Recaps

Huaiyan proposed that Yanqing and Yunli train an apprentice who could represent the Express in the Wardance, and March 7th reluctantly accepted the role. The arrangement left Yanqing and Yunli as her swordsmanship teachers, while Stelle suspected Huaiyan wanted the group to remain on the Xianzhou Luofu.

• Huaiyan asked Yanqing and Yunli to cooperate in training an apprentice who could win a Wardance match, and Jing Yuan suggested Stelle or March 7th.
• Stelle volunteered to learn swordsmanship, but Huaiyan judged that no one could guide her on her path and recommended March 7th instead.
• March 7th worried about her lack of experience and the time the training would take, but Yunli and Huaiyan reassured her, and she agreed after hearing Ye Yan might assist and provide milk tea.
• Huaiyan assigned Yanqing and Yunli to teach March 7th Cloud Knight swordsmanship, then left with Yunli to buy her practice gear.
• March 7th and Yanqing wondered how they had suddenly become teachers, and Stelle said Huaiyan likely wanted them to stay on the Xianzhou Luofu.

The Astral Express crew agreed to face the Luofu generals’ questions, while Feixiao explained to Yukong why the Alliance was scrutinizing Jing Yuan and revealed her plan to visit Hoolay. That night at the Dusty Inn, Ye Yan appeared with milk tea to celebrate March 7th’s chance to study swordsmanship.

• Dan Heng explained that Jing Yuan had arranged for Yanqing and Yunli to test the Express crew, and the crew agreed to answer the generals’ questions.
• Yanqing promised Jing Yuan that he would hold the Wardance arena for Luofu.
• Feixiao told Yukong that the Alliance was investigating Luofu’s report, Jing Yuan’s decisions, and Jingliu’s return, then disclosed that she intended to visit Hoolay.
• Feixiao explained that Yaoqing was concerned about Hoolay’s confinement and that routine century-spaced visits no longer reassured its leaders.
• At the Dusty Inn, March 7th went to Stelle’s room for a pillow fight and found Ye Yan there with milk tea to celebrate her Wardance training opportunity.

Ye Yan joked with March 7th about preparing for the Wardance, then she began sword training under Yanqing and Yunli. Their competing discipleship gifts left March puzzled when Ye Yan gave her a divination card called the Veil of Eternal Night.

• Ye Yan introduced March 7th to the Soap MK8888 Armor, while Stelle offered her the mimetic bat for the Wardance.
• Stelle told Ye Yan she had dreamed about Lycurgus and asked what he knew about Amphoreus; he described it as a good vacation destination.
• Stelle prompted March 7th to greet Yanqing as her master, and Yanqing agreed to teach her swordsmanship so she could defeat at least one Wardance opponent.
• March 7th began her first lesson with Yanqing and Yunli, who competed to impress her with gifts.
• Yunli gave March 7th a tailored Xianzhou outfit, Yanqing gave her a pair of swords, and Ye Yan presented her with a Veil of Eternal Night divination card.

March 7th began her swordsmanship lessons by sparring with Ye Yan, who effortlessly evaded and redirected her attacks while pointing out her flaws. Yanqing and Yunli then argued over whether she should practice footwork or power generation first, leaving March 7th caught between them.

• March 7th changed into Yunli's chosen swordswoman outfit and learned that her first lesson would involve sparring with Ye Yan.
• March 7th charged Ye Yan with a thrust and slash, but he evaded both attacks without disturbing his milk tea.
• March 7th tried a faster attack with footwork, but Ye Yan redirected her sword with two fingers and identified her unstable center of gravity, excessive force, and obvious intentions.
• Yanqing praised March 7th's potential but pointed out flaws in her sword swings, while Yunli and Yanqing disagreed about whether she should train footwork or power generation first.
• March 7th tried to mediate, but Yanqing and Yunli insisted that she follow their advice, leaving her silent between them.

March 7th began formal sword lessons with Yanqing and Yunli and explained that sword-hero immersia inspired her to learn. She planned to serve them apprenticeship tea, while Stelle suggested they find Ye Yan at the Sleepless Earl teahouse.

