Recaps

Wang Shouzhe negotiated with Master Binglan over the Longevity Fruit, which she bought for Ancestor Longyan as a gift to welcome her back. Ancestor Longyan accepted the fruit and became Master Binglan’s Nominal Disciple, while Wang Shouzhe left as Master Changchun and Master Binglan reopened an old dispute.

• Wang Shouzhe entered the Mystic Ice Pavilion with Master Changchun and learned that Master Binglan wanted the Longevity Fruit for Ancestor Longyan.
• Wang Shouzhe refused to sell the fruit until he discovered it was intended for his ancestor, then explained that he had reserved it for her needs.
• Master Binglan paid Wang Shouzhe one thousand Spirit Stones and gave the Longevity Fruit to Ancestor Longyan, who accepted it as a sign of her master's care.
• Wang Shouzhe proposed that Ancestor Longyan become Master Binglan’s Nominal Disciple, and Master Binglan agreed.
• Master Binglan vowed that Ji Mingyu would reclaim his honor, then invited Master Changchun to discuss their past while Ancestor Longyan dragged Wang Shouzhe away.

Wang Shouzhe left the Mystic Ice Pavilion after meeting Master Binglan and helped turn a hostile welcome for Wang Zongsheng into a warm reception. Meanwhile, Master Yunyang discovered that Wang Lici’s enormous appetite came from a powerful Heaven-Swallowing Taotie bloodline and resolved to raise her no matter what.

• Wang Shouzhe and Ji Mingyu left the Mystic Ice Hall together, and Ji Mingyu persuaded the older disciples to treat Wang Zongsheng kindly.
• Wang Lici complained that Senior Brother Mingda’s rundown courtyard and cold buns could not satisfy her hunger, then refused Master Yunyang until he promised she could eat as much as she wanted.
• Wang Lici spent one hundred and thirty Spirit Stones on food in two days, prompting Master Yunyang to investigate her bloodline.
• Wang Lici manifested a fearsome Dharma Image Phantom, and Master Yunyang recognized it as the legendary Heaven-Swallowing Taotie bloodline.

Wang Shouzhe returned to Ping'an Town and began preparing for the threat of flooding after months of rain. He left Liu Ruolan displeased after jokingly telling her not to plot against him.

• Master Yunyang reassured Wang Lici about her bloodline and ordered his disciples to take profitable missions and gather ingredients for her.
• Wang Shouzhe used ancient maps to locate the Divine Martial Army's training grounds more than ten thousand li inside the dangerous Outer Domain, then decided to postpone exploring it.
• Wang Shouzhe distributed product catalogues and promised Evergreen Valley disciples regular shipments of cosmetics and Witch No. 3 vine seeds through Wang Zongsheng and the Qian Clan Trading Firm.
• Wang Shouzhe spent another week at the Academy, learned that Wang Lici had joined the Yunyang Lineage, and then returned to Changning with his relatives.
• After hearing that relentless rains threatened Ping'an Town with floods, Wang Shouzhe studied its terrain model and identified Dragon-Severing Gorge as a major danger.
• Liu Ruolan brought Wang Shouzhe her pastries and offered to cook all his meals, prompting him to joke that she should not plot against him and leaving her expression changed.

Wang Shouzhe and Liu Ruolan led Ping'an Town through a dangerous flood season, and the town survived with limited losses thanks to years of waterworks and flood-control preparations. After the crisis, Wang Shouzhe learned that the mastermind behind an event sixty years earlier had finally revealed a flaw, setting the stage for upheaval in Changning Guard.

• Wang Shouzhe persuaded Liu Ruolan to stop cooking for him every day, and the two went to cultivate while Wang Liyao and Wang Zongan abandoned their lessons and went out to play.
• As heavy rain raised the An River, Wang Shouzhe inspected embankments and drainage sluices, where the Water Dragon Arrays pumped water out of Ping'an Town.
• Wang Shouzhe and Liu Ruolan joined the Wang Clan and the town's forty thousand people in sealing three embankment breaches and containing the flood.
• After the river level fell, Ping'an Town celebrated its survival, with few deaths and most grain production preserved.
• Wang Mei secretly brought Wang Shouzhe intelligence reports, and he discovered that the mastermind from sixty years earlier had revealed a flaw.

