Recaps

Li Yan tested the silver sheet Bu Luo had given him, but his powerful Divine Sense failed to pierce it and triggered a painful backlash. Bu Luo mistook Li Yan’s strength for that of a false Core cultivator, and after trying spiritual power without success, Li Yan put the sheet away to study later.

• Li Yan tried to penetrate the silver sheet with his Divine Sense, but its resistance eventually struck back and injured him.
• Li Yan warned Bu Luo that Foundation Establishment cultivators could not open the sheet and let him test it; Bu Luo’s own Divine Sense was repelled.
• Bu Luo concluded that Li Yan was a false Core cultivator, and Li Yan neither confirmed nor denied it before taking the sheet back.
• Bu Luo suggested that Li Yan try using spiritual power, so Li Yan tested the sheet with it and found it remained unresponsive.
• Li Yan put the silver sheet away, unwilling to risk damaging it with brute force.

After recovering in the fire eye, Bu Luo introduced himself as a servant of Zuo Qiudan and departed for the south, while Li Yan stayed behind. Once Bu Luo was gone, Li Yan let the Purple God Dragon-Elephant out to feed in another fire eye.

• Li Yan told Bu Luo that five days had passed and the other cultivators had left the area.
• Bu Luo revealed that he served Zuo Qiudan of the Zuo Lineage in Saint State and thanked Li Yan for saving him.
• Li Yan recognized Zuo Qiudan’s reputation as a renowned pill-refining master, and Bu Luo invited him to visit the Zuo Lineage.
• Bu Luo left for the south after warning Li Yan to watch out for the Bright Fire Qilin deeper in the fire eye.
• Li Yan released the Purple God Dragon-Elephant and allowed it to seek a different fire eye to devour.

Li Yan spent six months beneath the Flame Palace at Red Maple Pool, cultivating and sparring with the Purple God Dragon-Elephant while waiting for treasures to emerge. He found a rare spearhead and earthfire grass, strengthened his cultivation, and broke through to the second level of the Qiongqi Purgatory Art before the chapter ended with him unable to store magma for the Dragon-Elephant’s recovery.

• The Purple God Dragon-Elephant entered a fire vent, while Li Yan reflected that Yiming had disappeared into golden magma while pursuing him.
• Over four months, Li Yan evaded arriving cultivators and found no treasures in the magma; the Purple God Dragon-Elephant condensed its soul into a body-like form and accepted Li Yan’s control.
• Li Yan trained in the Qiongqi Purgatory Art and sparred with the Purple God Dragon-Elephant, which gradually had to use more strength to overpower him.
• After six months at Red Maple Pool, Li Yan found a palm-sized spearhead that sank through solid rock and a second-tier stalk of earthfire grass.
• Li Yan reached the peak of the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage and advanced the Qiongqi Purgatory Art to its second level, completing four cycles daily.
• Li Yan tried to store magma in Tuban to help the Purple God Dragon-Elephant recover, but it cooled into rock, and the containers he tested could not withstand the heat.

Li Yan broke through to the second realm of the Qiongqi Purgatory Art and grew strong enough to fight the little Purple Divine Dragon Elephant, while reflecting on how the lotus throne’s intent had transformed his cultivation. After observing a failed false-core cultivator emerge from a fire vent, Li Yan decided to enter one himself and explore its dangers.

• After cultivating the Qiongqi Purgatory Art, Li Yan’s aura frightened the little Purple Divine Dragon Elephant, but he soon fought it and endured a blow that sent him crashing into the Flame Palace mountain.
• The little Purple Divine Dragon Elephant withdrew after using most of its strength, and Li Yan realized he had reached the peak of mid-stage Foundation Establishment with the Qiongqi Purgatory Art at its second realm.
• Li Yan considered how the Gui Water True Scripture and his faint grasp of the lotus throne’s intent had strengthened him, and resolved to ask Ping Tu for guidance when he returned to the Phantom Sect.
• Li Yan concealed himself and the little Purple Divine Dragon Elephant as a black-robed cultivator emerged from a fire vent without reaching core formation.
• Li Yan and the little Purple Divine Dragon Elephant discussed the cultivator’s prospects, and Li Yan decided to enter a fire vent despite the danger.

Li Yan endured the golden magma and reached a hidden chamber with a crimson gate, where his attack on its pull rings summoned a golden qilin. The qilin dodged his Li Fire and asked him to stop so they could talk.

