Recaps

Yu Sheng returned to the mountain and learned that Zhong Yushu had left Demon-Suppressing Pass, then entered the Thousand-Li Demon Plain disguised as a White Ape. His disguise drew hostile attention from the local Demon Beasts, and he approached a wary wild horse.

• Yu Sheng told the old man that Zhong Yushu was no longer at Demon-Suppressing Pass, and the old man lamented losing his backer and warned Yu Sheng not to provoke anything above the seventh awakening.
• The old man resumed cursing Zhong Yushu, then sat beside an Azure Bird egg and fed it energy.
• Yu Sheng put on a realistic White Ape suit made by a Gold Ingot Group artisan and entered the Thousand-Li Demon Plain.
• Two sixth-level Demon Beasts discussed whether the White Ape was a scout from the Ten Thousand Demon Forest, but decided not to attack him.
• Yu Sheng walked toward a hostile wild horse with his Iron Rod, and the horse backed away without taking its eyes off him.

Yu Sheng rode a wild horse across the Thousand-Li Demon Plain after provoking its Demon Beasts and discovering that they feared harming the White Ape Clan. At Demon-Suppressing Pass, Cong Yunfeng spotted the monkey on horseback and reported it, then received strange intelligence that left him questioning what he had seen.

• Yu Sheng struck a wild horse with his Iron Rod, drawing gray aura from it as nearby Demon Beasts prepared to attack.
• Two sixth-level Demon Beasts warned Yu Sheng to give notice before entering the Thousand-Li Demon Plain, but they left without harming him because they feared the White Ape Clan's influence.
• After the remaining Demon Beasts backed down from Yu Sheng, he climbed onto the wild horse and subdued it with a punch.
• Yu Sheng rode freely across the Thousand-Li Demon Plain for the first time without being hunted.
• A Reserve Corps member spotted the monkey riding a horse from Demon-Suppressing Pass, and Cong Yunfeng reported it by phone before reacting with disbelief to the intelligence he received.

Su Mo led Ink Academy’s 141st Cohort to Demon-Suppressing Pass for their enrollment ceremony, where Shi Guang’s pass revealed that Yu Sheng’s Four-Pattern Cloud Merit came with real privileges. After struggling with the thought of saluting his student, Su Mo set aside his pride and prepared the group to ascend the pass and walk Hero Road.

• Su Mo led the new students to the checkpoint, where he asked the soldiers to skip Shi Guang’s inspection, then suggested they let her hold a dagger to an officer’s neck during it.
• Shi Guang presented a pass issued by Yu Sheng, and the soldiers verified it and saluted, leaving Su Mo stunned that Yu Sheng’s merit carried privileges.
• Su Mo tried to reassure himself that Yu Sheng was still his student inside the academy, but Qi Tian reminded him they were not at the academy.
• Su Mo waited beneath Demon-Suppressing Pass until morning, then accepted that saluting Yu Sheng would not compromise his scholarly integrity.
• Su Mo announced the enrollment ceremony and invited the students to ascend the pass and walk Hero Road; Shi Guang wondered what Yu Sheng had thought when he walked it.

Yu Sheng hid his White Ape coat and continued through the Thousand-Li Demon Plain in human form, waiting for night near a flower on a rocky hill. In the Ten Thousand Demon Forest, Old White Ape faced angry clan chiefs over his plan to send them to the vanguard, then used a threat to make Black Tiger King swear loyalty to the White Ape Clan.

• Yu Sheng found that his White Ape appearance made it impossible to ambush Demon Beasts, so he removed the coat and resumed his journey in human form.
• Yu Sheng concealed himself near a flower atop a rocky hill and waited for nightfall.
• Several sixth-level Demon Beast chiefs protested Old White Ape's plan to make them the vanguard against Demon-Suppressing Pass, while Black Tiger King threatened him.
• Fire Fox joined Old White Ape, and Black Tiger King considered attacking them with his clan.
• Old White Ape suggested assigning the Black Tiger Clan to hold the flank, prompting Black Tiger King to swear that his clan would support the White Ape Clan for life.

