Chapter Summaries

Xiao Yan forced Chen Zhen and the other three sect masters to swear Lightning Punishment Oaths not to attack him in the Heavenly Severing Ancient Tomb one year later. After Han Dong departed, Xiao Yan returned to the city, while Ye Luotian secretly met a dark shadow far away.

• Xiao Yan demanded that the four sect masters promise not to attack him when they entered the Heavenly Severing Ancient Tomb in a year, and they swore Lightning Punishment Oaths.
• Chen Zhen and the other sect masters left, and Han Dong praised Xiao Yan before telling him that the Alchemist Alliance headquarters was in the Western Wilderness Region.
• Han Dong departed, and Xiao Yan returned to the city while worrying about Ye Luotian and the dangers ahead.
• An hour after the sect masters separated, Ye Luotian arrived at a mountain peak southeast of Shahepu, where a dark shadow waited for him.

Xiao Yan traveled deeper into the Western Wilderness Region on foot, using the journey to steady his cultivation and strengthen his body. After enduring two hours of the desert’s heat and sand with his defenses withdrawn, he reached his limit and rested before continuing.

• Xiao Yan left Shahepu with a map and walked into the desert rather than flying, seeking to stabilize his Mid Five-Star Dou Di cultivation.
• Xiao Yan withdrew his defenses and Heavenly Flames, exposing his body to the desert’s heat and sand as he walked.
• The scorching wind and sand wounded Xiao Yan until his skin was covered in blood and hardened scabs.
• After two hours, Xiao Yan released ghastly white flames, sat down to meditate, and circulated the Flame Mantra to recover.
• Xiao Yan recognized that he had reached his limit and paused to recover before resuming his journey.

Xiao Yan crossed the Western Wilderness Region on foot, tempering his body and refining his Dou Qi as he endured the desert. At night, he killed a giant sand-dwelling beast and discovered a strange black mist he recognized as Ghost Hall.

• Xiao Yan spent seven days walking west through the desert, strengthening his body and condensing his Dou Qi with the Heavenly Flames.
• Xiao Yan cultivated for six hours before nightfall and struggled to navigate the shifting desert without landmarks.
• A giant serpent burst from beneath the sand and attacked Xiao Yan, but its strike hit his afterimage.
• Xiao Yan punched through the serpent's head and killed it.
• Xiao Yan noticed strange black mist nearby and recognized it as Ghost Hall.

Xiao Yan confronted a Ghost Hall Dou Di, who claimed he had brought something to show him. The jade plaque revealed Xun'er imprisoned and wounded inside a formation, leaving Xiao Yan shocked by the sight of his long-lost wife.

• Xiao Yan faced a Ghost Hall Dou Di in the desert and rejected the suggestion that the man could capture him.
• The Ghost Hall Dou Di launched a jade plaque at Xiao Yan, and Xiao Yan caught it with his Heavenly Flame before it could be destroyed.
• Xiao Yan summoned the Northern King and cautiously sent his soul power into the plaque.
• Xiao Yan entered the plaque's space and saw Xun'er imprisoned in a black formation, injured and unconscious.
• Xiao Yan recognized Xun'er as his wife and cried out her name.

Xiao Yan saw Xun'er trapped inside an illusory formation through a jade tablet and learned that she did not know where she was being held. After his Spiritual Strength withdrew and the tablet shattered, he resolved to rescue her from the Ghost Hall and the Ghost Fiend Gate.

• Xiao Yan and Xun'er recognized each other through the formation cage and rushed toward one another, but the barrier threw Xun'er back and injured her wrists.
• Xiao Yan realized that both figures were illusory and could not touch each other, then asked Xun'er where she was being held.
• Xun'er told Xiao Yan that she did not know her location and that the Ghost Hall's inhuman captors had brought her through a strange mirror.
• Xiao Yan vowed to rescue Xun'er and put the Ghost Hall and Ghost Fiend Gate on his must-kill list.
• Xiao Yan's Spiritual Strength withdrew from the jade tablet, which shattered in his hand as his face turned deathly pale.

After the jade token shattered, Xiao Yan learned that Gu Xun'er’s message had been lost and erupted in fury. He overwhelmed the masked Seven-Star Dou Di, who stopped the fight by offering to let him see Gu Xun'er.