Wang Shouzhe learned that clues about the hidden enemy led to Fortune Gambling House, while Wang Shoulian returned with Zhou Qingning and received his approval to marry her. The family then learned that the flood had devastated neighboring regions, and Wang Shouzhe prepared for refugees, possible epidemics, and the arrival of a Purple Mansion Academy relief team.

• Wang Mei reported that the Wang Clan’s bait had exposed suspicious activity connected to Fortune Gambling House, and Wang Shouzhe ordered her to watch it carefully.
• Wang Shoulian returned with Zhou Qingning and met Wang Zongchang on the way to see Wang Shouzhe.
• Wang Shouzhe approved Wang Shoulian and Zhou Qingning’s marriage and asked Liu Ruolan to oversee the formal arrangements.
• Wang Shoulian reported that floods had devastated Dingnan Guard and Zhenze Guard, driving refugees toward Changning Guard.
• Wang Shouzhe sent Wang Zongchang to buy medicinal supplies and learned that a Purple Mansion Academy direct disciple was leading disaster relief.

Wang Shouzhe learned that the Huangfu Clan planned to seize the Ping'an Wang Clan’s Cement business and eliminate the clan’s leader. The chapter ended as Huangfu Jinhuan and Wang Shouzhe faced each other at a gathering in the City Governor’s Mansion.

• Liu Ruolan insisted that Wang Shoulian, Wang Zongchang, and another Wang Clan man stay to eat her cooking, leaving them visibly terrified.
• Huangfu Jinhuan told the Huangfu Ancestor that the Ping'an Wang Clan had produced several Heavenly Prodigies and that Wang Shouzhe was its greatest threat.
• Huangfu Jinhuan revealed that the Ping'an Wang Clan made Cement, and the Ancestor ordered him to take action without leaving traces.
• Huangfu Jinhuan planned to act after the Purple Mansion Academy’s disaster relief contingent departed.
• Wang Shouzhe arrived at the City Governor’s Mansion, where the leaders of Changning Guard’s eight Eighth-Rank Aristocratic Clans had gathered.
• Huangfu Jinhuan entered the gathering, and he and Wang Shouzhe met eyes.

Wang Shouzhe greeted Changning Guard’s clan leaders and Citadel Governor Xiahou Hongde before the city’s powers gathered to welcome Purple Mansion Academy’s personal disciples. As the disciples arrived, Ji Mingyu eagerly asked whether they would meet Wang Shouzhe, while a merchant ship carrying a secret cargo set out for East Port.

• Wang Shouzhe and the other clan leaders exchanged formal greetings with Huangfu Jinhuan and the Clan Leader of the Celestial Lei Clan, then welcomed Citadel Governor Xiahou Hongde.
• Wang Zongchang oversaw the loading of medicinal herbs, sea-borne Spirit Treasures, and snacks onto a Donggang Chen Clan ship bound for East Port.
• A group of traveling merchants secretly discussed escorting a valuable object and boarded the same ship without attracting Wang Zongchang’s attention.
• Wang Shouzhe explained to Gongsun Yan that Academy disciples had great prospects but also bore heavy responsibilities as the clan leaders waited outside Changning Guard.
• A Vermilion-Crowned Immortal Crane brought Fang You'an and three core disciples toward the city in a Spirit Beast Flying Carriage.
• Ji Mingyu recognized Changning Guard as Wang Longyan’s hometown and eagerly asked if they could meet Wang Shouzhe.

Purple Mansion Academy’s Fang You’an and his fellow inspectors arrived in Changning Guard to oversee flood relief, where Wang Shouzhe’s close ties to them surprised the local clans. As the clans discussed resettling refugees, Wang Shouzhe offered to take in forty thousand, leaving the gathered leaders stunned.

