Recaps

Yu Sheng confronted memories and visions on the Heart-Training Path, completed the climb, and joined Sun Yingxiong at the summit. He believed his friends would also overcome their trials as they waited to see what the others chose.

• Yu Sheng recalled caring for the wounded girl in Sin City, leaving the city after years of killing, and the warmth of Liu Qingfeng and his classmates.
• Yu Sheng kept climbing despite Yu Sanshui's threat and visions of Demon Beasts, but halted when he saw the girl and his friends gravely injured.
• Yu Sheng decided that how he walked the road ahead was his choice, shattering the visions and revealing a broad road to the heavens.
• Yu Sheng reached the summit and told Sun Yingxiong that he believed his friends could complete the Heart-Training Path.
• Sun Yingxiong said he knew his grandson, then joined Yu Sheng in watching the five remaining stairways.

A Tai confronted the memories of his abduction, brutal modification, and escape as he climbed the steps, then overcame his fear by thinking of Yu Sheng and his friends. After A Tai reached the summit and fell asleep, Sun Yingxiong spoke with Yu Sheng and asked him whether he knew the story about the sack.

• A Tai relived how he was taken from his father, brought into the Demon Domain, and modified alongside other children.
• The old man at Demon-Suppressing Pass rescued and healed A Tai, then sent him toward Ink Academy, but A Tai threw away the paper because he could not read it.
• As demon beasts appeared around the steps, A Tai heard Yu Sheng's voice and remembered Yu Sheng, Zhao Zicheng, and his other friends.
• A Tai declared that the demon beasts could not hurt his friends, pushed through his fear, reached the low mountain, and fell asleep beside Yu Sheng.
• Sun Yingxiong reassured Yu Sheng that he considered A Tai a good child of the Human Race, then asked Yu Sheng about his dream, hopes, hobbies, and the story about the sack.

Mu Yu, Sun Wen, and Zhao Zicheng completed the Heart-Training Path, while Lin Xiaoxiao faced memories of her life with Big White and the dog’s final decline. Lin Xiaoxiao and Big White chose to leave the past behind together, and Sun Yingxiong kicked Sun Wen off the cliff after declaring Yu Sheng had lost.

• Mu Yu emerged from the mist with renewed resolve, and Sun Wen followed after breaking through his inner trials, pausing to fix his appearance before asking Lin Xiaoxiao and Zhao Zicheng to keep his showboating secret for five credits.
• Zhao Zicheng walked the path with little difficulty, reflecting that his life had offered few hardships, while Sun Wen watched in disbelief.
• Lin Xiaoxiao’s trial showed her as a young girl living with Big White in the forest, where he guarded her each night as they depended on each other to survive.
• After two years, Lin Xiaoxiao had become a capable Forest Ranger, but Big White returned badly exhausted and near death; on the path, Lin Xiaoxiao and Big White chose not to keep watching the painful memory.
• Big White carried Lin Xiaoxiao across the abyss on steps that appeared beneath his paws, and Sun Yingxiong told Yu Sheng he had lost before kicking Sun Wen off the cliff.

The group finished the Heart-Training Path and left the mountain, while Zhao Zicheng sold Xu Yuanqing an embellished account of its supposed wonders. They set off for Jiangcheng with their championship, though Yu Sheng’s driving lessons left everyone fearing for their safety.

• Sun Yingxiong restored the mountain, scolded Sun Wen, and considered charging the teenagers for visiting the brick-and-tile house.
• Xu Yuanqing questioned the teenagers about the Sacred Hall, and they ignored him until Zhao Zicheng offered to sell him secrets about the mountain.
• Zhao Zicheng described a horned flood dragon and an energy-filled spring, leaving Xu Yuanqing enthralled while the others struggled to hide their laughter.
• Zhao Zicheng asked about plans after returning to school, and Xu Yuanqing told Sun Wen to arrange a roomy van with a driver.
• Sun Wen arranged a customized van, and Yu Sheng questioned the driver about his driving techniques as the others silently worried.
• The group departed for Jiangcheng as champions, and Xu Yuanqing fell asleep dreaming of the mountain.

