu and Wu Guan tested Song Yan’s theory on the battlefield projection and found that treating Cloud-Parting Valley as strategically important made the enemy’s movements appear more coherent.
• After the Jun Mountain group left their cave abode, Song Yan smelled an unfamiliar scent that reminded him of Xiao He.

Song Yan and Zhong Ali began their Combat forum trial in Taiyi’s Formless Illusion Realm, drawing a crowd eager to witness a clash between two rumored first-rank golden cores. Their opening attacks escalated until Zhong Ali summoned a six-petaled Karmic Fire Red Lotus, leaving Song Yan and the spectators astonished.

• Song Yan chose the Combat forum trial, hoping to qualify for the Mindscape forum and test himself against Zhong Ali.
• Song Yan and Zhong Ali arrived at the Combat forum, where the Taiyi Sect deacon announced they would spar inside the Formless Illusion Realm before delivering their lectures.
• The gathered cultivators watched Song Yan and Zhong Ali enter the illusion realm as news of their showdown spread among the other forums.
• Song Yan unleashed a formation of flying swords while Zhong Ali summoned Heavenly Sound Gui Water Divine Thunder and a vast flood of spiritual power.
• Song Yan countered with his Moonfall sword formation, and Zhong Ali formed a six-petaled crimson lotus infused with karmic power, astonishing Song Yan and the spectators.

Song Yan and Zhong Ali fought fiercely inside the Water Mirror trial, each revealing powerful techniques until Zhong Ali began drawing on outside power and the projection collapsed. They emerged unharmed with identical Grade A High ratings, leaving the spectators unsure who had won.

• Zhong Ali unleashed her Karmic Fire Red Lotus, and Song Yan countered with his Traveling Heavenly Dao Sword Domain, wounding her through her glazed defenses.
• Zhong Ali severed Song Yan’s connection to spiritual workings and attacked with Gui Water Divine Thunder and Karmic Fire, but he shattered both with a massive sword strike.
• Zhong Ali admitted she had lost, then drew the sword at her back and began absorbing the world’s spiritual workings, destabilizing the Water Mirror’s projection.
• Wen Changming sensed the Water Mirror’s instability and sent a spirit crane toward Spirit Firmament Gorge, while Sheng Nian learned from Old Devil Xie that only the projection had collapsed.
• Song Yan and Zhong Ali reappeared unharmed and both received Grade A High ratings, leaving the crowd uncertain about the outcome.

Song Yan and Zhong Ali finished their demonstrations at the Combat Forum and guided the cultivators who came to spar. Xiao He, jealous of those who called Song Yan and Zhong Ali an immortal couple, challenged Zhong Ali before leaving the platform and catching Song Yan’s attention; he recognized her, and they reunited in an embrace.

• The Taiyi Sect elder declared Song Yan and Zhong Ali’s contest a tie and invited them to discuss the Dao with the gathered cultivators.
• Song Yan and Zhong Ali took separate platforms, offering advice to disciples and commenting on their bouts.
• Xiao He grew jealous when she heard cultivators call Song Yan and Zhong Ali a perfect pair, then approached Zhong Ali under the name Lu Zong and challenged her.
• Xiao He and Zhong Ali exchanged several moves, but Xiao He stopped the bout and hurried away.
• Song Yan sensed a trace of demon Qi, pursued Xiao He through the crowd, and recognized her when she angrily confronted him.
• Song Yan embraced Xiao He, and she returned the embrace after telling him he had taken too long to recognize her.

Song Yan reunited with Xiao He at Moon-Worship River Valley, where they spent the evening exploring the festivities and listening to Master Ye Yin play the qin. The music left Xiao He imagining the sound of the ocean, while Zhong Ali and Gu Qingqing watched the pair from a distance.

• Song Yan declined Zhong Ali’s invitation to Moon-Worship River Valley, so Zhong Ali, Gu Qingqing, and Lü Luo followed him to discover whom he was meeting.
• Little Butterfly dressed Xiao He at Tong'an Inn, and Xiao He said she and Yanyan already shared the lifelong bond Little Butterfly described as marriage.
• Zhong Ali and Gu Qingqing saw Song Yan meet Xiao He beneath a willow, and Gu Qingqing recognized her from the Dongyuan Sect.
• Song Yan and Xiao He wandered through the river valley and then attended a qin performance by Master Ye Yin.
• Xiao He said Ye Yin’s music felt like the sound of the ocean, and a lone figure behind them suddenly stopped.

