Baili Susu, the Lord of Ten Thousand Beasts, campaigned for ten years, assisting Lu Zongming in founding the Daqian Dynasty, and hoped he would fulfill his promise of marriage. Returning in triumph, she instead found that Lu Zongming was going to make Xiao Hongyan, an impostor, his Empress. Coveting her innate inner core, Xiao Hongyan instigated the emperor to force Susu to gouge out her core to make a phoenix crown. With her heart dead, Baili Susu gouged out her core in public, broke off all ties, and left. The removal of the inner core caused the seal of the Dragon Locking Well to shatter, releasing the Nine-Headed Demon King and plunging the world into war. Unable to quell the chaos, Lu Zongming and Xiao Hongyan were abandoned by all as their truth was exposed. After saving the common people, Baili Susu relinquished her power and retired into the mountains and forests with the Nine-Headed Demon King.