• Li Yan entered a Fire Eye and descended through the golden magma, relying on his five-element spiritual energy to withstand its heat.
• Li Yan struggled to extend his Divine Sense through the magma and continued downward as his spiritual energy rapidly ran low.
• Li Yan reached a small chamber beneath the magma and found a crimson gate with two enormous pull rings.
• Li Yan attacked one pull ring with Li Fire from his Li Fire Mysterious Yellow Fan, and golden smoke emerged from the rings.
• The smoke formed a golden qilin, which dodged Li Yan's next attack and pleaded with him to stop.

Li Yan outmaneuvered the Bright Fire Qilin at the palace doors, but the soul beast tricked him into the dangerous black passageway. Trapped in its crushing darkness and unable to move, Li Yan realized he had fallen for the Qilin’s deception.

• Li Yan recognized the Bright Fire Qilin’s trap at the crimson doors and kept it wary with a wisp of Li Fire.
• Li Yan opened the doors and found a black passageway on the left and a golden passageway on the right.
• The Bright Fire Qilin feigned disappointment to steer Li Yan toward the golden passageway, but Li Yan chose the black one and was sucked inside.
• Li Yan found himself immobilized in a narrow, pitch-black passage whose walls tightened whenever he tried to make room.
• Li Yan regretted underestimating the Bright Fire Qilin as he remained trapped in the passage.

Li Yan endured the black passage’s suffocating heat and crushing isolation as his body and mind deteriorated, while the Bright Fire Qilin waited outside, unable to enter. After finally stopping his crawl and losing consciousness, Li Yan saw a dreamlike vision of familiar faces amid falling snow.

• Li Yan crawled through the sealed, scorching passage, conserving his spiritual power and using the Cloud Rain Technique to drink water.
• The Bright Fire Qilin repeatedly tried to enter the passage but was repelled, and it grew increasingly desperate for Li Yan to die.
• Over five days, Li Yan crawled less than five hundred zhang, suffered hallucinations and lost his sense of time, and struggled against thoughts of cutting off his arms.
• The Bright Fire Qilin waited outside for twenty days and repeatedly rammed the passage, hoping to claim Li Yan’s soul-enhancing red flame.
• Li Yan stopped crawling as his consciousness became chaotic, then saw snowflakes and familiar faces in a vivid vision before realizing he was dreaming.

Li Yan analyzed Meng Kingdom’s unexpected offensive and led reinforcements to defend Falling Immortal Slope, the key route to Green Mountain Pass. The battle was already raging on both sides of the slope after Meng Kingdom sent a small but fierce force through a seemingly impassable western mountain route.

• Li Yan recalled watching his children, Li Xiegong and Li Youmeng, spar in the garden and reassured A-Ying that their daughter could pursue martial arts.
• Li Yan and his officers struggled to explain Meng Kingdom’s unusual troop movements as scouts reported attacks on three passes and a grain supply camp.
• Li Yan ordered generals to reinforce Moonwatch Ridge, Clearwind Forest, and the grain camp, while he personally led troops to Falling Immortal Slope.
• Li Yan reached Falling Immortal Slope as fighting raged, with Meng Kingdom attacking from the east and from the west after crossing six hundred li of difficult mountains.

Li Yan reached Fallen Immortal Slope and learned that a small Meng Kingdom force had infiltrated from the west after crossing the deadly cliffs. When their silver-armored commander proved unstoppable, Li Yan took up his halberd and entered the fight to face him.

• Li Yan arrived at Fallen Immortal Slope and heard Cui Feng explain how the Meng Kingdom attackers had surprised the western defenses.
• Li Yan realized that the few remaining western attackers were hardened soldiers and considered the heavy losses both sides had suffered.
• Cui Feng identified the silver-armored general as the force’s commander and prepared to challenge him, but Li Yan ordered him to remain and hold the position.
• Li Yan took his halberd and advanced toward the silver-armored general, while Cui Feng sent guards to protect him from ambushes.
• Li Yan reached the melee and raised his halberd to strike the silver-armored general.

Li Yan faced the young silver-armored Meng Kingdom general in a duel and overwhelmed him with his superior strength and skill. After testing the general through nearly a hundred exchanges, Li Yan began a powerful technique as the general thrust his spear at Li Yan’s throat.

• Li Yan arrived on the battlefield, and the four imperial generals scattered to let him fight the silver-armored commander alone.
• The silver-armored commander recognized Li Yan as the Martial Saint and challenged him, but Li Yan’s first blow forced him back several steps.
• The silver-armored commander attacked with a rapid storm of spear strikes, while Li Yan blocked and countered with measured movements.
• Li Yan raised his power as the general’s attacks intensified, then decided the young opponent was too dangerous to spare.
• Li Yan planted his lance in the ground and gathered an immense force between his hands as the silver-armored general thrust his spear toward Li Yan’s throat.