• Stelle visited March 7th's training and learned that Ye Yan had only helped during the first two days.
• Yanqing and Yunli asked March 7th what motivated her to wield a sword, and she recalled stealing Ye Yan's milk tea while he caught her flying sword.
• March 7th said she wanted to become a sword hero like the characters in immersia, and Yanqing and Yunli approved of her motivation.
• March 7th asked to serve apprenticeship tea, and Yanqing and Yunli agreed to accept milk tea.
• Stelle suggested holding the ceremony at the Sleepless Earl teahouse, where she thought Ye Yan was likely relaxing.

Scott harassed Mengming at the Sleepless Earl teahouse and provoked March 7th by insulting Xianzhou swordsmanship. March 7th accepted his challenge to fight the company's mechs in five days, with both sides agreeing to humiliating terms if they lost.

• Scott complained about Mengming's tea and insulted the Sleepless Earl as Stelle, March 7th, Yanqing, and Yunli arrived.
• March 7th called herself Scott's ancestor, and he mocked her swords and Xianzhou swordsmanship while summoning company mechs.
• March 7th challenged Scott's mech to a fight, and Scott proposed a wager to take place in five days.
• March 7th and Scott agreed to public punishments for the loser, while Stelle added apologies to Mengming and Xianzhou swordsmanship to Scott's terms.
• Scott departed with his mechs, still uneasy about the feeling that someone was watching him.

After Scott bullied Mengming, March 7th committed to learning swordsmanship so she could defeat him in their wager and protect people from injustice. Yanqing and Yunli set her a five-day test, and March began preparing to train with Stelle and Ye Yan.

• March 7th tried to call Chair Blake for help, then checked on Mengming and learned that Ye Yan was inside the Sleepless Earl teahouse.
• March 7th, Stelle, and the others joined Ye Yan in the private room, where March declared that she would learn swordsmanship and beat Scott.
• March 7th offered Stelle exclusive high-definition photos of Pom-Pom as teaching-assistant pay, and Ye Yan accepted the deal.
• Yunli and Yanqing warned March 7th that she had only five days and would need to follow a strict training plan and pass their test.
• Yanqing asked March 7th for her reason to wield a sword, and she said she wanted to become a great hero who stood up to injustice.

Yanqing and Yunli tested March 7th’s sword fundamentals, while Silver Wolf secretly prepared a hack to help her face Scott’s IPC mechs. The chapter ended with Silver Wolf assuring Stelle that March 7th could enter the match without worrying.

• March 7th learned that her first swordsmanship test focused on fundamentals, and Yanqing and Yunli warned she had little chance against IPC security mechs.
• Yanqing took March 7th to have her swords maintained as recognition of her progress.
• Silver Wolf visited Ye Yan’s milk tea shop and told Stelle she planned an offline meetup with a veteran Xianzhou player.
• After Stelle described March 7th’s upcoming match against Scott, Silver Wolf asked for an item March 7th carried and used it to prepare a buff.
• Silver Wolf told Stelle to reassure March 7th and claimed that knowing the enemy would make her opponent a dead dog.

March 7th passed Yunli’s swordsmanship exam after accidentally demonstrating a drunken sword routine, while Ye Yan and Stelle visited Qingque at the Divination Commission to look for a sword manual and told her about Scott. Qingque confronted Scott in Aurum Alley and provoked him into agreeing to a debate before March 7th’s duel.

• March 7th mistook Ye Yan’s special-effect milk tea for Flaming Strong Tea and performed a fluid drunken sword routine, impressing Yunli and Yanqing and passing her exam.
• March 7th estimated her chances against Scott at thirty or forty percent, then went with Yunli to get milk tea.
• Ye Yan and Stelle met Qingque at the Divination Commission and explained March 7th’s planned duel and Scott’s conduct.
• After hearing the story, Qingque became angry and went with Ye Yan and Stelle to confront Scott in Aurum Alley.
• Qingque criticized Scott’s attitude toward work until he lost his temper and challenged her to a debate before the duel.

