Chapter Summaries

Liu Qingqing defeated Lin Qingtong in a fierce duel, leaving her sister to accept the loss after regaining consciousness. Si Ming used the Great Yin-Yang Heaven-Severing Hand to disrupt Fuzang and Diwen’s coordinated arts, but the Seal Talisman Master intervened as the fight continued.

• Liu Qingqing struck Lin Qingtong with Mercury Arrow: Sea-Overturning Bitter Chill, freezing the battlefield and leaving Lin Qingtong badly injured.
• Lin Qingtong unleashed Peng Wings Soar and Cover the Firmament, but Liu Qingqing countered with Five Elements Unite as One, Heaven-Cleaving Without Dao and shattered her sword.
• Lin Qingtong regained consciousness, saw Liu Qingqing’s wounded eye bleeding, and admitted that she had lost.
• Si Ming separated Fuzang and Diwen’s Buddhist and demonic powers with the Great Yin-Yang Heaven-Severing Hand, disrupting their coordination.
• The Seal Talisman Master attacked Si Ming with a demonic dragon talisman, then used six blood-stained talismans to begin One Qi Encompasses Heaven and Earth, Miluo Swallows the Jade Emperor.

Si Ming fought off three Spirit Transformation experts, surviving their combined techniques before they fled. He returned to find the capture operation complete, with Mi Haichao and other Remote Heaven Society members taken into custody.

• Si Ming broke the Seal Talisman Master's attack, but Fuzang and Diwen combined the Nirvana Tranquility Seal with the Netherworld-Penetrating Saber to catch him off guard.
• Si Ming stopped the saber, turned its power back on Fuzang and Diwen, and injured them before Fuzang pulled him into an illusion; Si Ming shattered it with Thunderous Lightning Hell.
• The Seal Talisman Master carried Fuzang and Diwen away on immortal cranes, and Si Ming chose not to pursue them, then returned to the battlefield.
• Ling Huanxi used a prepared formation and a traitor's help to defeat Mi Haichao, while Chen Xiangduan captured Ji Xun.
• Liu Qingqing handed Lin Qingtong to Chen Xiangduan and asked him not to torture her; Chen Xiangduan promised they would not use torture to extract information.

Lin Qingtong revealed what she knew about the Heaven-Defying Society and its Divine Soul Tree Seeds, but her testimony offered little direct intelligence. Si Ming learned that the seeds might have killed Mi Haichao and that Wei Chunxi had been left in a vegetative state, making the society even harder to investigate.

• Lin Qingtong cooperated with Chen Xiangduan's interrogation and explained that the Heaven-Defying Society used Divine Soul Tree Seeds to gather members in the Tree Spirit Realm.
• Lin Qingtong said Fushi Qingcang led the society, while Nether Lord distributed seeds and knew its members; she had joined for power and knew little of its goals.
• Si Ming read Lin Qingtong's testimony and noted that the Tree of Souls could connect consciousnesses, though the society's secrecy made it difficult to trace.
• Chen Xiangduan told Si Ming that Ji Xun was only a temporary worker and that Mi Haichao had died after being thawed, possibly because of his Divine Soul Tree Seed.
• Chen Xiangduan revealed that Wei Chunxi was alive but in a vegetative state after Fushi Qingcang acted against him, and that the Remote Heaven Society's remote killing made future investigations harder.

Si Ming persuaded Heaven’s Will Palace to use public propaganda about the Divine Soul Tree Seed to sow distrust within the Heaven-Defying Society and deter new recruits. After the investigation stalled, he returned to school and learned that the Second Martial Arts Club had secured university backing after its championship success.

• Si Ming proposed publicizing the Divine Soul Tree Seed and the chairman’s power to kill Society members, and Chen Xiangduan recognized that the revelation could turn members against their leader.
• Ji Shichen and Ling Huanxi supported Si Ming’s propaganda plan, and Chen Xiangduan approved it.
• With the Heaven-Defying Society investigation temporarily stalled, Si Ming returned to school for the new semester.
• Murong Qing told Si Ming that the Second Martial Arts Club had won the district championship, helped by its stronger members, including Chen Shimi.
• Murong Qing explained that the university had backed Senior Sister Ke’s authority over the club and punished a director who had tried to interfere.

Si Ming and Murong Qing discussed whether he should compete in the Youth Martial Dao League, then suspected a magazine was deliberately setting up Spirit Transformation competitor Wei Mengchen for public backlash. After returning to class, Si Ming struggled to follow his rune studies and wondered whether he could still become a master of array arts.

