Chapter Summaries

Hu Haoran arrived in Qinghua Town after testing a new combination of his speed, swordplay, and soul skills. At Qingbao Pavilion, a clerk’s contemptuous treatment led to a confrontation, and the manager escorted Hu Haoran and Niu Dagui to a private room to discuss his soul beast materials.

• Hu Haoran combined Lightning Walk, Swift Lightning Wind Thunder, and Zigzag Thunder Kill to cut a large tree into pieces, then set out for Qinghua Town.
• Hu Haoran hired Niu Dagui as a guide and gave him a Gold Soul Coin to lead him to a shop that bought soul beast materials.
• At Qingbao Pavilion, a clerk mocked Hu Haoran and tried to drive him out, so Hu Haoran kicked the clerk aside.
• Hu Haoran showed the manager the bones of a thousand-year-old Heavy Thunder Rhinoceros, and the manager fired the rude clerk.
• The manager brought Hu Haoran and Niu Dagui to a Heaven-class private room to discuss the sale.

Hu Haoran sold rare monster materials to Shopkeeper Xu at Qingbao Pavilion and bought treasures to strengthen a Plant System Martial Soul. After exploring Qinghua Town and arriving at Drunken Green Tower, he invited Niu Dagui and an unexpected elderly beggar to share his meal.

• Hu Haoran sold Shopkeeper Xu a Thunderous Lightning Rhinoceros skeleton and Miasma Ghost Demon Lizard materials for 120,000 Gold Soul Coins.
• Hu Haoran bought the Drunken Dream Grass, Seven-Colored Glazed Mushroom, and Qinghua Moon Vine, which Shopkeeper Xu arranged to prepare with Blue Flower Wine.
• Hu Haoran had Shopkeeper Xu buy him luxurious clothes, then left Qingbao Pavilion with prepared Blue Flower Wine and two hundred Purple Gold Coins.
• Hu Haoran asked Niu Dagui to take him to Drunken Green Tower, where he ordered food and Blue Flower Wine and told Niu Dagui to join him.
• An elderly beggar appeared and asked Hu Haoran for food and wine, so Hu Haoran invited him to join the meal.

Hu Haoran shared a meal with a mysterious old beggar, then followed Niu Dagui to the Mercenary Gathering Market and went to investigate a pursuit outside the city. He found Mu Jiaren and two youths cornered by three Soul Ancestors, with their escape blocked as the attackers prepared to kill them.

• Hu Haoran treated Niu Dagui and an old beggar to food and Blue Flower Wine, which the beggar said could increase Soul Power.
• Hu Haoran followed Niu Dagui to the Mercenary Gathering Market, where three Soul Ancestors chased an old man and two youths through the crowd.
• Hu Haoran left Niu Dagui by the city gate and followed the chase outside the city.
• Mu Jiaren pleaded with Mu Dagen, Mu Dajing, and Mu Daye to spare him and the two youths, but they said they intended to kill them to protect their family secret.
• Mu Dagen and Mu Dajing used their serpent soul skills, while Mu Jiaren transformed to defend the youths.
• Mu Daye used Serpent Dance Shadow to block their escape, trapping Mu Jiaren and the two youths.

Hu Haoran intervened as the Mu Family main branch attacked Mu Jiaren and the two young masters, Mu Tengfei and Mu Yucheng. He killed Mu Daye and drew Mu Dagen away from the brothers, leaving their fight unresolved as Mu Dagen tried to ambush him from underground.

• Mu Dajing trapped Mu Jiaren with his soul skills, but Mu Jiaren struck back with Exploding Flying Scales and left him severely wounded.
• Mu Dagen restrained the exhausted Mu Jiaren while Mu Daye prepared to attack Mu Tengfei and Mu Yucheng.
• Hu Haoran rushed in with Lightning Walk and killed Mu Daye, saving the two brothers from his attack.
• Mu Dagen shattered Mu Jiaren's chest and charged at Hu Haoran, who lured him away from the brothers.
• Mu Dagen used Coiling Serpent Entanglement to slip underground, and Hu Haoran flew into a tree to avoid the ambush.