White Ape was ordered to recover A Tai and threatened with his clan being sent against the Human Race if he failed, while Qiu Xiaoxiao considered how the Divine Cult could survive its conflicts with Soul Hunt and the Ink Pavilion. Yuan Qingshan then brought Luo Yu to the interrogation room, claiming it was for his protection from Soul Hunt.

• Giant Beast warned White Ape to bring A Tai back or the White Ape Clan would lead an attack on the Human Race’s passes.
• The White Ape Tribe chief ordered half-demon humans in the Human Domain to follow his letter’s instructions, threatening to withhold medication if they failed.
• Qiu Xiaoxiao reported to the Divine Cult’s leader that the Soul Hunt Team had likely caused the Evil Cult’s losses and suspected the Ink Pavilion was trying to provoke a clash.
• After learning Qiu Xiaoxiao had been at the fifth awakening for two years, the leader told her to handle the matter before advancing further.
• Qiu Xiaoxiao decided the Divine Cult needed to secure Chu Yu and renew cooperation with the Demon Domain, while continuing to suppress Soul Hunt.
• Yuan Qingshan led Luo Yu into the interrogation room and told him the Ink Pavilion was hiding him there to protect him from Soul Hunt.

Qi Changshan took up a Dark Pavilion group leader post and eagerly went to arrest a suspected Evil Cult member, while Zhao Zicheng and the others returned to Ink Academy and noticed a suspicious boy outside its gates. Yu Sheng recognized similarities between the boy and the killer who had murdered Senior Xu, and Sun Wen prepared to investigate him.

• Yuan Qingshan locked Luo Yu in the Interrogation Room and gave Dark Pavilion members strict instructions to watch over him.
• Qi Changshan revealed he had become a Dark Pavilion group leader, learned that Wang Kai was an Evil Cult member, and hurried out to make the arrest.
• Zhao Zicheng and the others returned to Ink Academy, where they saw a ragged boy watching the gates; Zhao then fell through a sabotaged bed and lost credits after slandering the Vice Principal.
• Yu Sheng said the boy resembled the person who had killed Senior Xu, prompting Sun Wen and the others to decide to approach him and test his reaction.

Sun Wen questioned a timid, apparently mute boy outside Ink Academy but found no clear proof that he was the person Yu Sheng suspected. In the Demon Domain, An Xin and the wounded Zhao Qingyi prepared to face approaching Demon Beasts, with Zhao Qingyi urging An Xin to escape.

• Sun Wen offered the boy a cigarette and used sign language to ask why he had come to Ink Academy, then took him to get food.
• Yu Sheng said the boy’s gait and build differed from the person he remembered, and Sun Wen abandoned his idea of interrogating him after hearing the legal penalties.
• An Xin treated Zhao Qingyi’s arm with a strip of her skirt, found her an herb, and gave her a lollipop while they rested in the Demon Domain.
• An Xin and Zhao Qingyi traded insults before An Xin noticed that Eagle Ravine Mountain’s Demon Beasts were closing in.
• Zhao Qingyi urged An Xin to escape and offered her share of the Demon Cores, including the Heavenly Demon Flower, while An Xin stood ready to fight.

An Xin and Zhao Qingyi were captured by a powerful monkey demon, who spared them and asked them to carry a message proposing cooperation between Eagle Ravine Mountain and the Human Race. After losing their Demon Cores and Heavenly Demon Flower, An Xin saw a chance to turn the monkey’s hair into a new source of wealth and hurried off with Zhao Qingyi.

• A monkey in a scholar’s robe appeared and suppressed An Xin’s attempt to self-detonate.
• The monkey stopped An Xin from stabbing Zhao Qingyi and restrained them both.
• The monkey said Eagle Ravine Mountain might cooperate with the Human Race and asked them to deliver a message, giving An Xin a glowing hair as a token.
• An Xin and Zhao Qingyi escaped with the monkey’s hair but discovered their Demon Cores and Heavenly Demon Flower were gone.
• An Xin realized the hair might be a new secret to wealth and dragged Zhao Qingyi away.