Qingque and Stelle confronted Scott about defining himself by the IPC, and he agreed to apologize to Mengming and reconsider his life. After Scott left, Silver Wolf revealed that his changed attitude would reset at 4:00 the next morning, while she and Stelle discussed making him perform a SoulGlad jingle in two days.

• Qingque challenged Scott to name his own contributions to the company, and Stelle asked who he would be without the IPC.
• Qingque and Ye Yan’s remarks about overtime and life outside work broke down Scott’s defenses.
• Stelle encouraged Scott to explore tea and travel, then joined Qingque in showing him the value of ordinary working people’s lives.
• Scott agreed to apologize to Mengming and everyone living earnestly, and said he would reconsider his company job.
• Qingque accepted Ye Yan’s invitation for milk tea, while Silver Wolf appeared and explained that Scott would return to normal at 4:00 the next morning.
• Silver Wolf and Stelle planned for Scott to sing the SoulGlad advertisement in two days.

With a martial contest against Scott one day away, Silver Wolf reviewed his bizarre résumé while, on the Luofu, Jiaoqiu offered March 7th and Stelle unusual medicinal dishes. The pair learned the food would provide ordinary nutrition, but Jiaoqiu hinted at a rare Luofu prescription meant for snakes.

• Silver Wolf read Scott’s résumé to Ye Yan and mocked his eccentric history and taste in romance novels.
• Jiaoqiu met March 7th and Stelle at the Alchemy Commission and heard that March wanted miracle medicines to improve her swordsmanship.
• Jiaoqiu served March his Finger-Licking School dishes, and March 7th tried them after Stelle pushed a bite into her mouth.
• Jiaoqiu explained that the dishes would strengthen March’s body but would not greatly improve her swordsmanship, and Stelle offered her Ye Yan’s Eternity milk tea.
• Jiaoqiu hinted that the Luofu had a prescription intended for snakes in the mountains and dense forests.

Stelle and March 7th learned that Jiaoqiu’s Red Dragon was a riddle pointing to Lingsha and her medicinal blood, then returned to the milk tea shop and met Saileni, a prayer priestess of the Church of Eternity. Saileni introduced herself, invited them to the Church’s prayer sanctuary, and revealed that the Church’s priests relied on the knights for meals; March 7th then asked where Chair Blake and the priestess had gone.

• Jiaoqiu told Stelle and March 7th that a Red Dragon was hidden in the Alchemy Commission, prompting them to seek out Lingsha.
• Lingsha revealed that Jiaoqiu’s Red Dragon was a riddle referring to her, and offered March 7th a few drops of her blood while warning her about its risks.
• Stelle and March 7th returned to the milk tea shop and encountered Saileni, a veiled priestess of the Church of Eternity.
• Saileni introduced herself with an elaborate speech, forgot her lines, and offered the pair a half-price visit to the Church’s prayer sanctuary.
• Saileni explained that the Church charged for prayers and that its priestesses ate meals taken from the knights, before March 7th asked where Chair Blake and the priestess had gone.

Saileni explained that the Church of Eternity was searching the cosmos with Deacon Screwllum for a suitable branch base, while Stelle and March 7th imagined Fulisina delivering its introduction. At the Alchemy Commission, Jiaoqiu revealed that the supposed Red Dragon blood was sunset fruit juice, and Lingsha explained the medicinal meals and offered March 7th support against Scott.

• Saileni said the Church of Eternity had sent people and Deacon Screwllum across the cosmos to choose a branch base because Chair Blake and Fulisina were poor choices to represent it.
• Stelle and March 7th imagined Fulisina giving an intense introduction to the Church of Eternity and threatening its enemies.
• Jiaoqiu offered March 7th a bottle of supposed Red Dragon blood, but Stelle drank it after March refused.
• Lingsha arrived and revealed the bottle contained sunset fruit juice, while Jiaoqiu admitted he had wanted to see March 7th's reaction.
• Lingsha and Jiaoqiu explained that March's medicinal meals, sleep, and exercise had helped her, and they offered to help her deal with Scott.