Hu Haoran defeated Mu Dagen while Mu Tengfei and Mu Yucheng moved to finish the wounded Mu Dajing. After Hu Haoran identified himself as a young master of the Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon Clan and showed his badge, the Mu brothers broke down in tears.

• Mu Dagen attacked Hu Haoran, but Hu Haoran pierced his shoulder and used lightning techniques to slow him down.
• Hu Haoran’s seven-colored soul rings startled Mu Dagen and the onlookers, while his attacks chipped away at Mu Dagen’s scales.
• Mu Tengfei and Mu Yucheng threatened the wounded Mu Dajing, and Mu Dagen rushed to protect him, exposing his back to Hu Haoran.
• Hu Haoran killed Mu Dagen with a combination of lightning attacks, and Mu Tengfei and Mu Yucheng continued toward Mu Dajing.
• Hu Haoran introduced himself and showed the Mu brothers his Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon Clan badge, and they embraced and wept.

Hu Haoran learned that the Mu Family's main branch and Ling Gaofeng planned to assassinate the Emperor and replace the Hu Family with the Mu Family. He accepted the Mu brothers into his service after they swore loyalty, and they agreed to take the Hu surname before returning with him to Qinghua Town.

• Mu Tengfei and Mu Yucheng told Hu Haoran that the Mu Family's main branch was conspiring with the Ling Family to kill the Emperor and help the Second Prince seize the throne.
• The brothers revealed that the plot relied on Death's Embrace, a poison made from the Mu Family's spirit toxin, and shared that they held its formula and the antidote formula.
• Hu Haoran questioned whether he could trust them, so the brothers swore a Spirit Oath to serve him forever.
• Hu Haoran accepted the brothers and promised to use his family's resources to help them become strong enough to avenge their family.
• The brothers agreed to change their surnames to Hu, and Hu Haoran led them toward Qinghua Town before their planned return to the Imperial Capital.

Hu Haoran returned to Cangyun City with Hu Tengfei, Hu Yuchen, and Niu Dagui, whom he accepted as a subordinate and promised to help strengthen. After arranging for their transformation and equipment through the Douluo System, Hu Haoran was summoned to meet Steward Liu.

• Hu Haoran gave Hu Tengfei and Hu Yuchen Golden Wound Pills and prepared to leave Qinghua Town for the Imperial Capital.
• Niu Dagui asked to follow Hu Haoran, swore loyalty to him, and accepted the warning that improving his martial soul would be painful.
• Hu Haoran returned to the Hu Family, where Taohua welcomed him and arranged rooms for Hu Tengfei, Hu Yuchen, and Niu Dagui.
• Hu Haoran assessed the three men's martial souls and used Douluo Crystal Points to obtain transformation items, Soul Tools, and cultivation techniques for them.
• Taohua announced that Steward Liu had arrived, and Hu Haoran hurried out to meet him.

Hu Haoran showed Liu Daoran his extraordinary strength and warned him that the Ling and Mu Families were plotting to assassinate the Emperor. Liu Daoran agreed to inform Hu Xi and revealed that winning the National Youth Soul Master Competition could give Hu Haoran ownership of Haori City, a chance to build his own force.

• Liu Daoran was astonished to learn that Hu Haoran had become a Level 28 Great Soul Master with a thousand-year first soul ring and a seven-colored second soul ring.
• Hu Haoran demonstrated his Zigzag Thunder Kill, and Liu Daoran judged its power far beyond what a Great Soul Master should possess.
• Hu Haoran told Liu Daoran that his mother had reached Level 90 and described the Ling and Mu Families' rebellion plot, including their plan to assassinate the Emperor.
• Liu Daoran promised to explain the threat to Hu Xi and agreed that Hu Haoran could pretend to be a wastrel to make their enemies lower their guard.
• Liu Daoran told Hu Haoran that the champion of the National Youth Soul Master Competition would receive ownership of Haori City, and Hu Haoran eagerly considered the opportunity.