Ji Hong persuaded the Giant Beast to consider an alliance against Skyvault Ravine, while Xu Yuanqing began his first lesson at the academy and mocked his inattentive students. The Vice Principal intervened over the loudspeaker, ordering Xu Yuanqing’s debt to Zhao Zicheng deducted from his salary with extra credits charged as interest.

• Ji Hong argued that the Giant Beast could gain influence by joining forces with the Fei Clan, the Xiangliu Clan, and others against Skyvault Ravine.
• The Giant Beast agreed that the alliance might give them a say in Skyvault Ravine, but insisted that other humans entering the Demon Domain would not be released.
• Xu Yuanqing gathered his students beneath the academy’s loudspeakers and surveillance cameras to begin their delayed first lesson.
• Xu Yuanqing called the students’ recent results “utter trash,” but none of them had been listening to him.
• Zhao Zicheng asked Xu Yuanqing to repay two credits, and the Vice Principal ordered the Academic Affairs Office to deduct five credits from Xu Yuanqing’s salary, counting the extra three as interest.

Xu Yuanqing warned Zhao Zicheng and Sun Wen about relying too much on money and resources, but his attempt to manage their assets ended with them ignoring him and treating him to breakfast. In Jiangcheng, a group of people planned to join the demons, while a suspicious boy kept waiting outside Ink Academy and wondered why nobody had brought him inside.

• The loudspeaker charged Xu Yuanqing ten credits for Zhao Zicheng, who said he expected to reach Fourth Awakening within a month, or half a month if he trained harder.
• Xu Yuanqing cautioned Zhao Zicheng and Sun Wen against relying too heavily on Sun Wen’s wealth, then suggested that he hold their money and belongings while they started over with nothing.
• Zhao Zicheng, Sun Wen, and the others ignored Xu Yuanqing’s proposal and went to the Cafeteria, where Sun Wen bought him breakfast.
• In a Jiangcheng restaurant, a chef and a group of others decided to notify more cities and act together to join the demons rather than face their situation alone.
• The ragged boy continued waiting outside Ink Academy, convinced the academy was watching him, though he was hungry, thirsty, and frustrated that no one had invited him inside.

A Tai was exposed on the human forum as a demon, sparking public outrage and demands that the Ink Academy hand him over. Yu Sheng asked where the academy stood and promised to protect A Tai, who had already overheard the accusations in secret.

• Yu Sheng refused to confront the suspicious man outside and told Sun Wen to wait for evidence, though Sun Wen considered using laxatives against him.
• The Vice Principal summoned everyone to the teaching building, where Zhao Zicheng showed Yu Sheng a flood of posts accusing A Tai of being a demon and demanding his punishment.
• Sun Wen blamed the Evil Cult, while Xu Yuanqing said the Evil Cult had been ruled out and suspected the Demon Clan or Soul Hunt, with the Demon Clan most likely.
• The Vice Principal said the academy would not sacrifice A Tai for public approval, and Yu Sheng sent Sun Wen to investigate the leak.
• Zhao Zicheng said A Tai had not yet learned about the scandal, while A Tai secretly listened from inside the teaching building and trembled with pain and guilt.

As public outrage grew over A Tai’s identity as a demon, Ink Academy’s leaders resolved to protect him, but A Tai feared the cost to his friends and left the campus. Demon Domain agents followed him while a young man nearby listened and considered how the turmoil might affect his plans.

• Yu Sheng said Ink Academy would protect A Tai on campus, ordered Sun Wen to investigate, and assigned Mu Yu to keep A Tai away from the outside world.
• Zhao Zicheng and Xu Yuanqing discussed how public opinion condemned A Tai without knowing the truth.
• A Tai realized his friends would suffer for defending him, left Ink Academy, changed his clothes, and disappeared into the crowd.
• A middle-aged man and his companions tracked A Tai, suspecting Ink Academy might be using him as bait.
• A seemingly frail young man overheard the agents and analyzed whether they were targeting A Tai or Ink Academy.
• Passersby discussed the rumors, while online opinion about A Tai exploded.

As public outrage against A Tai intensified, Sun Yingxiong weighed the cost of protecting him while the Ink Pavilion searched for those stirring up the controversy. When A Tai went missing, Yu Sheng left the academy and approached a ragged boy with a bomb, saying he wanted to talk.