Li Yan defeated the silver-armored general and discovered that his opponent was a woman, whose presence stirred an inexplicable familiarity in him. He tried to learn her identity and protect her from death, ending by ordering his guards to threaten her soldiers with her life and let them withdraw.

• Li Yan bent the silver-armored general's spear with his palm, sent her flying, and caught up to strike at her before stopping himself when he saw her face.
• Li Yan safely lowered the wounded general to the ground and realized she was a woman, while her remaining soldiers fought desperately to reach her.
• Li Yan demanded the general's name, but she refused and asked him to kill her rather than capture her.
• Li Yan offered to spare her soldiers longer if she revealed her origins, while privately wondering whether she had a connection to his martial sect.
• Li Yan ordered his guards to threaten to kill the general if her soldiers kept attacking and to stop pursuing them so they could withdraw.

Li Yan defeated Dong Min, a Guard General of the Meng Kingdom, and negotiated her release in exchange for information about her origins. After learning she was a disciple of the Yuanqing Sect and Chang Peng’s martial niece, Li Yan let her take the surviving soldiers back along their original route, while both wondered why the other felt strangely familiar.

• Li Yan refused to let Dong Min’s surviving soldiers join the eastern army, but offered to release her if she answered his questions.
• Dong Min introduced herself as a Guard General and said she was a disciple of the Yuanqing Sect.
• Dong Min revealed that Chang Peng was her third martial uncle, and Li Yan recalled his past victories over Yuanqing Sect masters.
• Li Yan told Dong Min she was no match for him, while she concluded that even ten more years of training might only let her fight him to a draw.
• Li Yan and Dong Min admitted they felt an inexplicable familiarity with each other, then Li Yan let her take the surviving soldiers back by their original route.

Li Yan allowed Dong Min and the remaining Meng Kingdom soldiers to withdraw west, but Dong Min turned back and tested him with a powerful arrow. After Li Yan identified her imperial lineage and archery technique, he let her leave again, and she hesitated before departing.

• Li Yan ordered Dong Min and her fifty-odd soldiers to leave west, despite Cui Feng's reluctance.
• Dong Min revealed her name as Dong Lingmin and fired a thunderous arrow at Li Yan from a hundred zhang away.
• Li Yan struck the arrow aside, recognized the hidden force of Dark Tide Triple Waves, and caught it before it could hit him.
• Li Yan identified Dong Lingmin as a member of the Meng Kingdom imperial family and allowed her group to leave once more.
• Dong Lingmin saluted but paused instead of leaving, making her soldiers fear that a final battle was coming.

After Dong Lingmin warned Li Yan about Kong Xiao at Green Mountain Pass, Li Yan suspected an attack from within and ordered Cui Feng to defend Fallen Immortal Slope while he hurried north. On the road, he spotted a lone rider ahead with more than a dozen riders following behind.

• Dong Lingmin asked whether Kong Xiao was guarding Green Mountain Pass, then withdrew west with her soldiers.
• Li Yan let Dong Lingmin go, concealed his concern from the troops, and later told Cui Feng he feared Kong Xiao might have betrayed them.
• Li Yan ordered Cui Feng to secure Fallen Immortal Slope, send warnings to nearby strongholds, and keep the threat secret from ordinary soldiers.
• Li Yan arranged for Li Du to bring an army north after him, then set out alone for Green Mountain Pass.
• After nearly two hours, Li Yan saw a lone rider approaching with more than a dozen riders close behind and climbed a tree to watch them.

Li Yan ambushed and killed the imperial cavalry pursuing Li Si, then learned that Commander Kong had rebelled and besieged the Marshal's Residence. He left the gravely wounded Li Si unconscious in the forest and set out to save A-Ying and the children.

• Li Yan recognized the pursuing riders as imperial soldiers and killed the first three before the remaining cavalry surrounded him.
• The soldiers recognized Li Yan as Marshal and fled, but he killed them with armor plates hurled through the air.
• Li Yan found Li Si, caught him as he fell from his horse, and treated his injuries enough to hear his report.
• Li Si told Li Yan that Commander Kong had rebelled, that the Marshal's Residence was under attack, and that Li Da and Li San had died helping him escape.
• Li Yan stopped Li Si from urging him onward, knocked him unconscious, and carried him into the forest.