• Fang You’an and the Academy disciples arrived at Changning Guard and were formally welcomed by City Guard Xiahou Hongde and the clan leaders.
• Fang You’an recognized Wang Shouzhe, and the disciples greeted him warmly, revealing their close ties to the local clan leader.
• The group went to Baiwei Pavilion, where Qian Xue’an welcomed his aunt Qian Cailing and the guests began discussing the flood disaster.
• Fang You’an asked the local clans to help settle the growing number of refugees, and the clans described their losses and limited resources.
• Huangfu Jinhuan and Lei Qiuwei each offered to resettle five thousand refugees, and Wang Shouzhe offered to take in forty thousand.

Wang Shouzhe organized Changning Guard’s clans to take in refugees and began developing terraced fields at Xingsheng Farm to provide work and expand Ping'an Town’s farmland. Meanwhile, Wang Zongchang caught a bloodied young man killing sailors aboard a ship and moved to stop his escape.

• Wang Shouzhe agreed to receive refugees in Ping'an Town, and Fang You'an promised to seek a three-year tax exemption as other clans volunteered to take in more people.
• The Wang Clan mobilized to shelter, register, and organize refugees for flood relief and construction work.
• At Xingsheng Farm, Wang Juan showed Wang Shouzhe experimental terraced fields equipped with Cement roads, a Monorail Transporter, and water-storage systems, then proposed a larger irrigation project.
• Wang Shouzhe approved Wang Juan's request to prepare detailed plans and budgets for expanded terraced-field development.
• Wang Zongchang heard fighting aboard a cargo ship and found a bloodied young man who had killed Chen Clan sailors and tried to flee into the sea.
• Wang Zongchang blocked the young man's escape and fought him with the Wang Clan Profound Origin Sword Technique.

Wang Zongchang helped Chen Fanghua capture a Yin Sha heretic aboard a Chen Clan merchant ship, but a blood-colored insect burst from the captive and burrowed into Wang Zongchang. The ship rushed toward port to seek help from Ancestor Ruhong as Wang Zongchang was bound while the insect’s power spread through him.

• Wang Zongchang used his movement technique and swordsmanship to hold off a scarlet-eyed Yin Sha heretic without engaging him head-on.
• Chen Fanghua and the ship’s guards joined Wang Zongchang, and Wang Hu and Wang Bao reinforced them as they trapped the heretic with Witch No. 5 vines and nets.
• Wang Zongchang severed the captive’s hand and foot tendons, but the captive’s chest exploded and a blood-colored insect shot into Wang Zongchang’s body.
• Wang Zongchang ordered the others to tie him up as the insect’s power began spreading through him.
• Chen Fanghua ordered the ship to hurry to port, raise the distress flag, and summon Ancestor Ruhong to save Wang Zongchang.

Wang Zongchang survived the Wedding Dress Blood Gu after Wang Shouzhe treated him for days, and his body underwent a major transformation. Meanwhile, Wang Shouxin and Xu Chunyun arrived at the Changning Xu Clan for a visit, while Wang Shouzhe ordered an investigation into the Yin Sha heretics.

• Wang Liyao and Wang Zongan returned home and learned that Wang Zongchang had been injured.
• Ancestor Ruhong helped suppress the blood gu, and Fang You'an identified it as the dangerous Wedding Dress Blood Gu.
• Wang Shouzhe kept Wang Zongchang alive through days of treatment until his condition improved and he woke with a transformed constitution.
• Wang Shouzhe ordered his intelligence department to investigate the Yin Sha heretics, then Liu Ruolan brought food for Wang Zongchang.
• Wang Shouxin and Xu Chunyun arrived at the Changning Xu Clan, where Xu Chunyun prepared to reclaim her dignity among her relatives.

Xu Chunyun and Wang Shouxin visited her natal family at the Changning Xu Clan, where their lavish gifts and the Wang family’s rising fortunes surprised her relatives. The gathering turned to Wang Lici’s prospects at the Purple Mansion College before Clan Head Xu Anbang unexpectedly arrived.