• Si Ming agreed that he, Liu Qingqing, and Hongdou could compete for the Second Martial Arts Club, while Murong Qing urged him to stay out because his competitions often ended in disaster.
• Liu Qingqing showed them an article about Wei Mengchen, a newly risen Spirit Transformation Grandmaster entering the Martial Dao League, and Si Ming and Murong Qing suspected the magazine was trying to make him a target.
• Si Ming returned to class, where Hao Shuai guessed that he had been the masked fighter Mad Ink on the Northern Continent and promised to keep his identity secret.
• Si Ming greeted his classmates after a long absence, and they teased him about taking two semesters off.
• Si Ming found himself unable to understand the lectures on ancient scripts, divine talismans, and demon patterns, though he admired the beauty of a completed Divine Arts Array.

A Divine Arts Arrays lesson left Si Ming reflecting on how his path might have differed, while he teased Hao Shuai about his girlfriend and his ideas about romance. Hao Shuai ended the conversation by admitting he had imagined dressing as a woman.

• The lecturer demonstrated the Sleep Butterfly Art and explained how Divine Arts Arrays borrowed divine power in exchange for sacrifices.
• The lecturer described Witchcraft Arrays and Demon Arts Arrays, assigned divine runes for the semester, and dismissed the class.
• Si Ming told Hao Shuai that the lesson made him feel out of place and wondered how his life might have gone if he had studied divine runes.
• Hao Shuai showed Si Ming a photo of his girlfriend, Xiuxiu, and described the ways he cared for her and his plans for her birthday.
• Si Ming advised Hao Shuai to let Xiuxiu contribute to their relationship, but Hao Shuai defended his romantic philosophy using ideas from the magazine Beauty.
• Si Ming teased Hao Shuai about dressing as a woman, and Hao Shuai admitted he had imagined it.

Si Ming reunited with Murong Qing and Hongdou before visiting the expanded Second Martial Arts Club. He intervened when a student challenged the authority of the Si Clan judges, then asked them how they had become judges.

• Hongdou rushed into Si Ming's arms, and Murong Qing and Hongdou each claimed one of his arms as Hao Shuai watched in surprise.
• Hao Shuai explained that the Second Martial Arts Club had taken over some of the First Martial Arts Club's grounds while keeping the rival club in existence.
• Si Ming saw Si Jingyu, Si Huaruo, and Si Shuiyun judging students' sparring matches and assigning them tokens.
• When a student protested his C token and insulted the exchange students, Si Shuiyun demonstrated his skill gap by defeating him.
• Si Ming accused the student of jeopardizing relations between Su State and the Nation of Beauty, tossed him out of the hall, and asked the judges how they had gotten the job.

Si Ming joined Si Jingyu and Si Huaruo in assessing newcomers and main-roster candidates for the Second Martial Arts Club. He replaced their slow pairwise tests with a group challenge, leaving the successful students to return for a Grade A assessment the next day.

• Si Jingyu revealed that she had advanced to Spirit Transformation, and Si Huaruo explained that they were evaluating club members to avoid accusations of favoritism.
• Si Ming proposed handing out numbered tickets, but Si Jingyu explained how students could use them to cheat and then enlisted him to help finish the assessments.
• Si Ming told the waiting students to form five rows and explained that anyone who stood firm against his attack would receive a Grade B token, while those pushed back would get Grade C tokens.
• Si Ming unleashed a separate stream of Blazing Sun Blade Qi at each student, sending many flying and forcing most of the rest backward.
• Si Ming directed the students to collect their tokens and said the Grade B recipients would be tested again for Grade A tokens the next day.

Si Jingyu and Si Ming considered whether weakening the Eternal Barrier made Spirit Transformation easier and could encourage people to sever Divine Pillars. They realized the Heaven-Defying Society might publicize the method, leaving the group to debate how to warn the public without damaging the Mohist School’s credibility.

• Si Ming asked whether Si Jingyu’s breakthrough to Spirit Transformation was connected to the severing of Li State’s Divine Pillar, and she said the cause remained uncertain.
• Si Jingyu proposed that Si Huaruo test whether the weakened Eternal Barrier made Spirit Transformation easier, while suggesting Si Shuiyun could try if Huaruo failed.
• Si Jingyu reasoned that the founder of the Remote Heaven Society had to be a Peak Spirit Transformation expert or a Void Returning Great Grandmaster.
• Murong Qing and Si Huaruo argued that few martial artists would risk joining the Heaven-Defying Society for a chance to advance, but Si Jingyu warned that others could form their own groups to sever Divine Pillars.
• Si Jingyu suggested the Heaven-Defying Society might make its method public, and Si Ming proposed using newspapers to warn people of dire consequences.
• Murong Qing objected that they did not know the consequences and that lying could damage the Mohist School’s credibility.