• Xiao Yan discovered that the jade token had lost its power after he withdrew his Spiritual Strength, and the dark-robed man taunted him about Gu Xun'er.
• Xiao Yan unleashed his Heavenly Flames and demanded to know where Gu Xun'er was.
• Xiao Yan attacked the dark-robed man, burning away his black mist and breaking six of his chains with the Heavy Xuan Ruler.
• Xiao Yan struck the man and pressed his attack until he blocked the Heavy Xuan Ruler with both hands.
• The dark-robed man shouted that he could let Xiao Yan see Gu Xun'er, and Xiao Yan halted his descending ruler.

Xiao Yan learned that the Ghost Hall had captured Gu Xun'er to obtain the Tou She Ancient God Jade and pretended to surrender it. He used the shadowy figure’s rush for the jade to trap him and launch a coordinated attack intended to kill him.

• The shadowy figure offered to let Xiao Yan see Gu Xun'er in exchange for the Tou She Ancient God Jade.
• Xiao Yan recalled the jade’s role in the tragedies on the Dou Qi Continent and nearly crushed it in anger.
• Xiao Yan threw the jade toward the shadowy figure, who rushed to catch it.
• Xiao Yan activated his Dragon-Phoenix Bloodline, used the Great Dao of the Void to surround the shadowy figure, and summoned seven avatars.
• Xiao Yan and his avatars unleashed the Sevenfold Heaven-Breaking Ruler against the shadowy figure.

Xiao Yan overwhelmed the shadowy man with eight ruler beams after breaking through his Locking Soul Chain defense. The shadowy man was left gravely wounded and near death, while his mask fell into Xiao Yan’s hand.

• The shadowy man summoned twelve Locking Soul Chains to meet Xiao Yan’s eight ruler beams and hold them at bay.
• The shadowy man poured Dou Qi into the chains, weakening the ruler beams and taunting Xiao Yan.
• Xiao Yan’s seven avatars struck again, amplifying the ruler beams and smashing the chains into fragments.
• The broken chains injured the shadowy man, and the eight ruler beams struck him, draining his life force.
• The shadowy man’s mask flew off, and a feeble hand caught it before it fell.

After defeating the Ghost Hall member, Xiao Yan fled the magma battlefield but collapsed in the Gobi Desert as his power ran out. Later, a group of humans cornered a pack of Desolate Wolves, whose coordinated movements kept the fight at a stalemate.

• Xiao Yan stored the Northern King, fled the battlefield, and the Ghost Hall member's body fell into the magma.
• A surviving wisp of the Ghost Hall member's soul emerged from the magma and fled in the opposite direction from Xiao Yan.
• Xiao Yan's bloodline power faded, and he lost consciousness after crashing into the Gobi Desert.
• A pack of Desolate Wolves followed Xiao Yan's scent to a basin, where a group of humans ambushed them.
• The Desolate Wolves fought with coordinated agility, splitting the humans into groups and preventing either side from gaining the advantage.

A Lie saved the unconscious Xiao Yan during a battle with Desolate Wolves, and the Desolate Wolf King died just before it could kill them. The group left with A Lie carrying Xiao Yan, whose strength was slowly recovering.

• The humans and Desolate Wolves fought fiercely, and A Lie rushed to pull the unconscious Xiao Yan out of a wolf’s path.
• The Desolate Wolf King attacked A Lie, but an invisible gaze pierced its head and killed it instantly.
• With the pack thrown into disarray, the humans subdued the remaining wolves until Feng Lun ordered them to spare some.
• Feng Lun scolded A Lie for risking his life, then wondered whether Xiao Yan had killed the Wolf King before dismissing the thought.
• The group set off with A Lie carrying Xiao Yan at the rear, while Xiao Yan’s cultivation and strength gradually recovered.

Xiao Yan joined Feng Lun’s mercenary group as they set out for Wuyou City, where they planned to pay the entry fee with the spoils from hunting desert wolves. He learned that Miss Fang was the group’s charge, and thoughts of Xun'er strengthened his resolve to find her.