• Xu Anming waited eagerly for Xu Chunyun and Wang Shouxin to visit, while Xu Zhenxing and Xu Zhenye went to welcome them.
• Xu Chunyun and Wang Shouxin arrived with their young son and abundant gifts, and Xu Chunyun paid the coachman to keep quiet about what had happened during the journey.
• Xu Zhenxing and Xu Zhenye escorted the couple to Lixiang Garden, where Xu Anming tearfully welcomed his daughter and Wang Shouxin.
• Xu Chunyun’s sisters-in-law compared her fine clothes and the family’s success, while Xu Chunyun told them about Wang Zongwei’s career and Wang Lici’s Purple Mansion College examination.
• Xu Anming and the Xu family celebrated the belief that Wang Lici might become a Spirit Platform Realm cultivator, though Wang Shouxin knew she had already reached that realm and had a remarkable master.
• Xu Anbang’s voice announced his arrival, startling Xu Chunyun and her family.

Wang Shouxin negotiated a partnership between the Ping'an Wang Clan and the Changning Xu Clan, offering a loan and advanced textile technology in exchange for a permanent share of the Xu Clan's industry. Xu Anbang agreed to consult his ancestor, while Wang Shouxin returned to Xu Chunyun, who enthusiastically celebrated his success.

• Xu Anbang welcomed Wang Shouxin and Xu Chunyun, then invited Wang Shouxin to discuss clan business in private.
• Xu Anbang explained that the Huangfu Clan's cheaper textile methods and raw-cocoon purchases were draining the Xu Clan's funds as its ancestor prepared to attempt a breakthrough into the Celestial Realm.
• Wang Shouxin proposed lending the Xu Clan one hundred thousand Qian Gold in exchange for a permanent forty-percent share of its textile industry.
• Wang Shouxin revealed that the Ping'an Wang Clan had developed more efficient silk-reeling and weaving technology, which could help the Xu Clan counter the Huangfu Clan and expand production.
• Xu Anbang said he would discuss the proposal with his ancestor, and Wang Shouxin left with the negotiations progressing toward cooperation.
• Wang Shouxin returned to Xu Chunyun, who called him over to celebrate his success.

Wang Shouzhe sparred with Wang Zongchang, who had awakened the Xun Wind Bloodline, then rushed to the Clan School after hearing that Wang Liyao had caused trouble. He arrived to find Liyao leading a student gathering, with her frightened younger brother Wang Zongan beside her.

• Wang Shouzhe tested Wang Zongchang's new techniques in a long sparring session and invited him to keep training every three days.
• Wang Zongchang fainted when Wang Shouzhe insisted that he come home for a meal with Fourth Aunt.
• Qiao'er told Wang Shouzhe that Wang Liyao had burned Elder Wang's beard and rallied students to block him inside the Clan School office.
• Wang Shouzhe hurried across Zhuwei Lake on his Profound Qi-powered boat and asked Qiao'er to keep his wife from hearing about the incident.
• A teacher warned Wang Shouzhe that Liyao threatened to burn down the Clan School unless Elder Wang came out and apologized.
• Wang Shouzhe found Liyao leading a crowd of students outside the teaching building, while Wang Zongan stood beside her in fear.

Wang Shouzhe disciplined Wang Liyao and the other children after a dispute at the Clan School, then took his family to work among the commoners. As the Changning Xu Clan joined the Wang Clan in a costly struggle against the Huangfu Clan, Wang Zongwei received a secret order from Madam Ji to take part in a major operation.

• Wang Shouzhe heard Wang Liyao's complaint about Wang Yangjie's treatment of girls, required her to apologize, and promised to address the Clan School's unfair rules.
• Wang Shouzhe assigned the children who had joined the disturbance to help with refugee relief and river work, then joined the construction work with Liu Ruolan and their children under concealed identities.
• Xu Anbang consulted the Xu Clan's ancestor, who agreed to cooperate with the Wang Clan against the Huangfu Clan.
• After the floods were brought under control, the Changning Xu Clan and the Qianma Huangfu Clan escalated their raw silk price war, with the Wang Clan supporting the Xu Clan.
• Madam Ji gave Wang Zongwei a secret order and told him to cooperate with a major operation, which he accepted for the sake of his family and clan.