• Online commenters attacked A Tai and Lin Xiaoxiao, while the Ink Pavilion's Information Department struggled to trace the posters.
• Sun Yingxiong questioned whether the Human Race's stability justified sacrificing A Tai and suspected the old White Ape had devised the crisis.
• The Ink Pavilion had narrowed its search for the agitators to several cities but had not found them.
• Sun Wen, Mu Yu, and Zhao Zicheng discovered A Tai was missing and split up to search for him and check surveillance.
• Yu Sheng took daggers and two small spheres, left the dormitory unnoticed, and sat beside a ragged boy outside the academy gates.
• Yu Sheng showed the boy a sphere and claimed it was a bomb that would explode within three seconds if shaken.

Yu Sheng forced the limping boy outside Ink Academy to agree to find A Tai in exchange for his coordinates, then let him go after taking his contact details. The boy disguised himself and fled in the opposite direction, while Mu Yu and Sun Wen reported that A Tai had vanished into surveillance blind spots.

• Yu Sheng questioned the boy about A Tai and threatened him until the boy pointed in a direction and wrote a Demon Character in the dirt.
• Yu Sheng offered the boy a pill and demanded A Tai's coordinates; the boy agreed to the deal after Yu Sheng threatened to kill him.
• Yu Sheng gave the boy his Contact Number and warned him to honor the deal, then returned to the academy.
• The boy left in the opposite direction, evaded surveillance, and changed from a limping beggar into a middle-aged delivery rider.
• Mu Yu and Sun Wen told Yu Sheng that A Tai had left at 8:13 and disappeared into a blind spot; Mu Yu suggested A Tai had run to keep the others out of trouble.

As outrage over A Tai spread, the White Ape Clan chief explained how he had maneuvered the Ink Pavilion into a no-win position and ordered the demons to avoid giving it another target. Alone in hiding, A Tai read the hostile comments and lost hope, believing the Human Race saw him as a threat despite the support of Lin Xiaoxiao, Mu Yu, Zhao Zicheng, and Sun Wen.

• Yu Sheng asked everyone to wait while Lin Xiaoxiao watched the online backlash against A Tai grow into a debate about whether humans and demons could coexist.
• The White Ape reported that the Human Domain was in chaos, and the White Ape Clan chief said the public pressure had made A Tai an outlet for the Human Race’s anger.
• The White Ape Clan chief told the White Ape to leave A Tai’s fate to the Ink Pavilion, release photographs of his childhood torture if he was killed, and keep the lesser demons quiet.
• In hiding, A Tai read the comments with help from a dictionary and wondered whether he deserved to die.
• A Tai saw posts from Lin Xiaoxiao, Mu Yu, Zhao Zicheng, and Sun Wen, but learned that they were also being attacked for supporting him and became numb with despair.

As accusations against A Tai spread and crowds demanded his execution, he left the city alone, hoping his disappearance would protect the Ink Academy. Yu Sheng prepared to enter the Demon Domain, revealed that he had reached the Fourth Awakening, and drove toward the city gates.

• A Tai faced a growing public outcry after photographs depicting him beside a Blood Pool and dead children were posted online, and people gathered at the Ink Academy gates demanding answers.
• A Tai left his room and walked alone into the wilderness, while a middle-aged man followed him from a distance and chose not to contact Yu Sheng yet.
• Yu Sheng asked the Lawless Outlaws to investigate the Demon Domain and later received a text that prompted him to pack weapons and supplies before leaving the dormitory.
• Xu Yuanqing offered to accompany Yu Sheng, but Yu Sheng told him to stay and protect the others at the academy.
• Yu Sheng told Xu Yuanqing that he had already reached the Fourth Awakening, then drove his Fierce Tiger XS toward the city gates.

After Yu Sheng left to search for A Tai, his friends learned A Tai was heading toward Ink City and hurried to protect him from a growing public manhunt. Lin Xiaoxiao and Big White blocked a search party, and Lin Xiaoxiao prepared to defend A Tai, feeling she would rather return to the mountains than face the cruelty of the outside world.