Song Yan and Xiao He declined Master Ye Yin’s offer to make her his disciple, then joined Feng Xiao, Ying Yu, Lu Zong, and Little Butterfly for a boat ride. Meanwhile, Wang Ke played Go with a young man who urged Ghost Valley to join him against the Demon Ruins, and the outing ended when Meng Tian confronted the demons and unleashed Dragon Might.

• Master Ye Yin praised Xiao He’s talent for the way of qin music and offered to take her as his disciple, but she refused because she did not know him.
• Song Yan accepted Ye Yin’s token on Xiao He’s behalf, and the pair invited Feng Xiao, Ying Yu, Lu Zong, and Little Butterfly to join them on a pleasure boat.
• Wang Ke played Go with an elegant young man who identified himself as Brother Li and tried to recruit Ghost Valley to help face the returning Demon Ruins.
• Song Yan recounted his travels to Xiao He and his companions as they cruised the river, until a black speedboat rammed their vessel.
• Meng Tian confronted Feng Xiao and the others, claimed they should submit to her True Dragon Bloodline, and unleashed Dragon Might when Xiao He said they could not bow to someone they did not know.

Meng Tian attacked Xiao He after demanding that she help restore the Demon Race, but Song Yan wounded her and forced her to reveal her dragon form. Song Yan fought her above the Moon-Sacrificing River and began turning the battle with Mirror Flower Shadow.

• Meng Tian demanded that Xiao He obey her, then lunged at her with a Dragon Claw when Xiao He refused.
• Song Yan intercepted Meng Tian's attack, wounded her palm, and challenged her for threatening Xiao He.
• Meng Tian transformed into a massive dragon, and Song Yan fought her with his Flying Swords and Sword Domain while cultivators watched and officials organized the crowd.
• Meng Tian used a dragon pearl to summon a storm and trap Song Yan's Unmoored Boat, but Song Yan called her an imitation of a True Dragon.
• Song Yan used a vanishing technique to evade Meng Tian's charge, then cast Mirror Flower Shadow and made the world appear to turn upside down around her.

Song Yan defeated Meng Tian with his sword, but Shanhai intervened and took her away, sealing her demon power for thirty years. After the river valley settled, Wang Ke won his Go match, and Shanhai watched Song Yan and Xiao He from afar.

• Meng Tian used her Dragon Pearl to break Song Yan’s illusion, but his sword light nearly killed her before Shanhai’s force stopped the attack.
• Song Yan explained that he had intended to cripple Meng Tian rather than kill her, and Shanhai promised to discipline her and take her back to Silent Dragon Abyss.
• Shanhai sealed Meng Tian’s demon power for thirty years and warned her not to cause trouble again; she left resentful of Song Yan and Between Mountains and Seas.
• Wang Ke trapped the young man surnamed Li’s great dragon in their Go match, and Li conceded before leaving to seek an audience with True Person Ciyu.
• Zhu Pingfang and Zhu Lifang marveled at Song Yan’s strength, while Shanhai and the others discussed the trouble Meng Tian had caused.
• An old man in black-and-purple Daoist robes watched Song Yan and Xiao He from the spirit pool and remarked that they had both grown up.

Deng Ke visited Song Yan at Cloud-Embracing Villa, where Ye Yin entrusted Song Yan with an old qin score and a mysterious pendant before leaving to wander the world. Ye Yin recounted how his search for Yingzhou and a strange island had inspired his musical breakthrough, while Song Yan wondered whether Ye Yin’s sea chart was the same one Yang Zhu had given him.

• Deng Ke bade farewell to Ma Sheng and his three Yuzhen disciples, who decided to prepare to aid the Eastern Wilderness front.
• Deng Ke arrived at Cloud-Embracing Villa and met Xiao He, who said Song Yan was speaking with a strange guest and told Deng Ke to wait.
• Ye Yin told Song Yan he was leaving the Tang Court and entrusted him with a pendant and the Wind and Thunder Guide, asking him to preserve the qin legacy.
• Song Yan found that the pendant responded to his Sword Qi, and Ye Yin explained that the treasure had been passed down with the score.
• Ye Yin told Song Yan that a high official had given him a sea chart said to lead to Yingzhou, and that his search had brought him to an island where wind and thunder inspired his musical breakthrough.
• Song Yan wondered whether Ye Yin’s sea chart was the same one Yang Zhu had once given him.