Wang Zongwei was lured into a crushing gambling debt at Fortune Gambling House, while Madam Ji pressured the Huangfu leaders to secure the silk trade against the Ping'an Wang Clan and Changning Xu Clan. Huangfu Jinhuan received a secret letter that revealed what the rival clans had been doing, and he reacted with fury.

• Wang Zongwei entered an Earth-Rank private room and lost 8,100 Qian Gold after the maidservants encouraged him to keep gambling.
• Ding Youde blocked Wang Zongwei from leaving and threatened to collect the debt from the Ping'an Wang Clan through Wang Shouzhe.
• Madam Ji reprimanded Huangfu Deyun and Huangfu Jinhuan for failing to overcome the Changning Xu Clan, which had the Ping'an Wang Clan's support.
• Huangfu Jinhuan resolved to defeat the rival clans so the Huangfu Clan could secure the Longzuo Ji Clan's silk partnership and pursue advancement.
• Huangfu Jinhuan received a secret letter from Head Manager Huang's man, read it, and smashed a table in anger at the Xu Clan and Wang Clan.

Huangfu Jinhuan enlisted Mr. Yin to help attack the Ping'an Wang Clan and Changning Xu Clan, disguising the crime as the work of the Yin Sha Sect. As Ancestor Huaye’s banquet brought the factions together, Wang Shouzhe and Xu Anbang agreed to a marriage alliance between their clans, while the planned attack remained imminent.

• Huangfu Deyun learned that the Ping'an Wang Clan and Changning Xu Clan had advanced silk production and joined forces with the Jinsha Xu Clan, threatening the Huangfu clans’ investment with the Ji Clan.
• Huangfu Jinhuan persuaded Mr. Yin to help seize the rival clans’ silk technology and stockpiled raw silk, promising to frame the crime on the Yin Sha Sect and support Mr. Yin’s search for his Young Master’s stolen treasures.
• Ancestor Huaye announced his progress in the Red Dragon True Art and invited Changning Guard’s clans and Fang You'an’s Purple Mansion Academy group to a banquet.
• Wang Shouzhe joined Xu Anbang’s carriage, where Wang Mei, disguised as Madam Ji, joined them; Huangfu Jinhuan took their meeting as evidence that Madam Ji was playing both sides.
• Xu Anbang proposed betrothing his two-year-old granddaughter to Wang Zongan to restore trust between their clans, and Wang Shouzhe accepted.

The Changning Huangfu Clan held a lavish banquet for local powers and Academy disciples, while the Jinsha Xu Clan prepared to launch water-powered silk-reeling and weaving workshops with the Ping'an Wang Clan and Changning Xu Clan. As the Jinsha Xu Clan approached a chance to rise, several hostile figures appeared near its construction site.

• Huangfu Jinhuan welcomed Wang Shouzhe, Xu Anbang, and Madam Ji to the Huangfu Clan's banquet, where Ancestor Huaye hosted Xiahou Hongde and Fang You'an.
• Ancestor Huaye and Fang You'an discussed Master Binglan's strength and humility as the banquet began.
• The Jinsha Xu Clan's river-sand trade grew, and Xu Anze guarded the construction of water-powered silk-reeling machines and looms that could greatly expand the clan's fortunes.
• Several gray figures gathered on high ground near the Jinsha Xu Clan's workshop and watched it with killing intent.

Wang Shouzhe’s trap at the Jinsha Beach workshop caught the Yin Sha Sect attackers and two Qianma Huangfu Clan men, bringing the Patrol Guard, Wang Longyan, and Xu Beichen against them. As the invaders fought to break through, Xu Beichen’s Dragon Suppressing Stele clashed with Huangfu Jinyuan’s Dragon-Tiger Demon-Subduing Ruler, while an unknown woman arrived atop a giant turtle.