Li Yan rescued the wounded Li Si, then raced back to Green Mountain Pass and discovered Kong Xiao had seized the city. Kong Xiao showed him his wife’s jade ring and claimed the marshal’s residence had been destroyed, leaving Li Yan reeling as Kong Xiao ordered the defenders to attack.

• Li Yan recognized Li Si, knocked him unconscious, and treated his arrow wounds before leaving him secured in a tree with his saber.
• Li Yan reached Green Mountain Pass the next day and fought through a storm of crossbow bolts while demanding to know who controlled the city.
• Kong Xiao revealed himself on the walls and ordered the soldiers to keep firing as Li Yan approached the gate.
• Li Yan prepared to scale the wall, but Kong Xiao showed him the jade ring his wife wore and claimed the residence had been destroyed by fire arrows.
• Li Yan spat blood and slumped against the wall, and Kong Xiao ordered his men to drop logs, boulders, and hot oil.

A silver-armored rider rescued Li Yan from Kong Xiao at Green Mountain Pass, while Li Yan remained trapped in the Flame Palace’s black passageway. After enduring a star-filled illusion that made him believe he was dead, Li Yan awakened and could no longer tell which reality was true.

• Kong Xiao used a jade ring to distract Li Yan, but a silver-armored rider swept him onto a horse and fled with him.
• Kong Xiao ordered the heavy crossbows to attack, and the rider shot an arrow that struck Kong Xiao in the back of the head.
• The Bright Fire Qilin wondered why Li Yan had survived more than a year in the black passageway and kept trying to enter it.
• In a star-filled void, Li Yan lost his strength, wandered until he collapsed, and found the will to continue after hearing what seemed to be his mother’s voice.
• Li Yan stirred inside the black passageway, recognized where he was, and questioned whether the passageway or his life as a general was real.

After escaping the black passage, Li Yan emerged into a secret chamber inside the Flame Palace and began recovering and cultivating amid its dense fire spiritual energy. More than a month later, the Purple Divine Dragon Elephant noticed Li Yan’s spiritual power surging, though it did not realize he was balancing the five elements rather than preparing for an ordinary breakthrough.

• Li Yan confirmed that his memories of a lifetime as a marshal had been a dream, then pressed onward through the dark passage until he found a genuine opening.
• Li Yan escaped into a golden secret chamber, discovered he had been reduced to skin and bones, changed clothes, and identified the chamber as a fire-rich inner area of the Flame Palace.
• Li Yan set up the Great Dragon Elephant Array and released the Purple Divine Dragon Elephant, then explained why he had kept it inside during the passage.
• Li Yan and the Purple Divine Dragon Elephant cultivated in the chamber, where the abundant fire spiritual energy began restoring Li Yan and raised the beast to the middle stage of the second rank.
• After more than a month, the Purple Divine Dragon Elephant watched Li Yan’s rapidly circulating spiritual power and wondered why he showed no signs of an ordinary breakthrough.

Li Yan broke through from the middle Foundation Establishment stage to the False Core Realm in a single cultivation session, astonishing the Purple Divine Dragon Elephant with his strength and lotus throne true intent. He woke unaware of the breakthrough, while the Radiant Fire Qilin entered the black passage searching for his presumed corpse and Storage Pouch.

• The Purple Divine Dragon Elephant watched Li Yan advance continuously through late Foundation Establishment and Foundation Establishment great perfection.
• A black lotus throne appeared above Li Yan, and he broke through into the False Core Realm amid five-colored light.
• The Purple Divine Dragon Elephant began to submit to Li Yan, though it still awaited his future growth before offering complete submission.
• The Radiant Fire Qilin entered the black passage, reached its end, and searched in vain for Li Yan's Storage Pouch.
• Li Yan woke with immense spiritual power and learned from the Purple Divine Dragon Elephant that he had broken through, though he did not know what realm he had reached.

After breaking through to the False Core Realm, Li Yan explored the Flame Palace’s rear garden in search of Crimson Mother Essence. He discovered that the rare fire-element herbs were traps formed or guarded by vengeful souls, and the chapter ended as he sensed spiritual-power fluctuations ahead.

• Li Yan confirmed that he had reached the False Core Realm and marveled at his heightened senses and strength.
• Li Yan left the secret chamber, explored the palace hall, and entered the rear garden instead of taking the flaming door out.
• Li Yan found that the garden’s rare young herbs were protected by dark-red grass and vengeful souls capable of soul attacks.
• Li Yan avoided the herbs and continued cautiously through the vast garden, finding its pavilions unusually rich in spiritual energy.
• After wandering for hours without finding Crimson Mother Essence or another cultivator, Li Yan sensed intense spiritual-power fluctuations ahead.