• Yu Sheng left a note for his friends and departed, while crowds gathered outside organizations across Ink City demanding an outcome.
• Zhao Zicheng received a photo showing A Tai traveling from Zangcheng toward Ink City, and Sun Wen realized A Tai might be heading there for a dangerous reason.
• Sun Wen and his friends set out in a van to protect A Tai, while people online tracked him and formed search parties to capture him.
• Lin Xiaoxiao watched the manhunt unfold and questioned why people judged A Tai solely for being a demon.
• Lin Xiaoxiao and Big White blocked a search party, and she declared that no one would bully A Tai while she was there.

Mu Yu, Sun Wen, and others fought the search teams to help A Tai escape, while Yu Sheng sought permission to enter the Demon Domain. Zhong Yushu warned Yu Sheng that the danger exceeded what he could handle, but Yu Sheng remained determined to go.

• Mu Yu blocked a team searching for A Tai, and a provocateur incited the crowd to attack him before slipping away.
• Sun Wen urged A Tai to keep going and promised to protect him, then blocked another team; A Tai said goodbye to Lin Xiaoxiao, Zhao Zicheng, Mu Yu, and Sun Wen and fled alone.
• Yu Sheng showed his Three-Pattern Cloud Merit at Demon-Suppressing Pass and received clearance to pass, with instructions to meet Elder Zhong.
• Zhong Yushu questioned Yu Sheng's decision to enter the Demon Domain and warned him to trust the Ink Pavilion, but Yu Sheng insisted he had something he needed to do.

Yu Sheng entered the Demon Domain after Zhong Yushu urged him to return alive, while Mu Yu and the other Ink Academy prodigies continued protecting A Tai from human pursuers. As A Tai’s journey toward Ink City grew more dangerous, Sun Yingxiong ordered the people hunting him to be sent to the Four Great Passes.

• Yu Sheng told Zhong Yushu that people had to save themselves, and Zhong Yushu said Ink Pavilion had never sacrificed an ordinary person, especially a recipient of the Two-Pattern Cloud Merit.
• Yu Sheng skirted the Demon-Suppressing Pass, crossed the mountains, and entered the Demon Domain after an old man warned him that returning would be hard.
• Mu Yu blocked a group seeking to attack A Tai, and the group eventually withdrew while calling the Ink Academy prodigies traitors.
• A Tai’s companions continued clearing the road toward Ink City, despite failing to hold pursuers at the city gates and facing repeated roadblocks.
• Sun Yingxiong learned that A Tai was in Lin City and ordered the names of his hunters recorded so they could be sent to the Four Great Passes.

Sun Yingxiong and the Ink Pavilion leaders debated Luo Yu’s connection to Soul Hunt and whether to grant him access to track its members. Meanwhile, Yu Sheng sneaked through the Demon Domain toward coordinates on the map, leaving the chapter with his mission still underway.

• Sun Yingxiong learned Yu Sheng had gone to the Demon Domain, argued with Zhong Yushu, and told his secretary to clear the people waiting outside.
• Luo Yu told Yuan Qingshan he might need about three hours to locate someone who posted online, prompting Yuan Qingshan and Qi Changshan to debate whether he was a pawn of Soul Hunt.
• Qi Changshan shoved Yuan Qingshan out of the Dark Pavilion and then enthusiastically befriended its Deputy Division Chief of Prison Administration.
• Yu Sheng used a map from the Lawless Outlaws to navigate the Demon Domain, hid from an azure wolf, and continued toward his coordinates.

Yu Sheng discovered that killing Demon Beasts sent gray aura into his Scroll, then continued toward the Ten Thousand Demon Forest while considering the rewards their remains could bring. Meanwhile, Zhao Zicheng and the others saw public attacks spreading against them as they tried to protect A Tai, while Sun Yingxiong said they had to wait until the old White Ape could no longer act.