• Mr. Yin and Old Huangfu led three other Spirit Platform Realm cultivators to seize the workshop’s cocoons and equipment, but Wang Shoulian, Zhou Qingning, Zhou Zhenwu, and Xu Ningwei emerged to confront them.
• Zhou Zhenwu ordered the Patrol Guard to surround the five invaders, and Wang Longyan arrived and exposed Huangfu Jinyuan’s connection to the group.
• Xu Beichen appeared and cut off the invaders’ hope of escape, prompting Mr. Yin’s group and Huangfu Jinyuan’s clansman to attempt separate breakouts.
• Yin Twenty-Six tried to force his way through a Patrol Guard formation, but the soldiers’ shields, spears, and arrows drove him back.
• Huangfu Jinyuan fought through the Patrol Guard and summoned a Crimson Blood Dove, while Xu Beichen used the Dragon Suppressing Stele to attack him and his clansman.
• Huangfu Jinyuan countered with the Dragon-Tiger Demon-Subduing Ruler as a woman riding a giant turtle drifted downstream unnoticed.

Liu Ruolan joined the battle at Jinsha Beach and stopped Huangfu Kangping’s escape, while allies of the Wang Clan and Patrol Guard engaged the remaining Yin Sha Sect and Huangfu fighters. The battle continued as Wang Longyan confronted Mr. Yin, whose surprise at her ability to absorb Yin Sha qi grew when she used the Academy’s Profound Ice Sword Technique.

• Huangfu Jinyuan held back Ancestor Beichen while Huangfu Kangping fled on the Crimson Blood Dove, but Liu Ruolan summoned a massive wave that knocked them into the Jinsha River.
• The Primordial Water Spirit Turtle dragged the Crimson Blood Dove underwater, and Liu Ruolan warned Huangfu Kangping not to act rashly before he escaped across the river.
• Liu Qingbai intercepted Huangfu Kangping, and the two began fighting with their inherited sword techniques.
• Zhou Zhenwu and Lu Mingsheng joined forces against Yin Twenty-Six, while Gongsun Ao and Ancestor Ningwei confronted Yin Seventeen.
• Wang Longyan intercepted Mr. Yin and protected two soldiers from his Yin Sha Asura Banner, absorbing the Yin Sha qi from their bodies.
• Wang Longyan pressed her attack with the Profound Ice Sword Technique, startling Mr. Yin into asking whether she was an Academy core disciple or personal disciple.

Wang Longyan fought Mr. Yin until he unleashed a Yin Sha Poison Corpse, but Ancestor Ruhong arrived to hold it back and let Wang Longyan confront Mr. Yin again. At Huangfu Jinhuan’s banquet, Wang Mei impersonated Madam Ji and won Ji Mingyu’s trust as Huangfu Jinhuan prepared to target Wang Shouzhe and Xu Anbang.

• Wang Longyan battled Mr. Yin, using the Yin-Transforming Technique to absorb Yin Sha Qi and withstand his attacks.
• Mr. Yin summoned a Yin Sha Poison Corpse, which forced Wang Longyan to retreat while he tried to escape through the Patrol Guard encirclement.
• Ancestor Ruhong arrived after Liu Ruolan sent a coded signal and engaged the poison corpse, allowing Wang Longyan to block Mr. Yin’s path.
• At the Huangfu Clan banquet, Wang Mei, posing as Madam Ji, convinced Ji Mingyu that she was Ji Youwei, his younger relative, and told him about her divorce from the Zhou Clan.
• Ji Mingyu vowed to punish the Zhou man, while Huangfu Jinhuan believed Madam Ji’s story and warned her about local clans, then turned his attention to Wang Shouzhe and Xu Anbang.

Wang Longyan and the Patrol Guard defeated the Yin Sha Sect forces and captured Huangfu Kangping, while Wang Dingzu raided Fortune Gambling House over its collusion with the sect. At Ancestor Huaye’s banquet, Zhou Zhenwu arrived to arrest the Qianma Huangfu Clan and others involved in treason.

• Wang Longyan killed Mr. Yin after he tried to escape with the Blood Escape Technique, and Ancestor Ruhong and the others killed Yin Twenty-Six and Yin Seventeen.
• Ancestor Beichen killed Huangfu Jinyuan after he refused to surrender, while Huangfu Kangping was captured alive; Zhou Zhenwu left to report the battle’s aftermath.
• Wang Dingzu raided Fortune Gambling House on suspicion of collusion with the Yin Sha Sect, and Ding Youde turned against Head Manager Huang and led the soldiers to the hidden account books.
• At Ancestor Huaye’s banquet, Lei Yangyu rejected Huangfu Huaye’s bid to lead Changning Guard’s families, and several guests began leaving.
• Zhou Zhenwu arrived at the banquet with the Patrol Guard Third Battalion and announced the arrest of the Qianma Huangfu Clan and anyone who had colluded with the Yin Sha Sect.