Si Ming persuaded Murong Qing to use speculative reporting and cautionary stories to warn the public about the Divine Pillar and the Heaven-Defying Society. After dinner, Si Huaruo asked Si Ming to go shopping with her, and she prepared for their outing the next morning while someone watched her from the shadows.

• Si Ming proposed publishing attributed speculation and cautionary stories about bargains with demon kings, and Murong Qing accepted that the approach could help warn the public.
• Si Ming and the others argued over sweet pork with red dates until the restaurant owner intervened, then settled their disagreement without fighting.
• After dinner, Si Huaruo returned to campus and asked Si Ming to go shopping with her the next day, and he agreed.
• Si Huaruo spent two hours getting ready for the outing and left her room feeling barely satisfied.

Si Ming and Si Huaruo set out on their first date after Si Jingyu teased them and promised not to interfere. They spent the morning shopping together and headed to a famous snack street for lunch.

• Si Huaruo found Si Jingyu in Si Ming's room and accused her of trying to ruin their date.
• Si Huaruo challenged Si Jingyu to a duel, but Si Jingyu used her Spirit Transformation cultivation to dismiss the challenge and sent Si Ming off with Si Huaruo.
• Si Jingyu warned Si Huaruo to exercise restraint on the date, embarrassing her until Si Ming took her hand and hurried them away.
• Si Huaruo kept checking whether Si Jingyu was following them, then linked arms with Si Ming and enjoyed their stroll through shops and a park.
• When Si Huaruo could not choose what to eat, Si Ming took her to a famous snack street to sample its specialties.

Si Ming and Si Huaruo explored a food street before visiting the Dream Illusion Hall, where customers used talisman arrays to experience guided dreams. Si Huaruo tried a gourmet dream, but her strong cultivation kept her awake until Si Ming suppressed her divine soul; Si Ming stayed beside her bed and refused to try the service himself.

• Si Ming and Si Huaruo sampled street food and admired the martial skill behind the vendors’ cooking.
• Si Ming noticed the Dream Illusion Hall’s concealed erotic-dream service as the owner explained the guided-dream options.
• Si Huaruo questioned the limits of dream illusions and criticized the owner’s method of simulating experiences.
• Si Huaruo chose a gourmet dream, but the talisman array could not overcome her cultivation and will.
• Si Ming suppressed Si Huaruo’s divine soul so the illusion could take effect, then waited beside her while she slept.
• Si Ming refused the owner’s invitation to try a dream and sent away the attendant who supplied True Qi.

Si Ming and Si Huaruo spent the day together after her dream was ruined by an imagined appearance from Si Jingyu, then enjoyed an expertly prepared fish and attended a stage play. Si Huaruo praised Su State’s bold, open theater and the actors’ quick improvisation as they left the performance.

• Si Huaruo awoke angry after dreaming that Si Jingyu warned her she would become fat and took Si Ming away from her.
• Si Ming took Si Huaruo to dinner, where they admired the skill behind the Qilin Star Restaurant’s roasted black carp.
• Si Ming and Si Huaruo went to the Linked Mountains City Grand Art Theater, where Si Huaruo watched the performance closely.
• Si Huaruo praised Su State’s theater as more open and compelling than the traditional theater of the Nation of Beauty.
• Si Huaruo recounted how the actors improvised when the backdrop fell, convincing the audience that the accident was part of the play.

After Si Ming and Si Huaruo created a spectacular display of sword fire and ice atop the Radio and Television Tower, both gained insights into their martial arts. Si Huaruo entered seclusion at the Dinghu Sect’s blessed grotto, while Si Ming began a public campaign about the dangers of cooperating with tigers to prepare people for the weakening Eternal Barrier.

• Si Ming carried Si Huaruo up the Radio and Television Tower and showed her the city at night.
• Si Ming used his sword art to summon a huge flame dragon, and Si Huaruo added ice that burst into sparkling fireworks.
• Si Ming realized that two sword moves could merge into a new move, while Si Huaruo realized Spirit Transformation had become easier and decided to enter seclusion.
• Si Ming took Si Huaruo to the Dinghu Sect’s blessed grotto so she could cultivate.
• Si Ming launched a public opinion campaign warning people against asking a tiger for its skin, hoping to counter the Remote Heaven Society’s influence.

The Second Martial Arts Club announced its twelve-person roster for the National Youth Martial Dao League, then faced objections over Si Shuiyun’s place and the selection process. Ke Chajing silenced the protesting student before he could continue.

• Ke Chajing brought Si Ming to the Second Martial Arts Club and explained the national competition’s roster and match rules.
• Ke Chajing introduced Tai Gu, Jiang Tingting, and Zeng Aniu, and the club announced its twelve-person roster, including Si Shuiyun and Si Ming.
• A student objected to Si Shuiyun competing as a foreigner, but Ke Chajing showed that she had become a Su State citizen and Hu Jixian defended her eligibility.
• The student then challenged the roster as an unfair internal selection and called for an open process, while Si Ming warned him that hitting people could hurt.
• Ke Chajing ordered the crowd to be quiet and glared the protesting student into silence.