• Feng Lun ordered the group to leave camp before nightfall and told A Lie and Xiao Yan to stay near him.
• A Lie explained that Feng Lun protected the group and revealed his name to Xiao Yan, who introduced himself in return.
• Miss Fang emerged from her tent, and Feng Lun told her that the group had rescued Xiao Yan and would leave him in Wuyou City.
• The mercenaries loaded their cargo onto the wagons and traveled into the darkening desert with guards around them.
• Xiao Yan asked A Lie about Miss Fang and learned that the group’s main purpose was to protect her, a daughter of a great clan.
• Remembering Xun'er, Xiao Yan clenched his hands and vowed to find her.

Xiao Yan slowly recovered while traveling with Feng Lun’s caravan toward Wuyou City, then secretly drove off several powerful magical beasts that threatened them. The caravan reached Wuyou City, where Xiao Yan was due to part ways with them.

• Xiao Yan cultivated through the night and recovered about twenty percent of his strength while the caravan crossed the Gobi.
• Feng Lun warned the caravan of a charging beast, and Miss Fang and the others prepared to fight when a Nine-Star Half-Emperor beast appeared.
• Xiao Yan used his Spiritual Strength to order the beast to retreat, and it fled without attacking the caravan.
• Three more encounters with magical beasts ended with the beasts fleeing, making Feng Lun and Miss Fang suspect Xiao Yan but doubt that an injured young man could be responsible.
• The caravan traveled on without stopping and reached the gates of Wuyou City by noon.

Xiao Yan arrived at Wuyou City with Feng Lun’s group, gave A Lie a cultivation method, and was forced to leave the group when Captain Gou demanded an entry fee for him. Captain Gou then raised the group’s fee, and a middle-aged man’s voice interrupted the dispute.

• Xiao Yan recovered from his injuries and reached Wuyou City with Feng Lun’s group.
• A Lie told Xiao Yan he dreamed of traveling across the continent, and Xiao Yan gave him a wood-attribute cultivation method to read after Xiao Yan left.
• At the city gate, Feng Lun’s group presented twenty Desolate Wolf corpses as their entry fee.
• Feng Lun refused to pay for Xiao Yan, who withdrew into the crowd, while Feng Lun paid Miss Fang’s fee.
• Captain Gou demanded five more Desolate Wolves under a claimed new order, and Feng Lun accused him of inventing the rule.
• A middle-aged man spoke from the other side of the city gate.

Jin Ge attacked Fang Ruyan and the mercenaries after refusing to let them pass, gravely wounding Feng Lun. When Feng Lie charged at Jin Ge in rage, Xiao Yan stepped in and casually blocked the city lord’s punch.

• Jin Ge pressured Feng Lun and dismissed Fang Ruyan’s plea to resolve the dispute peacefully.
• Jin Ge immobilized Fang Ruyan and pulled her toward him, but Feng Lun broke free and rescued her.
• Feng Lun vowed to protect his charge, and the mercenaries united against Jin Ge at the city gate.
• Jin Ge struck Feng Lun with a powerful punch, leaving him gravely wounded.
• Feng Lie attacked Jin Ge in fury, but Xiao Yan stopped him and blocked Jin Ge’s next punch with ease.

Xiao Yan intervened when Jin Ge attacked A Lie at Wuyou City's gate, then forced Jin Ge to let the travelers enter without paying an entrance fee. Xiao Yan and the mercenary teams proceeded into the city while Fang Ruyan followed her group.

• Xiao Yan stopped Jin Ge's attack on A Lie with one hand, shocking the crowd and revealing that he was a powerful Dou Di.
• Captain Gou tried to impress Jin Ge by confronting Xiao Yan, but Xiao Yan killed him instantly.
• Jin Ge released his pressure toward Xiao Yan, but Xiao Yan overwhelmed him and demanded to know whether he still intended to charge an entrance fee.
• Jin Ge backed down, ordered the guards to withdraw, and invited Xiao Yan and the mercenary teams into Wuyou City.
• Fang Ruyan followed her group after they carried away Feng Lun, while Jin Ge watched the party disappear through the gate.

After entering Wuyou City, Xiao Yan saved Feng Lun with a third-tier healing pill. Fang Ruyan asked him to help the Fang Clan and offered to become his concubine, but Xiao Yan refused and walked away.