March 7th worried she could not improve enough to beat Scott, so she asked several healers for a quick way to strengthen herself. Jiaoqiu and Saileni instead suggested weakening Scott, leaving March 7th to consider their laxative scheme.

• March 7th fretted over her coming showdown with Scott and asked Jiaoqiu, Bailu, and Lingsha for medicine that could rapidly boost her strength.
• Bailu offered March 7th restorative soup, while Lingsha warned that pain-blocking medicine could make her overlook fatal injuries.
• Jiaoqiu and Saileni secretly plotted while the others discussed ways to help March 7th.
• Saileni gave Stelle a cup of slippery slime, and Jiaoqiu proposed using debuffs on Scott instead of boosting March 7th.
• March 7th realized Jiaoqiu was suggesting laxatives and objected to him making the idea sound respectable.

Jiaoqiu and the Church of Eternity prepared a medicinal trick for Scott, but Scott drank the soup believing it would strengthen him. He began his showdown with March 7th in Aurum Alley by surrounding her and Stelle with IPC mechs.

• Jiaoqiu revealed that Moze had already arranged things, then hurried away as Lingsha and Bailu left too; Saileni denied using vicious medical tricks despite Stelle and March 7th suspecting she had suggested laxatives.
• Silver Wolf and Ye Yan watched from Aurum Alley, where Ye Yan had arranged for Saileni to spend time with Stelle and the others.
• Scott and March 7th arrived for their showdown, and Scott explained that he had chosen Aurum Alley to reclaim his pride in front of the locals.
• Scott said a warrior had encouraged him and given him and his brothers medicinal soup, which they had already drunk.
• Scott revealed that he had researched March 7th's brief swordsmanship training, summoned IPC mechs to surround her and Stelle, and ordered his brothers to attack.

March 7th explored Scott’s memories while the Astral Express crew’s laxative scheme incapacitated him and the IPC employees, allowing the train to depart. Scott accepted March 7th as a worthy rival before Ye Yan’s Saileni carried him and the others away, and Stelle heard a mysterious voice as she prepared to leave.

• March 7th entered Scott’s inner world and witnessed his childhood, where Scott admitted he had deliberately broken Pefana’s leg and later helped expose Old Scott for bribery.
• March 7th watched Scott sabotage Ashavat’s transfer and Lakshmi’s confession to eliminate competition for a specialist position.
• In Aurum Alley, the medicinal soup gave the IPC employees severe stomach trouble, leaving Scott struggling alone to stop the Astral Express from departing.
• Scott succumbed to the soup and admitted defeat, then praised March 7th’s ruthlessness and offered to recommend her for work at the IPC.
• Ye Yan summoned a fully equipped Saileni to carry Scott and the IPC employees away, and Stelle heard an icy voice say, “A happy ending to the story... isn’t it?”

March 7th wrote to her friends about learning swordsmanship from Yanqing and Yunli, then continued training under their strict supervision as the Wardance approached. Jiaoqiu arrived and advised the two masters to tailor their teaching to March’s strengths, using cooking as a metaphor.

• March 7th read Ye Yan her letter describing her sword lessons with Yanqing and Yunli and her progress over several weeks.
• Yanqing and Yunli praised March 7th’s improvement, then argued over whose swordsmanship was superior and challenged each other to fight.
• Yanqing suggested March 7th try other Xianzhou swords, while Yunli insisted there was no single strongest sword.
• Jiaoqiu interrupted the lesson, and March 7th and Yunli questioned why he had been watching them.
• Jiaoqiu compared swordsmanship teaching to cooking and explained that teachers should adapt their methods to each disciple.
• Jiaoqiu described his Yaoqing medical tradition as dietary therapy and admitted he could be thought of as a chef.

Jiaoqiu discussed how medicine could be used to save or kill, prompting Yanqing to explain the meaning he found in wielding his sword. Yanqing reached a new understanding of himself as he looked toward the Skysplitter, while Jiaoqiu noticed three people he considered suspicious.