Old White Ape secured control of the Ten Thousand Demon Forest by forcing its other clans to serve as vanguard under Skyvault Ravine’s orders, then promised to protect their descendants. He also selected White Ape Clan elders who had opposed him to die in the campaign, hoping their sacrifice would satisfy Skyvault Ravine.

• After Black Tiger surrendered, Old White Ape refused the other chiefs’ offers of vassalage and ordered their clans to remain the vanguard.
• The chiefs bowed and asked Old White Ape to protect their young, and he promised their descendants would remain under the White Ape Clan’s protection.
• Old White Ape told Black Tiger and Fire Fox to oversee preparations so the Ten Thousand Demon Forest would not delay Skyvault Ravine’s military orders.
• Old White Ape declared that White Ape Clan members would charge at the front of the battlefield and die in the campaign.
• Old White Ape named the Grand Elder, Third Elder, and Fifth Elder for the mission because they had supported Gu Diao and tried to remove him.
• The Grand Elder’s son begged him to go to his death, and Old White Ape privately said the White Ape Clan needed casualties to give Skyvault Ravine an accounting.

Dragon Python punished a vulture for mistreating a White Ape by making it command the Thousand-Li Demon Plain’s forces during the coming attack on Demon-Suppressing Pass. After the vulture killed a White Ape and discovered it was a protected Messenger, it realized its odds of survival were nearly zero and fled.

• Dragon Python scolded the vulture for turning away a White Ape and ordered it to serve as Commander when the Ten Thousand Demon Forest passed through.
• The vulture blamed the White Ape for its punishment and killed one that crossed its territory.
• The vulture found a letter identifying the dead White Ape as a Messenger, whose killing violated Skyvault Ravine’s rules.
• The vulture panicked over the consequences and fled the Thousand-Li Demon Plain.

Yu Sheng recovered Old White Ape’s letter and secretly manipulated events so a Demon Beast would carry it toward Dragon Python. At Demon-Suppressing Pass, the 141st Cohort reported for Pass Ascension, only to be asked whether they could cook.

• After the Demon Beasts devoured White Ape’s corpse, Yu Sheng retrieved Old White Ape’s letter and read that the Ten Thousand Demon Forest planned to cross Dragon Python’s territory as the vanguard.
• Yu Sheng photographed the letter, practiced copying Old White Ape’s handwriting, and later returned an altered letter to the bones.
• Yu Sheng harvested a Chinese redbud and stored it with energy fluid, recalling its effects and the need to protect it from dust.
• A sixth-level Demon Beast found the envelope and, after reading it, beat a noisy fifth-level Demon Beast before carrying the letter toward Dragon Python.
• At Demon-Suppressing Pass, Su Mo led the 141st Cohort in reporting for Pass Ascension, and the general asked whether the students could cook.

Qi Tian was punished by the general for boasting about the Reserve Corps and ended up hanging from the Demon-Suppressing Pass plaque, where he spun an elaborate tale of his future heroism. As Su Mo and Chu Yu reflected on stories and their endings, Chu Yu sketched Qi Tian’s scene while they wondered what fate awaited them.

• Qi Tian mocked the Reserve Corps, but the general silenced him and dragged him away for an assignment.
• The general stripped Qi Tian down to his underwear and hung him from the Demon-Suppressing Pass plaque.
• Su Mo reminisced with Chu Yu about her early days at Ink Academy and the ways they had both changed.
• Hanging from the plaque, Qi Tian proclaimed that he would one day destroy Skyvault Ravine and become a remembered hero of the human race.
• Su Mo and Chu Yu discussed whether stories had fixed endings, while Chu Yu sketched Qi Tian hanging from the wall.

At Demon-Suppressing Pass, Chu Yu prepared a speech and made another mosaic painting while Yuan Zhong was punished for insulting the Reserve Corps. Meanwhile, Old White Ape sent the Golden Leopard Clan to stage an early probe of the pass, hoping the Ten Thousand Demon Forest would be blameless if the coming battle went badly.