Ye Yin recounted his tragic return to Chang'an and entrusted Song Yan with his legacy and an old sea chart that matched another map Song Yan possessed. As Song Yan prepared to travel to the Eastern Wilderness with Deng Ke and Xiao He, Zhong Ali learned that the Leyou Enclave was seeking information about her and True Person Ciyu, then planned to return to Luofu.

• Ye Yin told Song Yan how his friend had been executed after Ye Yin returned from the Eastern Sea, and Song Yan agreed to accept Ye Yin’s commission in exchange for his sea chart.
• Song Yan compared Ye Yin’s chart with Shopkeeper Yang’s map and arranged to leave for Two Realms Mountain with Deng Ke and Xiao He later that day.
• Song Yan told Deng Ke that Fang Cunsheng, a Jun Mountain disciple from the Eastern Wilderness, would accompany them on the journey.
• At the Chang'an Ghost Market, Lü Luo collected spirit stones from the Leyou Enclave but declined its offer to buy information about True Person Ciyu and True Person Tianyi.
• Lü Luo returned to Zhong Ali, gave her the spirit stones, and warned her that the Leyou Enclave was investigating them; Zhong Ali then said she needed to return to Luofu.

Zhou Yan rescued Fan Jingchen, a wounded Jun Mountain spy, from Demon Ruins pursuers and brought him to Huliang Village, where Old He agreed to shelter him. Old He began using his family’s clay technique to regrow Fan Jingchen’s severed arm, while Zhou Yan wondered whether he would ever see his childhood friend Fang Cunsheng again.

• Fan Jingchen fled Demon Ruins Cultivators near Cloud-Parting Valley until Zhou Yan diverted an attack and hid him from the pursuers.
• Zhou Yan led Fan Jingchen away from the valley, and Fan Jingchen explained that he had infiltrated the Demon Ruins as a spy under Jun Mountain’s orders.
• Fan Jingchen revealed that he knew no cultivator named Fang Cunsheng, and Zhou Yan said Fang Cunsheng was his childhood friend.
• Zhou Yan brought Fan Jingchen to Huliang Village and the general store, where Old He reluctantly agreed to shelter him.
• After learning Fan Jingchen could no longer perform a secret signaling technique, Old He prepared his family’s clay method to replace the severed arm.
• Old He applied the living clay to Fan Jingchen’s stump and instructed him to guide the new arm’s meridians with Spiritual Power, while Zhou Yan thought of Fang Cunsheng outside.

Fan Jingchen left Huliang Village to hide after Old Man He restored his missing arm, but a Wangchuan Sect force soon threatened the village and captured Zhou Yan. Song Yan arrived at Two Realms Mountain, killed the Golden Core devil cultivator and rescued Fan Jingchen, then invited him to return to Blackwater Pass.

• Old Man He gave Fan Jingchen a clay right arm and warned him to leave Huliang Village so the Demon Ruins cultivators would not endanger its people.
• Fan Jingchen left for a mountain forest, sent a secret signal to the Immortal Dao Alliance, and hid a jade slip recording his intelligence about the Wangchuan Sect.
• A Wangchuan Sect force arrived at Huliang Village to select cultivators, and its deputy struck Old Man He while the leader ordered Zhou Yan seized.
• Fan Jingchen attacked the Demon Ruins cultivators and tried to flee with Zhou Yan and Old Man He, but a gray-robed Golden Core cultivator immobilized them and caught Fan Jingchen.
• A sword light killed the gray-robed Golden Core cultivator, and Song Yan emerged, killed the remaining Foundation Establishment cultivators, and ended the threat to the village.
• Fang Cunsheng arrived to help Old Man He, while Song Yan identified Fan Jingchen and invited him to return to Blackwater Pass.

Song Yan rescued the people of Huliang Village, then brought his companions and one family to Blackwater Pass, where Liu Tianfang welcomed him and showed him his quarters. After reviewing the pass’s battle reports and reinforcement roster, Song Yan discovered that Li Yi was among the reinforcements.