• Xiao Yan reassured A Lie that they could continue addressing each other as before, then A Lie learned Feng Lun might die from his severe injuries.
• Fang Ruyan said her second-tier pills could not save Feng Lun, and A Lie grew furious at Jin Ge.
• Xiao Yan calmed A Lie and gave the unconscious Feng Lun a third-tier healing pill, rapidly improving his condition.
• Fang Ruyan asked Xiao Yan to help the Fang Clan through its crisis and offered to become his concubine.
• Xiao Yan refused to get involved in the Fang Clan's affairs and walked into an empty alley, leaving Fang Ruyan distressed.

After Xiao Yan left Wuyou City, A Lie realized Xiao Yan had saved the mercenary group and received a valuable cultivation method from him. Meanwhile, a remnant soul from the Ghost Hall sought help from Ye Luotian, who seized and began refining it instead.

• Xiao Yan left Wuyou City, and the mercenary group departed after him as Fang Ruyan worried about losing his protection.
• A Lie opened Xiao Yan's scroll and discovered it contained an Intermediate Spirit Class wood-element cultivation method, which he gratefully accepted.
• Ye Luotian sensed a remnant soul approaching and recognized it as the Ghost Hall man who had gone to capture Xiao Yan.
• The Ghost Hall man told Ye Luotian that Xiao Yan had defeated him and demanded Soul Origin to repair his damaged soul.
• Ye Luotian offered the Ghost Hall man a mass of Soul Origin, then withdrew it and absorbed the remnant soul to refine it for a breakthrough.

Xiao Yan traveled through the Western Wilderness Region and discovered a confrontation between the Wang Clan and the Fang Clan in Helan City. As Wang Xiang pressured the Fang Clan to submit or leave, Xiao Yan recognized Yuan Qing, the Cloud Immortal Sect deacon who had helped him before.

• Xiao Yan continued west across the barren Western Wilderness Region, seeking places where he could grow stronger.
• Xiao Yan spotted Helan City and sensed three Dou Di experts confronting each other in a private residence.
• Wang Xiang gave Fang Cheng three days to make the Fang Clan leave Helan City or submit to the Wang Clan.
• Yuan Qing stood with the Fang Clan and resisted Wang Xiang's pressure, but Wang Xiang overwhelmed the group.
• Xiao Yan recognized Yuan Qing as the Cloud Immortal Sect deacon who had once helped him and given him the Nine Revolutions Avatar Art.

Wang Xiang gave the Fang Clan three days to leave Helan City, but Fang Cheng and Yuan Qing vowed to defend the clan’s home. When they mistook an arriving black-robed figure for an attacker, they discovered it was Xiao Yan, whom Yuan Qing recognized with delight.

• Yuan Qing stood against Wang Xiang and warned that he would help Fang Cheng resist the Wang Clan; Wang Xiang gave the Fang Clan three days to leave Helan City.
• After Wang Xiang departed, Yuan Qing and Fang Cheng discussed the clan’s dire prospects, and Fang Cheng refused to abandon its ancestral home.
• Fang Cheng and Yuan Qing attacked a rapidly approaching black-robed figure, but the newcomer effortlessly blocked both of their Dou Techniques.
• Xiao Yan disarmed the two men and greeted Yuan Qing, who recognized him and welcomed him with a respectful bow.

Xiao Yan reunited with Yuan Qing at the Fang Clan and learned that his strength could help them resist the Wang Clan. Fang Ruyan returned after escaping an attack and froze when she recognized Xiao Yan in the hall.

• Yuan Qing greeted Xiao Yan with deep respect and told Fang Cheng that Xiao Yan had saved his life and helped him advance.
• Fang Cheng welcomed Xiao Yan into the main hall, hoping he would help the Fang Clan face the Wang Clan.
• A servant announced Fang Ruyan's return, and she told Fang Cheng and Yuan Qing that a powerful expert had saved her from the Wang Clan and Jin Ge of Wuyou City.
• Fang Cheng asked where the expert was so he could seek his aid, and Fang Ruyan recognized Xiao Yan sitting in the hall.
• Xiao Yan stood and greeted Fang Ruyan, saying they had met again.