• Jiaoqiu showed Yanqing, Yunli, and March 7th Stumble Powder and argued that survival on the battlefield mattered more than appearing honorable.
• Yanqing explained that the Wardance let the Cloud Knights display martial virtue and preserve peace, then led the group to Stargazer Navalia to see the Skysplitter.
• Jiaoqiu noticed two Foxians and a Cloud Knight nearby and decided to watch them more closely.
• Yanqing described his rigorous training and recalled how Teacher Ye Yan's sword strike shattered his confidence and made him question why he wielded a sword.
• Yanqing concluded that he wielded his sword for the person he became when he faced an obstacle with all his strength and pressed forward without hesitation.

Jiaoqiu spoke with Yanqing and Yunli about their reasons for entering the Wardance, then left them at Starskiff Haven. March 7th, Yanqing, Yunli, and Saileni uncovered Borisin infiltrators, and March’s accusation that they had joined a Lord Ravager made Saileni’s playful expression disappear.

• Jiaoqiu learned that Yanqing wanted to prove himself through swordsmanship and Yunli wanted to win back her grandfather’s donated sword, then departed for his duties.
• March 7th, Yanqing, and Yunli encountered Saileni at Starskiff Haven, where she tried to recruit the children into the Church of Eternity.
• Saileni overheard three suspicious figures discussing a plan involving the ceremonial cannons and exposed their secret conversation.
• Yanqing recognized that the disguised Cloud Knight had spoken in a foreign language, and the Borisin revealed their true forms and attacked.
• Yunli blocked attacks from two Borisin, while March 7th connected their allegiance to a Lord Ravager and reported them to Saileni, whose smile vanished.

Saileni, Yunli, and Yanqing uncovered Borisin infiltrators with forged Xianzhou identities, while Stelle and Dan Heng answered General Feixiao’s questions about the Luofu crisis. Feixiao pressed them on the Stellaron Hunters and Dan Shu, but Dan Shu’s death left one key question unresolved.

• Saileni repelled the Borisin’s poison as Yunli and Yanqing killed the disguised soldiers, and two Borisin escaped by jumping away.
• Yanqing found forged official badges and realized that Borisin with false identities could be hiding throughout the Xianzhou.
• Saileni tried to force open a cargo container and tossed a bar of soap inside, causing an explosion.
• Stelle and Dan Heng met Feixiao at the Seat of Divine Foresight, where she questioned their trust in the Stellaron Hunters and Jing Yuan’s account of the crisis.
• Stelle explained that Elio’s prophecy had led the Astral Express to the Luofu, and she said Dan Shu had sought revenge against the Xianzhou.
• Feixiao questioned how Dan Shu had brought a Stellaron into the guarded Scalegorge Waterscape, but noted that Dan Shu’s death left no answer.

Feixiao questioned Jing Yuan, Stelle, and Dan Heng about the Luofu crisis, then proposed recording their testimony to settle opposition within the Alliance. She also sought to transfer Hoolay to the Yaoqing as Borisin forces regrouped under the guidance of Celenova.

• Feixiao accepted the explanations Stelle, Dan Heng, and Huaiyan gave about Phantylia and the Ambrosial Arbor, then accused Jing Yuan of oversight, abdication, and poor judgment.
• Jing Yuan acknowledged his failures and explained why he had relied on the Stellaron Hunters and proceeded with the Wardance.
• Feixiao revealed that Celenova was guiding the Borisin as their hunting packs united under the name Mangun.
• Feixiao said the Ten-Lords Commission needed to record the Nameless' testimony at the Prison of Deep Seclusion, and Stelle objected before Feixiao reassured her they would be free to leave.
• Feixiao asked Jing Yuan to transfer Hoolay, the imprisoned Borisin warhead, to Yaoqing custody so it could respond to the Borisin threat.

Jiaoqiu and Moze inspected Hoolay’s confinement in the Prison of Deep Seclusion and learned about his unnatural vitality and the strict precautions for visiting him. Stelle, Dan Heng, and Saileni also arrived to give their testimony and prepare to see Hoolay.