• Chu Yu showed Su Mo a mosaic painting of Qi Tian and wondered whether to salute the troops instead of giving a speech.
• Yuan Zhong reported Wang Youcai’s insults to the general, who revealed he had heard everything and hung Yuan Zhong beside Qi Tian.
• Chu Yu added a mosaic portrait of Yuan Zhong to her painting.
• Old White Ape ordered the Golden Leopard King to lead a stealthy attack on Demon-Suppressing Pass, make a show of force for ten minutes, and retreat.
• Old White Ape reasoned that the early probe would keep the Human Race’s anger in check and leave the Ten Thousand Demon Forest blameless if the first battle ended in defeat.

Dragon Python learned that Vulture had killed the White Ape Clan’s messenger and ordered a hunt while sending a Myriad Phenomena Fruit to the clan’s junior. Yu Sheng spotted golden leopards rushing toward Demon-Suppressing Pass and approached the porcupine carrying the fruit, pretending to be a passing white ape.

• Dragon Python read Old White Ape’s letter requesting passage through the Thousand-Li Demon Plain and a Myriad Phenomena Fruit for a White Ape Clan junior.
• The porcupine reported that the messenger was dead and that it had sensed King Vulture’s aura on the corpse, prompting Dragon Python to order Vulture hunted and send the fruit west.
• Old White Ape heard Dragon Python’s roar from the Ten Thousand Demon Forest and wondered why he was angry despite the promised gifts.
• Golden Leopard King led six fifth-level clan elders and more than forty fourth-level golden leopards toward Demon-Suppressing Pass while Yu Sheng watched them pass his tree hollow.
• Yu Sheng put on his white ape suit, approached the porcupine carrying the Myriad Phenomena Fruit, and drew its attention.

Yu Sheng received a Myriad Phenomena Fruit and Dragon Python’s scale from Porcupine, then discovered the scale’s aura made lesser demons submit to him. At Demon-Suppressing Pass, the Golden Leopard Clan launched an assault, and the defenders and Ink Academy freshmen prepared to fight.

• Porcupine gave Yu Sheng a Myriad Phenomena Fruit and Dragon Python’s scale, claiming the scale would let him travel freely across the Thousand-Li Demon Plain.
• Yu Sheng hung the scale around his neck and saw a low-level demon beast prostrate itself before Dragon Python’s aura.
• A scout announced that the Golden Leopard Clan was attacking Demon-Suppressing Pass from thirty li away.
• Cong Yunfeng deployed the defenders while Su Mo ordered the Ink Academy freshmen to fight separately and obey military law.
• Hundreds of golden leopards charged the pass, and Cong Yunfeng confronted their leading attacker as the defenders braced for battle.

Su Mo realized the Golden Leopard Clan’s assault was a suicide attack meant to start a war, but the clan’s members detonated themselves before Demon-Suppressing Pass could stop them. After the Golden Leopard King died and the battle ended, Shi Guang asked to take a foreleg home to roast.

• Cong Yunfeng led the defenders against the Golden Leopard Clan while Su Mo and Chu Yu watched and questioned the attackers’ strange behavior.
• Su Mo recognized the leopards as cannon fodder and ordered the defenders to kill them quickly, but the Golden Leopard King pushed his clan into a desperate final charge.
• The golden leopards detonated themselves on Demon-Suppressing Pass, causing a few casualties despite the protection of the Human Race’s Sixth Awakening fighters.
• The Golden Leopard King died, and the battle ended with the soldiers processing the remains while the Ink Academy freshmen confronted the reality of war.
• Shi Guang returned with a second-level golden leopard corpse, asked about earning Two-Pattern Cloud Merit and taking the corpse, then settled for taking a foreleg to roast.

After a minor battle at Demon-Suppressing Pass, Chu Yu tended to a young soldier and reminded the students that the formation protected the roots of the Human Race. Su Mo rebuked the new students for their poor showing and ordered them to return in a year, while Chu Yu urged them to live well and protect the future; Qi Tian left vowing to return and bring her home.

• Shi Guang offered food to Qi Tian and Wang Youcai for five credits, while Su Mo transferred money to her.
• Chu Yu urged the wounded Xiao Douzi to treat his injury, and he showed her the wooden charm his mother had carved for him.
• Chu Yu explained that she stayed within the formation because it was where the Human Race had its roots.
• Su Mo mocked Qi Tian and condemned the new students' performance, ordering them to return to Demon-Suppressing Pass in a year or be expelled.
• Chu Yu told the students that her generation had reached its limit and asked them to live well, while hoping they would never need to return to the pass.
• Qi Tian bowed to Chu Yu and the soldiers, vowed to return within ten years and bring Chu Yu home, then left identifying himself as Qi Tian of the Human Race.