• Song Yan asked who would leave Huliang Village with him, but only one family agreed; Old He and Zhou Yan stayed to help the villagers, while Fang Cunsheng left with Song Yan.
• Fang Cunsheng pressed a small clay figurine into Zhou Yan’s hand before Song Yan’s group departed, and Zhou Yan and Old He decided to move away from Huliang Village.
• Fang Cunsheng told Song Yan how Old He had helped him reach the Central Region and how he and Zhou Yan had grown up as brothers.
• Song Yan arrived at Blackwater Pass, where Liu Tianfang recognized him, welcomed him, and arranged a cave abode for him near his own.
• Song Yan read the pass’s rules and battle reports, saw Wu Guan and Yu Xiu on the reinforcement roster, and then recognized Li Yi’s name.

Li Yi met Song Yan again at the Immortal Dao Alliance conference but did not recognize him, while Song Yan learned that Li Yi had changed. Elsewhere, Shi Yunhao singled out Song Yan as someone interesting and warned Ku Qian not to underestimate him.

• At Blackwater Pass, Li Yi read Song Yan's record and learned that True Person Ciyu had been ordered to make a statement after his conspicuous actions disrupted the Alliance's plans.
• Li Yi explained that the reprimand was meant to discourage weaker cultivators from imitating Song Yan, then lamented that military duties kept him from challenging him to a spar.
• Song Yan received the disciplinary notice, was reassured by Liu Tianfang, and later followed him to the Immortal Dao Alliance conference.
• Song Yan recognized Li Yi outside the hall, but Li Yi greeted him like a stranger, leaving Song Yan confused.
• At the conference, Song Yan made a brief statement of self-reflection before the commanders and other cultivators.
• In Cloud-Parting Valley, Shi Yunhao examined Song Yan's name on the White Bone Chains and warned Ku Qian not to underestimate him.

Song Yan arrived at Great Serpent Mound and found the Immortal Dao Alliance garrison intimidated by the Demon Spirit Sect. He crippled Min He, a Demon Spirit Sect cultivator who had been extorting the garrison, and ordered Fan Jingchen to interrogate him as he began learning about the situation.

• The Immortal Dao Alliance assigned Song Yan to command Great Serpent Mound while Li Yi and his soldiers went to Cloud-Parting Valley, and Fan Jingchen accompanied Song Yan.
• Fan Jingchen told Song Yan that Great Serpent Mound was beset by rampant Devil Cultivators, its former commander Gao Xing had disappeared, and a Nascent Soul Realm enemy might be nearby.
• Deputy General Feng Siyuan tolerated Min He’s accusations and demands for Spiritual Resources because the weakened garrison feared the Demon Spirit Sect.
• Song Yan entered the hall, mistook Min He for a possible undercover agent, then seized him and destroyed his Dantian when Min He admitted he was not one.
• Song Yan ordered Fan Jingchen to interrogate Min He about the Demon Spirit Sect’s nearby base and Golden Core cultivators, then asked Feng Siyuan to explain the garrison’s situation.

Song Yan learned that the Demon Spirit Sect had gathered its forces southeast of Great Serpent Mound and went there to repair his damaged Void-Aspect Dharma Body. Disguised as Yuyan, he killed True Person Dingling in one strike and faced the sect’s two remaining elders as his Dharma Body devoured Dingling’s power.

• Feng Siyuan told Song Yan about Great Serpent Mound’s precarious situation, and Fan Jingchen reported that Min He had revealed the Demon Spirit Sect’s location and its ties to Shi Yun Wu.
• Song Yan left Deng Ke in charge of the garrison and took the crippled Min He to the Demon Spirit Sect’s base to repair his Dharma Body.
• Song Yan spotted True Person Dingling approaching and learned from Min He that Dingling was one of the sect’s three Golden Core elders.
• Song Yan manifested his incomplete Desire Realm Heaven Asura Dharma Body, disguised himself as Yuyan, and killed True Person Dingling with a single sword strike.
• Chiyan and Mystic Yin arrived, saw Dingling’s corpse, and challenged Song Yan as his Dharma Body absorbed Dingling’s power.

Song Yan and Xiao He wiped out the Demon Spirit Sect’s Golden Core elders, plundered its demon cavern, and left the sect in ruins. At Blackwater Pass, Luo Zheng read an intelligence report about the destruction and questioned what it meant.

