Dance of the Sky Empire Episode 22 Recap
> Dance of the Sky Empire Recap
In the Secret Realm, Su Youlian consulted the Sword Spirit about the chaos in the city. The Sword Spirit confirmed that the culprit was the Dragon Emperor's demon spirit. He explained that during Su Youlian's earlier attempt to free the Dragon Emperor, the ice cocoon had cracked, allowing the Dragon Emperor's spiritual energy to escape. This energy then found the demon spirit and, mistaking it for its master, imbued it with immense power.
Now free and as powerful as the Dragon Emperor himself, the demon spirit is behind the ongoing turmoil, though its current whereabouts are unknown. Meanwhile, the demon spirit, possessing Xiao Fengming, approached the Crown Prince. After effortlessly defeating the Crown Prince's elite guards, the possessed Xiao Fengming offered his allegiance. Seeing his incredible power, the Crown Prince eagerly accepted, hoping to use his strength against Long Wei'er and Li Xuan.
At the same time, Long Wei'er and her subordinate examined a worn portrait of Princess Qingsheng from the Kunwu clan, found in General Li's study. She deduced that General Li must have been secretly in love with the princess, which would explain why Li Xuan was forbidden from asking about his mother.
Long Wei'er theorized that Li Xuan's sudden surge in power and Ziji’s special attention pointed to him being the son of General Li and Princess Qingsheng, making him part Kunwu. A historical text mentioning that Ziji had used Princess Qingsheng's blood to seal the Dragon Emperor further supported her suspicion, also providing a reason for Li Xuan's childhood amnesia.
As Yu Fengmu prepared to escort Su Youlian out of the capital, they met Yunshan at the city gates and decided to leave together. However, Long Wei'er's forces intercepted them. While Yu Fengmu engaged Long Wei'er, Li Xuan, wielding the nation-protecting sword, cornered Su Youlian. Torn between his love for her and his duty, and haunted by his father's death, Li Xuan stabbed Su Youlian. A glazed ball fell from her hand as she collapsed.
He declared that while he spared her life out of love, from that moment on, only a sworn feud remained between them, and he would kill her if they ever met again. Li Xuan then fought off the imperial soldiers to ensure Su Youlian’s escape, after which Yu Fengmu arrived to take the unconscious Su Youlian to safety. However, a guard reported to the Emperor that both Long Wei'er and Li Xuan had intentionally let the Kunwu siren escape.
The Crown Prince seized this opportunity, falsely accusing Long Wei'er of colluding with the siren and Li Xuan to cause chaos and usurp the throne. Enraged, the Emperor ordered a city-wide manhunt and condemned both Li Xuan and Long Wei'er to execution. Li Xuan awoke at Moyun Academy and was summoned by Ziji. Believing Li Xuan acted out of naivety and was manipulated, Ziji decided to protect him.
He expelled Li Xuan from the academy, severing their master-disciple bond and urging him to flee for his safety. Outside, Changqing and Bian Lingcheng pledged their loyalty, but Li Xuan insisted his priority was to find Long Wei'er. His plans were halted when imperial soldiers arrived to arrest him, revealing Long Wei'er was already imprisoned. As students tried to misdirect the soldiers, Ziji appeared, and his authoritative presence forced the troops to withdraw empty-handed.
In the imperial prison, Zheng Bainian lamented that Long Wei'er was sacrificing herself for Li Xuan, but she calmly stated that earning true loyalty requires sacrifice. Later, Mentor-in-Chief Xie visited, and Long Wei'er assured him that she had a plan to escape, just as she had a plan to get in. Elsewhere, Yu Fengmu used his spiritual power to heal Su Youlian, who murmured Li Xuan's name in her unconscious state.
Once awake, she explained to Yunshan that Xiao Fengming was possessed by the Dragon Emperor's demon spirit. She revealed that the only way to save Xiao Fengming and defeat the demon was to awaken the Dragon Emperor, forcing the spirit back into its original body. However, with the Saintess Stone destroyed, she had no idea how to do so.
That night, Xiao Fengming's true consciousness struggled against the demon spirit, which revealed its ultimate ambition: to kill the Emperor, conquer the world, and rule over both humans and Kunwu as their sole master.