After witnessing Chu Yu defend Demon-Suppressing Pass, the students left with a new understanding of Ink Academy’s brutal purpose and the Human Race’s struggle. Su Mo watched them inherit the ideals of earlier generations, then wrote “Flowers bloomed across the mountains” and “No longer young” on his fan.

• Yuan Zhong, Li Zi, Shen Feng, and Wang Youcai thanked Chu Yu and promised to return for her before leaving Demon-Suppressing Pass.
• Shi Guang exchanged a stiff smile and a quiet nod with Chu Yu, then descended from the pass.
• Wang Youcai told the group he understood Ink Academy’s harsh training as a hope for the Human Race, and wondered if he could become the madman who soared above the rest.
• Qi Tian, Yuan Zhong, Shen Feng, and Li Zi silently reflected on Wang Youcai’s words as Su Mo watched them and remembered his own youth.
• Su Mo opened his fan and wrote “Flowers bloomed across the mountains” and “No longer young.”

Su Mo found Shi Guang calmly roasting a Golden Leopard leg with an unusually well-stocked backpack while the others gathered around her. Meanwhile, Yu Sheng harvested demon plants and gathered gray aura from the beasts on the Thousand-Li Demon Plain, then marked them so they would keep supplying him from within ten li.

• Su Mo emerged from the shadows to criticize the group, then changed course and sat with Shi Guang when he saw her roasting meat.
• Shi Guang seasoned the Golden Leopard leg with supplies from her backpack, divided it into portions, and ate alone while the others gathered around the fire.
• Yu Sheng took a ripened demon plant from a lion, which backed away rather than fight him.
• Yu Sheng herded low-level demon beasts until their gray aura flowed into him, and he noted that the Demon Domain was the fastest place to build strength and earn money.
• Yu Sheng painted markings on a white horned horse and an Azure Wolf so the beasts would keep supplying him with gray aura within ten li.

Zhao Zicheng taught Qi Tian that an invincible heart meant provoking stronger people until they feared you, then demonstrated his supposed dominance by ordering Xu Yuanqing to fetch milk tea. He left with Qi Tian after reminding him about his debt and eyeing his money and watch.

• Zhao Zicheng explained to Qi Tian that an invincible heart came from challenging stronger opponents and standing back up after being beaten.
• Zhao Zicheng provoked a Fifth Awakening third-year student, who ignored him and walked away, and called it a demonstration of strength.
• Zhao Zicheng shouted for Xu Yuanqing to buy him milk tea, and Xu Yuanqing delivered a cup in exchange for a tip.
• Qi Tian idolized Zhao Zicheng and imagined having his grandfather fetch him milk tea.
• Zhao Zicheng reminded Qi Tian about the credits he owed and suggested he could pay with money or his watch.

Qi Tian embraced Zhao Zicheng’s advice as the path to invincibility, but his attempt to imitate Zhao led a senior to beat him and Xu Yuanqing to confront him over his debts. Qi Tian remained convinced that his suffering was strengthening him, while Xu Yuanqing demanded repayment.

• Qi Tian returned to his dormitory with only a SIM card, believing Zhao Zicheng had shown him the road to invincibility.
• Qi Tian challenged a senior on the sports field, who tossed him through the air and left him dizzy and sick.
• Qi Tian called out to Xu Yuanqing and demanded milk tea despite admitting he had no money and owed hundreds of credits.
• Xu Yuanqing dragged Qi Tian away and warned him to earn credits and repay his debt within a week.
• Xu Yuanqing discovered Qi Tian had given Zhao Zicheng his bank card and student account to look after, then slapped him as Qi Tian boasted about his invincible heart.
• Qi Tian endured Xu Yuanqing’s blows in silence and believed the ordeal had improved his energy.