• Song Yan attacked True Person Mystic Yin and True Person Chiyan while Xiao He restrained Mystic Yin with her demonic mist and snakes.
• The Skeleton Dharma Body crushed Mystic Yin, while Song Yan’s Sword Qi killed Chiyan; the Dharma Body absorbed both Golden Core cultivators’ essence.
• Song Yan let the Dharma Body devastate the Demon Spirit Sect as its disciples fled, then used Min He to locate and plunder the sect’s hidden stores before killing him.
• Song Yan, Xiao He, and the Dharma Body left for the Great Serpent Mound, while Song Yan noted that the missing defending general, Gao Xing, remained unaccounted for.
• At Blackwater Pass, Luo Zheng read an intelligence report delivered by Lü Luo and asked what it meant that the Demon Spirit Sect was gone.

Zhu Pingfang and Zhu Lifang confirmed that Song Yan had destroyed the Demon Spirit Sect, while Luo Zheng reassigned them to assist Li Yi at Cloud-Parting Valley. Song Yan’s killing of a Devil Cultivator intensified rumors and drew criticism from some Immortal Dao Alliance leaders, and the chapter ended with him examining the origins of his Dharma Form cultivation method.

• Zhu Pingfang and Zhu Lifang found the Demon Spirit Sect reduced to ruins and reported that True Person Gao was missing to Luo Zheng.
• Luo Zheng sent the Zhu Family Brothers to assist Li Yi at Cloud-Parting Valley and promised to dispatch True Person Ciyu if the pressure became too great.
• A Golden Core Middle Stage Devil Cultivator crossed into Great Serpent Mound and mocked the Immortal Dao Alliance, so Song Yan killed him with a sword strike and absorbed his remains into a Black-Gold Pearl Jade.
• News of Song Yan’s actions spread across Two Realms Mountain, prompting the Demon Ruins to issue bounties and some Immortal Dao Alliance leaders to warn that his killings could provoke retaliation.
• Song Yan heard Fang Cunsheng’s report, found no new assignment, and reflected on the strange origins of the Pure Land Great Radiant Dharma Form after his Void-Aspect Dharma Body had been restored.

After amassing wealth from his battles at Two Realms Mountain, Song Yan spent millions of spirit stones trying to make the flying sword Sole Laughter reveal a Sword Dao illusion, but it did not respond and he felt an unseen gaze. Meanwhile, Shi Yunhao prepared to sacrifice the captive Gao Xing to extract an ancient sealed sword at Cloud-Parting Valley, planning to keep nearby Immortal Dao Alliance forces away by endangering civilians.

• Song Yan sorted and sold much of his loot, leaving him with more than three million spirit stones and a growing reputation among Demon Ruins cultivators.
• Song Yan used two-pole Qi to study Chen Linyuan's Sword Intent, but Sole Laughter absorbed two and a half million spirit stones without producing an illusion, and Song Yan again sensed someone watching him.
• Shi Yunhao arrived at Cloud-Parting Valley with Ku Qian and a Nascent Soul cultivator to inspect the ancient flying sword that Asura Path cultivators had been trying to free for over a dozen years.
• Shi Yunhao's subordinates revealed that they had weakened the sword's fortune-based seal by sacrificing captives and planned to use Gao Xing, whose Golden Core they had been destroying with Core-Severing Pills, to break it completely.
• After hearing that a Heaven's Deputy Office garrison was nearby, Shi Yunhao said he would keep them from interfering by putting the local commoners in danger.

Zhou Yan refused Fang Cunsheng’s invitation to leave Huliang Village, while Fang Cunsheng later joined Li Yi’s council as they responded to reports of a Devil Cultivator operation. Li Yi sent Fang Cunsheng to request reinforcements from Song Yan, who was at Deng Ke’s cave when Fang arrived.

• Zhou Yan told Fang Cunsheng that Master He would not leave and that he would stay in Huliang Village to protect its people.
• Fang Cunsheng reassured Zhou Yan that Li Yi and True Person Ciyu were restraining the Devil Cultivators, then hurried back to camp after receiving a military summons.
• Li Yi and True Person Lu Si discussed an urgent report that the Asura Path and Seed Demon Way planned a large operation against nearby mortals and low-level cultivators.
• Li Yi ordered Fang Cunsheng to report the threat to True Lord Liu and ask True Person Ciyu at the Great Serpent Mound for aid.
• Song Yan gave Deng Ke collected materials to repair the Sword Sect Disciple Token, and Fang Cunsheng arrived with a report.