Li Yan found Monk Yiming fighting Duan Weiran in the Flame Palace and killed Yiming with his Disjointed Poison Body. After revealing his greatly increased strength, Li Yan greeted the shaken Duan Weiran, who questioned whether he was really Brother Jiang.

• Li Yan recognized Monk Yiming and Duan Weiran fighting and decided to take revenge on Yiming.
• Monk Yiming revealed that he had poisoned Duan Weiran to weaken him and planned to take the two silver sheets in his Storage Pouch.
• Li Yan appeared behind Monk Yiming and dissolved him with his Disjointed Poison Body, destroying his Storage Pouch as well.
• Duan Weiran recognized Li Yan as Brother Jiang and hesitantly asked about his cultivation.

Li Yan accepted two silver sheets from Duan Weiran after saving him and learned that he had escaped the Fire Flame Palace’s Darkness passage. Duan Weiran explained the deadly Light passage, leaving Li Yan with a clearer picture of the palace’s two routes.

• Duan Weiran recovered enough to stabilize his injuries while Li Yan waited nearby.
• Duan Weiran offered Li Yan two silver sheets as repayment, and Li Yan recognized them as identical to the sheet Buluo had given him.
• Duan Weiran explained that he had encountered three cultivators and sought a distant pavilion to cultivate safely.
• Li Yan confirmed he had emerged from the black passage, and Duan Weiran identified it as the Darkness passage beneath the Fire Flame Palace.
• Duan Weiran described the Light passage as a months-long trial of escalating battles against vengeful souls, where a single mistake could prove fatal.

Duan Weiran explained the dangers of the Darkness passage and told Li Yan that Stone Transformation Forest might contain Red Mother Essence. After Duan Weiran chose to remain in the garden to pursue a breakthrough, Li Yan offered him formation flags.

• Duan Weiran described how the Darkness passage tormented cultivators with illusions and said Zen Master Zhichu was the last known person to pass through it.
• Li Yan reflected on Zhichu's advancement and his own experience in the passage, then learned that Duan Weiran had been cultivating in the pavilion before Yiming broke his protective formation.
• Li Yan guarded Duan Weiran while he recovered and tested two silver sheets, finding that they had been refined by the same person as the sheet he had obtained from Buluo.
• After Duan Weiran recovered enough to speak, Li Yan asked him where Red Mother Essence might be found, and Duan Weiran pointed him toward Stone Transformation Forest.
• Duan Weiran resolved to remain in the garden and pursue a breakthrough, and Li Yan handed him several formation flags.

Li Yan obtained a sufficient piece of Crimson Mother Essence in the Stone Transformation Forest and captured fierce souls to store in his Tuban space. After leaving the forest, he traveled back through the rear garden and reached the exit of the first level.

• Li Yan gave Duan Weiran a set of array flags for protection because Duan resembled his friend Zhuo Lingfeng.
• Li Yan used the Great Dragon Elephant Array to survive the Stone Transformation Forest, where the Purple Divine Dragon Elephant recovered soul power and advanced by devouring fierce souls.
• Li Yan found enough Crimson Mother Essence to refine a magic treasure and decided to capture fierce souls for later use.
• Li Yan sealed large numbers of fierce souls into his Tuban space, while the Purple Divine Dragon Elephant discovered that the Storage Pouch could not explain where they had gone.
• Li Yan left the Stone Transformation Forest, passed through the rear garden, and reached the ice house at the exit of the first level.

Li Yan entered the Northern Dark Demon-Suppressing Tower’s ice house and endured the tower’s overwhelming scrutiny, which probed his body and Storage Pouch before allowing him to leave. He emerged outside the tower safely, where a withered Buddha statue recognized his improved cultivation and sent him on his way.

• Li Yan let the tower’s invisible force examine him, and it opened his Storage Pouch and sensed the aura of the Fierce Soul.
• A giant eye formed from the force and scrutinized Li Yan until his spiritual power nearly froze; the Purple Divine Dragon Elephant warned him that the presence far surpassed Nascent Soul power.
• The giant eye vanished, and Li Yan found himself outside the tower after fewer than ten breaths had passed.
• The withered Buddha statue recognized Li Yan from the Huchen family and remarked on his improved cultivation.
• Li Yan bowed to the two Buddha statues, thanked the withered one, and headed toward the plaza.