Xu Yuanqing beat Qi Tian for refusing to hand over his IOU, but Qi Tian mistook the punishment for training in an invincible heart and kept provoking people. Zhao Zicheng used Qi Tian’s phone to stir up more trouble, while Xu Yuanqing confronted him over Qi Tian’s money.

• Xu Yuanqing beat Qi Tian for half an hour, but Qi Tian refused to give in or hand over his IOU.
• Xu Yuanqing stripped Qi Tian and hung him from the roof of the Teaching Building after Qi Tian demanded more punishment.
• Qi Tian believed his defiance made everyone fear him, while Zhao Zicheng watched from the dormitory and admitted he had misled him to collect the IOU money.
• Zhao Zicheng posted insults on Qi Tian’s Campus Account, prompting students to drag Qi Tian to the rooftop and beat him.
• Zhao Zicheng sent Bai Haitang romantic messages from Qi Tian’s phone, then Xu Yuanqing confronted him for keeping all of Qi Tian’s fortune.

Xu Yuanqing continued manipulating Zhao Zicheng and Qi Tian, while Yu Sheng used the Dragon Python’s scale to enter the Azure Wolf Clan’s woods and obtain help reaching a coveted Ice Lotus. The Dragon Python assigned Porcupine to command the coming battle, leaving Yu Sheng’s whereabouts unknown.

• Xu Yuanqing left Zhao Zicheng after feigning concern about Qi Tian’s missing belongings, then sent Qi Tian a message that led to another bullying incident.
• Yu Sheng entered the Azure Wolf Clan’s territory under the Dragon Python’s aura and found its Demon Plants disappointing.
• Yu Sheng pointed toward Demon-Suppressing Pass and made the Azure Wolf King understand that he wanted the Ice Lotus, so the king chose to help him rather than risk offending the envoy.
• The Dragon Python told Porcupine that the Ten Thousand Demon Forest’s Vanguard Army would arrive in three days and ordered him to oversee the battle.
• The Dragon Python asked about White Ape’s offspring, and Porcupine realized he had no choice but to accept command in Vulture’s absence.

Old White Ape used the Golden Leopard Clan’s destruction and the coming assault on Demon-Suppressing Pass to unite Ten Thousand Demon Forest under Eagle Ravine Mountain while limiting Black Flood Dragon’s ability to interfere. He persuaded the clan chiefs to accept a deadly surprise attack by promising their descendants a chance to enter Skyvault Ravine, the Sacred Land.

• Old White Ape destroyed a message about the Golden Leopard Clan’s fall and reasoned that the resulting conflict would distract Black Flood Dragon while Ten Thousand Demon Forest united under Eagle Ravine Mountain.
• Old White Ape considered advancing to Level Eight by arranging for the White Ape Clan to die fighting, leaving him as the sole survivor, and justified sacrificing his descendants to preserve the clan’s future.
• Old White Ape summoned the Fire Fox Clan, Black Tiger Clan, Azure Bird, Thunder Eagle, and Blazing Lion chiefs, then announced that they would attack Demon-Suppressing Pass before dawn.
• Old White Ape offered the Golden Leopard Clan’s cub a chance to serve the God Race in Skyvault Ravine and showed the chiefs proof of the opportunity.
• The clan chiefs pledged to fight to the death for the Demon Domain, eager to secure their descendants’ chance to enter Skyvault Ravine.

Zhong Yushu left his attempt to break through to the ninth awakening and charged into the Demon Domain after learning the demons had attacked the Demon-Suppressing Pass early. He confronted the Black Flood Dragon King at Skyvault Ravine and launched a spear attack, leaving the decisive battle on the verge of beginning.

• Sun Yingxiong called Zhong Yushu away from fishing, and Zhong sold his fish before hurrying to the Demon-Suppressing Pass.
• Zhong Yushu entered the Demon Domain and warned the demons to stand aside, making Dragon Python and Fei feel the strength of his aura.
• An old woman's laugh terrified the eighth-level Demon Beasts, and Zhong Yushu thanked the unseen senior before pressing deeper into the Demon Domain.
• At Skyvault Ravine, Zhong Yushu accused the Ten Thousand Demon Forest of breaking the agreement and attacking the Demon-Suppressing Pass early.
• When the Black Flood Dragon King mocked the Human Race's resolve and Skyvault Ravine stayed silent, Zhong Yushu threatened a decisive battle and struck first, grazing the king's waist.