• Jing Yuan arranged for Stelle and Dan Heng to give testimony at the Prison of Deep Seclusion, and Stelle asked to say goodbye to someone first.
• Stelle persuaded Ye Yan to send Saileni with her and Dan Heng to the prison, using his Gate of Myriad Paths to travel there.
• Jiaoqiu and Moze met Xueyi, who explained Hoolay’s crimes, his regenerative power, and the precautions required before visiting him.
• Jiaoqiu and Moze took pills to guard against Hoolay’s Wolf Poison and read the rules governing his confinement and transfer.
• Stelle, Dan Heng, and Saileni read the visiting taboos, and Dan Heng remarked that Stelle was even more overpowered than the Abominations of Abundance.

Stelle, Dan Heng, and Saileni entered the Prison of Deep Seclusion with Judge Hanya to give testimony, learning about the prison’s dangers and its unusual construction. As they headed toward the Records Hall, Hanya recalled a Wardance she had watched as a child, describing fighters Stelle tried to identify.

• Stelle and Dan Heng discussed why the Ten-Lords Commission was questioning them inside the Prison of Deep Seclusion, where the Karmic Mirror could record evidence.
• Hanya greeted Stelle and Dan Heng, thanked them for their help at Fyxestroll Garden, and warned them to obey her instructions during the proceedings.
• Hanya led Stelle, Dan Heng, and Saileni toward the prison’s depths, cautioning them about its treacherous terrain and explaining that its layered spaces contained many dangerous prisoners.
• Dan Heng said Vidyadhara artisans may have helped build the prison, while Hanya shared a story about a prisoner who fell through it until he became old.
• Hanya recalled a Wardance she had watched with her sister as a child, describing a Cloud Knight swordsman and a fiery-haired challenger with an iron hand; Stelle wondered who they had been.

Stelle and her companions descended into the Prison of Deep Seclusion, where Saileni used Ye Yan’s milk tea to ward off the freezing cold. They uncovered corpses hidden in a cargo crate and were ambushed by wolf-shaped spirit mechanisms, leaving Stelle charging into the fight with her bat raised for an [Eternity] Home Run.

• Hanya asked Stelle about the Wardance before the group descended farther into the prison and encountered extreme cold.
• Saileni prayed to Yite of [Eternity], creating a warm protective dome around herself, Stelle, Dan Heng, and Hanya.
• The group found suspicious cargo crates, and Hanya spotted military officers’ corpses inside one of them.
• Dan Heng sensed an attack, and Stelle shielded the group as wolf-shaped spirit mechanisms surged out of the darkness.
• Stelle fought the mechanisms with her bat while Dan Heng guarded against attackers that slipped past her.
• An elite spirit mechanism leaped at Stelle, and she sprang upward to strike it with her [Eternity] Home Run.

Stelle and her companions discovered that the Howling Caskets in the Prison of Deep Seclusion were part of a jailbreak plot targeting Hoolay, while Stelle and Saileni fled a chilling presence and then faced pursuing mechs. The chapter ended with Saileni praying to [Eternity] for the power to overcome the threat.

• Stelle destroyed the Howling Caskets, then realized Saileni was missing; Dan Heng and Hanya investigated the wreckage and concluded the mechs had been sent to engineer a jailbreak.
• Dan Heng warned that the Yaoqing envoys were visiting Hoolay, the savage beast imprisoned beneath the Artisanship Commission, and that his escape could endanger the Xianzhou Luofu.
• Xueyi led Jiaoqiu and Moze to Hoolay’s delve, explaining that the Yaoqing envoys came to verify his confinement and condition.
• Saileni startled Stelle with a prank, but the two sensed a chilling presence and ran in the opposite direction instead of turning to face it.
• Stelle used the Reignbow Arbiter to race ahead, while Saileni turned to destroy the pursuing Howling Caskets with a punch.
• Saileni knelt with the Holy Word of Eternity and prayed for the power to traverse falsehood.