• Yu Sheng killed an emerald snake, saw gray gas enter his Scroll, and wondered why this had not happened when he killed Demons before.
• Yu Sheng killed a level-four Goshawk and received a purer stream of gray aura, leading him to suspect that killing Demon Beasts was the Scroll's true use.
• Yu Sheng made the Goshawk's corpse disappear, checked his map, and continued toward the Ten Thousand Demon Forest.
• Zhao Zicheng treated his wound and complained that people pursuing A Tai had become greedy for praise and excitement, while Sun Wen showed the group online posts attacking them.
• Sun Yingxiong told his secretary that the young people had to find their own paths and that they had to wait until the old White Ape could no longer make a move.

Yu Sheng cautiously crossed the Demon Domain toward the Ten Thousand Demon Forest while Sun Wen and Zhao Zicheng pursued A Tai toward Ink City. When an old man moved to kill A Tai for being a demon, Zhao Zicheng intervened and Sun Wen challenged the old man to justify his decision before the gathered crowd.

• Yu Sheng hid from hunting Demon Beasts by day, then coated his exposed skin with crushed grass juice and continued toward the Ten Thousand Demon Forest.
• Sun Wen and Zhao Zicheng rested during their pursuit as they neared Ink City and tried to catch up with A Tai.
• An old man confronted A Tai, apologized for his abduction into the Demon Domain, and declared that he had to kill him because he was a demon.
• The old man summoned a six-Crystal-Stone longsword and sent it toward A Tai, who closed his eyes and waited to die.
• Zhao Zicheng stepped in front of A Tai and stopped the attack, while Sun Wen demanded that the old man explain his reasoning to the assembled Awakened individuals.

Sun Wen challenged an old Sixth Awakening elder to hear A Tai’s reasoning instead of deciding his fate, and a reclusive tailor-shop owner intervened to rebuke the elder. The crowd set out for Ink City to demand an answer, while some hostile figures followed behind.

• Sun Wen argued that the elder should not condemn A Tai before hearing his case, and the elder agreed to go to Ink City and listen.
• A reclusive woman in a tailor shop chastised the elder for interfering and then disappeared, leaving a floral padded jacket behind.
• The young people honored the elder’s departure, while Sun Wen declared that he and A Tai would rather fight in the Demon Domain than accept an unjust death.
• Mu Yu, Zhao Zicheng, and Lin Xiaoxiao stood with A Tai and said they would go with him if the world left him no place.
• The crowd set off for Ink City to demand an answer, while groups of suspicious people followed behind them.

Sun Yingxiong and Yu Yongyan’s descendant prepared to use the A Tai controversy to force a change in policy, while Yu Sheng infiltrated a white-ape village in the Ten Thousand Demon Forest to steal a hard drive. Yu Sheng retrieved it and began preparing to escape.

• People following Sun Wen mocked him and said they would demand an explanation about A Tai in Ink City.
• Sun Yingxiong asked the wheelchair-bound young man whether he had truly thought through his plan, and the young man argued that changing times required changing policies.
• The young man identified himself as Yu Yongyan’s descendant and said he could play the wastrel while the Ink Pavilion stood for justice.
• Yu Sheng slipped past the white apes guarding their village and used the Dragon-Patterned Staff to teleport into its shadows.
• Yu Sheng entered the most lavish hut, found a hard drive in a desk drawer, and pocketed it before preparing to run.

Yu Sheng stole research data on the demonization of the Human Race from the Ten Thousand Demon Forest, while Old White Ape staged an angry response to cover his role as the intelligence source. In the meeting room, the young man explained the plot and revealed that he expected to be used as a blade before being discarded a year later.

• Old White Ape confirmed the data was genuine and gave Yu Sheng ten minutes to escape before Yu Sheng retraced his route out of the Ten Thousand Demon Forest.
• After Yu Sheng escaped, Old White Ape destroyed his hut and accused the patrol beasts of negligence, then ordered a search to disguise his involvement.
• The young man explained to Sun Yingxiong that Old White Ape had directed the Half-Demon Human Plan and wanted the data stolen to shift blame and preserve his life.
• The young man said the Ink Pavilion would not abandon Yu Sheng and praised Yu Sheng for understanding the situation and analyzing the broader conflict.
• The young man revealed that he was disabled and expected to serve as a blade purging the Human Race, then be thrown into a furnace a year later.
• Sun Yingxiong tried to lighten the mood by offering to give the young man a racing wheelchair like Zhao Zicheng's.