Zhong Yushu fought three eighth-level demon lords in Skyvault Ravine until a hidden ninth-awakening human expert intervened and forced the Demon Domain to apologize. He left with a red dragon’s fang, while the Demon God warned that the human expert would no longer be able to hide.

• Zhong Yushu fought the Black Flood Dragon and two other demon lords, breaking through the Black Flood Dragon’s Swallowing Mountains and Rivers attack.
• A hidden ninth-awakening old woman stopped the Demon God from crushing Zhong Yushu and threatened to kill it and destroy its lair.
• The Demon God apologized for the Demon Domain’s actions, and the old woman ordered Zhong Yushu to take a fang from its red dragon son.
• Zhong Yushu slapped the red dragon and snapped off one of its fangs, then left Skyvault Ravine with the bloodstained trophy.
• The Demon God warned the old woman that she would no longer be able to hide, and she replied that she would be the one to die next time.

The Black Flood Dragon King retreated after the Demon God punished him, while Yu Mo planned a carefully limited first battle at Demon-Suppressing Pass. Meanwhile, Yu Sheng stole the Fire Lion Clan’s Earthfire Lure and fled into the mountains, where the Mountain-Guarding Old Man sensed him and his pursuer.

• The Demon God’s aura severely injured the Black Flood Dragon King, who suppressed his anger and returned to Flood Dragon Abyss rather than risk his clan’s destruction.
• Zhong Yushu returned to Demon-Suppressing Pass, but fled when the Mountain-Guarding Old Man woke and cursed him for abandoning his post.
• Yu Mo told Sun Yingxiong that Ten Thousand Demon Forest and Eagle Ravine Mountain would attack, and argued that Demon-Suppressing Pass must win narrowly so Old White Ape would call for reinforcements.
• Yu Sheng used Dragon Python’s scale to distract the Fire Lion and steal the Fire Lion Clan’s Earthfire Lure, then fled as the furious clan chief chased him.
• Yu Sheng reached the mountains, where the Mountain-Guarding Old Man sensed him and the approaching Fire Lion.

Yu Sheng and the Mountain-Guarding Old Man captured a sixth-level Fire Lion by exploiting Yu Sheng’s ability to imitate human and demon auras. After Yu Sheng valued the Fire Lion and negotiated a share of the proceeds, the old man reconsidered killing it and asked about the value of its other parts.

• The Mountain-Guarding Old Man accused the Fire Lion of trespassing and dragged it across the boundary into the mountains.
• Yu Sheng revealed himself to the Fire Lion, changing clothes and showing that he was the human behind the White Ape’s transformed aura.
• Yu Sheng stopped the old man from smashing the Fire Lion’s head, explaining that its intact hide could sell for about 40 million.
• Yu Sheng argued that he deserved 40 percent of the proceeds because he had risked his life luring the Fire Lion and had used the Dragon Python’s scale to weaken it.
• The Mountain-Guarding Old Man accepted the deal, then asked Yu Sheng about the value of the Fire Lion’s Demon Core, Demon Crystals, and bones.

Yu Sheng and Xin Yongfeng dealt with the Fire Lion and discussed the approaching attack on Demon-Suppressing Pass. Yu Sheng left to earn merit, while Xin Yongfeng resolved to keep guarding the mountain and revive the Seventh Division.

• Xin Yongfeng killed and carefully harvested the Fire Lion, then asked Yu Sheng to transfer the proceeds to an account labeled Seventh Division.
• Xin Yongfeng tried to make Yu Sheng his sworn younger brother, but Yu Sheng refused and promised only to send the money.
• Xin Yongfeng proposed that Yu Sheng lure valuable Demon Beasts to the mountain so they could split the profits, but Yu Sheng said his scale's effect would soon end and the pass was facing an attack.
• Yu Sheng remembered his mission to defend Demon-Suppressing Pass for school advancement and left to earn merit.
• Xin Yongfeng decided to stay on the mountain, support the old Seventh Division members, and form a New Seventh Division, and his cultivation bottleneck began to loosen.