Ke Chajing and the Second Martial Arts Club removed outspoken dissenters, then opened its roster to fair challenges. As members began competing for places, Ke Chajing asked Si Ming to represent the club at the Martial Dao League draw, where a test would rank the teams.

• Ke Chajing declared the Second Martial Arts Club a private club, and Si Ming and the others threw out students who protested or disrupted the meeting.
• Ke Chajing announced that students could challenge the twelve selected competitors, while Hu Jixian limited each competitor to two challenges a day for three days.
• Si Jingyu explained to Si Ming that she had advised Ke Chajing to use the selection process to expose and remove people seeking to undermine the club.
• The students spent the morning arguing over challenge rules, then organized internal contests; Liu Qingqing defeated a speed-focused challenger in under a minute.
• Ke Chajing asked Si Ming to represent the club at the Martial Dao League draw, explaining that the host tested representatives to rank teams and separate strong contenders.

On the train, Si Ming observed Si Jingyu practicing a rare method that condensed essence, Qi, and spirit without wasting energy. She explained that it required the Water Moon Precious Mirror’s highest state of mind, Clear Mirror and Still Water, which Si Ming could not grasp.

• Si Ming cultivated with vacuum zero-point energy while Si Jingyu watched him in her role as his maid.
• Si Jingyu showed Si Ming how she had gathered her essence, Qi, and spirit into a pill-like state between life and death.
• Si Ming tried to imitate her method, but repeatedly exhausted his True Qi because he relied on force to condense the three elements.
• Si Jingyu explained that Clear Mirror and Still Water allowed the three elements to condense naturally, and described how she had reached the state through her other cultivation arts.
• Si Ming failed to understand the state of mind and decided that cultivating his body suited him better.

Si Ming and Si Jingyu encountered a train robbery, but a young man named Fang Hong transformed into an ape monster and attacked them. Si Jingyu knocked him unconscious, and the injured young woman accompanying him accused her of going too far.

• Si Ming and Si Jingyu heard an explosion and learned that robbers had attacked the train.
• They found that several youthful experts had already subdued the robbers, but Fang Hong transformed into an ape monster after losing control.
• Fang Hong hurled an injured young woman into the next carriage and charged at Si Ming and Si Jingyu.
• Si Jingyu redirected Fang Hong's punch into the floor and struck him through the roof, knocking him unconscious.
• Fang Hong returned to human form, and the injured young woman examined him before telling Si Jingyu that she had gone too far.

Si Ming reunited with Tao Chengsi after helping stop a train robbery, then learned that Tao’s school was testing unstable methods to activate special bloodlines. The chapter ended with Si Ming questioning whether a contestant who could lose control like the ape monster should be allowed into the martial arts competition.

• Si Jingyu offered to punish a woman who had complained, but Tao Chengsi’s arrival eased the tension after the robbery.
• Si Ming and Tao Chengsi caught up and discussed their universities’ missions to attend the draw at Earth Emperor University.
• Tao Chengsi guessed that Si Ming had returned to a great family, and Si Ming vaguely agreed while Tao privately speculated about his status.
• Tao Chengsi explained that the Bloodline Research Institute was testing ways to activate special bloodlines, though its results remained unstable.
• Si Ming asked whether International Union Academy should enter a contestant who might lose control like the ape monster.

Tao Chengsi demonstrated how his wind-controlling bloodline behaved when it went out of control, while Si Ming considered the limits and potential of bloodline abilities. Si Ming and Si Jingyu arrived at Earth Emperor University for the National Martial Dao League draw, where Si Ming met familiar competitors and saw Spirit Transformation expert Wei Mengchen take the stage.

• Tao Chengsi explained that his air-current bloodline caused little danger when uncontrolled, then demonstrated its destructive wind and told Si Ming about his bloodline trait.
• Si Jingyu objected to Tao Chengsi revealing his team's secrets, while Si Ming promised to keep them confidential and reflected that martial arts could replicate many bloodline abilities.
• Si Ming and Si Jingyu reached Earth Emperor University and followed a student guide to Shennong Grand Auditorium for the league draw.
• Si Ming greeted Liang Fan and the Song sisters, then spoke awkwardly with Liang Fan while waiting for the briefing.
• Wei Mengchen took the stage and was introduced as Earth Emperor University's newly advanced Spirit Transformation expert; Si Ming snorted at his admirers and claimed the world could not accommodate two peerlessly handsome men.