The Patrol Guard exposed the Qianma Huangfu Clan's collusion with the Yin Sha Sect, and Wang Dingzu produced witnesses and records that prompted Xiahou Hongde to order arrests. Ancestor Huaye killed Huangfu Deyun to silence him, while Wang Shouzhe's allies celebrated their victory; Xiahou Hongde then sought Wang Shouzhe's explanation.

• Zhou Zhenwu accused the Qianma Huangfu Clan of conspiring with the Yin Sha Sect, but Xiahou Hongde initially refused to authorize arrests without sufficient evidence.
• Wang Dingzu arrived with Ding Youde, Huang Huaian's confession, account books, and evidence from Jinxiu Villa, linking the Qianma Huangfu Clan to the Yin Sha Sect.
• Ancestor Huaye killed Huangfu Deyun in front of the gathered leaders, claiming he was cleansing a traitor, and then left the banquet.
• Xiahou Hongde ordered Zhou Zhenwu and Wang Dingzu to jointly investigate and arrest those implicated, leaving the Huangfu residence deserted.
• Wang Shouzhe and Xu Anbang celebrated their victory in a carriage, where Lei Yangyu joined them and discussed the Xu Clan's technology and Huangfu Jinyuan's fate.
• Xiahou Hongde approached Wang Shouzhe, saying he wanted to discuss several matters, and Wang Shouzhe calmly agreed to hear him.

Wang Shouzhe hosted City Governor Xiahou Hongde in his carriage, using his newly distilled Fire Crystal Burn to ease Xiahou’s anger over being drawn into the conflict with the Huangfu Clan. Xiahou left impressed by the liquor and still unaware that he had swallowed the fire-element Spirit Stone Wang Shouzhe used to ignite it.

• Wang Shouzhe served Xiahou Hongde Jade Hook Green Tea, which Xiahou found too bland, then offered him Fire Crystal Burn.
• Xiahou drank the high-proof liquor, praised its strength, and acknowledged how dramatically Wang Shouzhe had raised the Ping'an Wang Clan.
• Xiahou confronted Wang Shouzhe for secretly using him and the Patrol Guard battalions as tools in the conflict, but his anger faded after Wang Shouzhe defended the clan’s actions.
• Xiahou demanded two hundred jin of Fire Crystal Burn in exchange for forgiving Wang Shouzhe, and Wang Shouzhe demonstrated how to drink it while aflame.
• Xiahou swallowed the burning liquor along with the fire-element Spirit Stone, and Wang Shouzhe told him to spit the stone out later.

Wang Shouzhe secured cooperation from City Governor Xiahou and Fang You'an by offering them Fire Crystal Burn and Ice Mountain Fire Burn, while using their influence to support his plans. After both guests left, Wang Mei arrived disguised as Madam Ji, ready to continue the deception against the Huangfu Clan.

• Wang Shouzhe offered Xiahou Hongde Fire Crystal Burn, and Xiahou swallowed a burning spirit stone before learning it was only meant to flavor the wine.
• Xiahou agreed to buy three thousand catties of Fire Crystal Burn annually at a discounted price and promised lawful assistance during his term, then hurried away in discomfort when the spirit stone slipped into his lower body.
• Wang Shouzhe apologized to Fang You'an for using the Academy disciples' presence to pressure Ancestor Huaye, and Fang accepted his explanation.
• Fang You'an tasted Wang Shouzhe's Ice Mountain Fire Burn, dubbed it Ice Lady, and agreed to help sell it.
• Wang Mei visited Wang Shouzhe disguised as Madam Ji and insisted that he address her by that name as she continued her role in the strategy against the Huangfu Clan.