Tiger and Crane Episode 30 Recap
> Tiger and Crane Recap
Zhao Lingyan prepared to teach Zhao Xintong the Yan Ling Spike, beginning with a lengthy, seemingly irrelevant discourse that frustrated Hu Zi. Zhao Lingyan eventually revealed the core of the technique, guiding Zhao Xintong to grasp its true meaning.
Zhao Xintong struggled to control her spirit essences with the proper mental method, but Zhao Lingyan elucidated that the spear’s fundamental power lies in "change," emphasizing how spirit essences, when transferred to the spear, can turn it into an extension of one's body. Hu Zi later elaborated on the "Feel, Induct, Dissolve, Release" cultivation method, which he learned from the Eldest Master via the Zi Jin Wolf Brush, further aiding Zhao Xintong's comprehension.
Zhao Lingyan demonstrated the enhanced power of the spear imbued with spirit essence, stressing that "the rigid can easily break, but the malleable can survive." As the group traversed Peak Valley, Qi Xiaoxuan noted the strange environment, observing that the vast amounts of withered trees, reefs, and rocks suggested the area was once a flourishing forest.
He deduced that the valley's current barren state was a result of the Demon Emperor’s blood transforming into the blazing Nether Sea after his demise five hundred years prior. The valley’s extreme temperatures—scorching during the day and freezing at night—raised concerns for Zhao Xintong and Hu Zi. Qi Xiaoxuan and Mo Guzi decided to scout ahead, while the main group, continuing their journey, encountered White Demons that could burrow underground and whose weakness was their ears.
Recognizing their overwhelming numbers, the group opted to move silently to avoid waking them. Zhao Xintong’s grasp of the Yan Ling Spike proved exceptional, and Zhao Lingyan declared her ready. Zhao Lingyan realized her lingering primordial spirit had remained precisely to reunite with her descendants five centuries later, and she entrusted Zhao Xintong with the Zhao family's ultimate skill, admonishing her never to let it be lost again. With her mission fulfilled, Zhao Lingyan’s last trace of spirit essence vanished.
Zhao Xintong then channeled all her spirit essence to shatter a stone wall, through which Hu Zi carried her out, comforting the exhausted Zhao Xintong with promises of a future together, including opening a small restaurant and planting hibiscus trees back in Babao Town. Meanwhile, the main group felt they were traveling in circles, despite the changing scenery. Qi Xiaoxuan discovered an arrow mark he had made was now inverted, indicating that the entire island had somehow flipped over.
Faced with quicksand, Xiu Damen, a Julun person experienced with such terrains, explained that areas with vines and lush vegetation often indicated underground rivers, making them unsafe. He advised finding areas with no vines or withered branches, and using a special tool for listening to confirm solid ground. Jiang Xici used the tool and confirmed that the area along a stone wall was stable.
Soon after, Qi Xiaoxuan's group reunited with the main camp, finding Hu Zi and Zhao Xintong, who had collapsed in the sand, and they all proceeded to Udumbara Valley. As they reached Udumbara Valley, Yi Mei, from the shadows, seemed to be orchestrating events, inviting them to enjoy the "scenery." Jiang Xici recognized the valley from ancient texts as the dwelling place of the White Tiger, and the nearby mountain as the Demon Emperor's Twin Mountain.
Wu Lidan expressed deep regret over Zhao Xintong’s injuries, believing she was hurt while protecting them. Mo Guzi provided medicine which significantly aided Zhao Xintong's recovery. Qi Xiaoxuan's Soul Lamp, however, flickered intensely, signaling the rapid dissipation of his primordial spirit. Suddenly, white camellia flowers appeared around their camp, and their vines attacked the guards, confirming Yi Mei’s intent to obstruct their path to the Bloody Waterfall. The elder known as Grandma recognized these flowers as Yi Mei's signature.
Qi Xiaoxuan and Mo Guzi led a team to investigate a light on a mountain peak, suspecting a formation, and encountered Yi Mei, who mocked Qi Xiaoxuan’s use of a new body. Mo Guzi identified the unusual camellias as the Soul Captivating Flower, a variant thought extinct for centuries, which Yi Mei employed as a formation. Yi Mei then unleashed the formation, forcing Qi Xiaoxuan’s team to retreat. Back at the camp, Hu Zi and Zhao Xintong recovered.
Hu Zi apologized for his previous recklessness, and they reaffirmed their promise to survive together. The camellia flowers rapidly advanced, with some emerging at Cheng Jinian's feet and entangling him. Ya rushed to his aid. As dawn broke, the white camellias transformed into red ones, emitting a sweet, soporific fragrance that caused anyone who inhaled it, including Wang Yuqian's companion, to fall unconscious.
Qi Xiaoxuan and Mo Guzi returned, explaining that the Soul Captivating Flower is red by day, releasing gas that induces unconsciousness, and white by night, its roots and vines becoming lethal weapons that drag victims underground. Knowing that the red camellias had no direct offensive capability during the day, Qi Xiaoxuan proposed to go alone to find the formation's eye, as he lacked the sense of smell. Jiang Xici objected, citing Qi Xiaoxuan's weakening primordial spirit.
Mo Guzi, however, suggested using silver needles to temporarily seal their sense of smell, allowing a small group to search for the camellia's "mother plant," believing its destruction would break the formation. While they embarked on this risky search, Jiang Xici and the Second Master set up a barrier to protect the remaining soldiers from the spreading fragrance. When a section of the barrier briefly failed, Ya and Cheng Jinian were exposed to the fragrance and fainted, but Jiang Xici and the Second Master swiftly repaired the breach.