Hu Haoran decided to enter the National Youth Soul Master Competition after learning its grand prize was a city, which he hoped to use as the base for his own force. He chose to compete in Biyun City and prepared to tell Taohua about another important matter.

• Hu Haoran told Liu Daoran he wanted to win the competition and establish a force in Haori City, and Liu Daoran encouraged him before returning to the border.
• Taohua explained the competition's prizes, its under-thirty eligibility rule, and that Fifth Princess Shen Mengyan had arranged for a city to be the prize.
• Taohua described Shen Mengyan's Golden Flame Divine Eagle martial soul and level-thirty Soul Elder rank, but Hu Haoran decided to compete despite her warnings about strong opponents and deaths.
• Hu Haoran learned that contestants could register in different towns and chose Biyun City rather than the Imperial Capital.
• Hu Haoran told Taohua there was another, more important matter he needed to discuss, making her nervous.

Hu Haoran promised to help Taohua find her parents and revealed that he could transform their martial souls. He helped Niu Dagui evolve his Waste Martial Soul into the Vajra Subduing Demon Ox, then turned to Taohua, Hu Tengfei, and Hu Yuchen for the next transformations.

• Taohua told Hu Haoran that she had been found as a child after a battle and wanted to find her parents, and he promised to help her if she grew stronger.
• Hu Haoran gathered Taohua, Hu Tengfei, and Hu Yuchen to witness Niu Dagui transform his Waste Martial Soul.
• Niu Dagui drank Soaring Dragon Mad Ox Blood and endured the painful process as his meridians were damaged and repaired.
• A four-clawed golden dragon emerged from Niu Dagui, and he summoned his transformed Vajra Subduing Demon Ox, now covered in dragon scales and bearing a golden third horn.
• Liu Daoran sensed the dragon's might and sealed the aura inside the Hu Family estate, while Hu Haoran announced that the others would be transformed next.

Hu Haoran gave Taohua, Hu Tengfei, and Hu Yuchen pills that cleansed their bodies, boosted their Soul Power, and transformed Taohua’s martial soul. After seeing the three awaken, he went to the Hu Family library pavilion to find suitable cultivation techniques for them.

• Hu Haoran gave Hu Tengfei and Hu Yuchen Earth Milk Spirit Cleansing Pills and promised they would help them reach level twenty.
• Hu Haoran gave Taohua a Hundred Flowers Jade Calm Pill, which cleansed her body as he prepared a bath for her.
• Niu Dagui guarded the others while Hu Tengfei and Hu Yuchen absorbed their pills, and Hu Haoran had him prepare bathwater.
• Taohua awakened with a Crimson Star Peach Blossom martial soul and level-ten Soul Power; Hu Tengfei and Hu Yuchen also reached level twenty.
• Hu Haoran told the three they needed cultivation techniques and went to the Hu Family library pavilion to search for suitable ones.

Hu Haoran entered the Hu Family Library and met its guardians, Liu Zhili and Luo Li, who helped him find cultivation manuals for his companions. He left with three powerful manuals to train the people he had recruited.

• Hu Haoran used his blood to open the hidden entrance to the Hu Family Library and discovered that the door opened with a simple push.
• Liu Zhili and Luo Li introduced themselves as the Library's guardians, and Liu Zhili recognized Hu Haoran as Hu Xi's son.
• Hu Haoran explained that he wanted manuals for his three trusted companions, whose Martial Souls were the Vajra Demon-Subduing Ox, Crimson Star Peach Blossom, Ghostscale Dreamsnake, and Medusa's Eyes.
• Liu Zhili recommended the Bore God Bull Art for the Vajra Demon-Subduing Ox, and Luo Li identified the Starry Flower Skill for the Crimson Star Peach Blossom.
• Liu Zhili recommended Boundless Vast Qi for the remaining two Martial Souls, and Hu Haoran left the Library with all three manuals.

Hu Haoran arrived in Biyun City for the National Youth Soul Master Competition and acquired a mysterious mask called Asura's Grin. The mask accepted him as its master, while the young man who gave it to him departed, saying he was dying and they would never meet again.

• Before leaving, Hu Haoran gave Hu Tengfei and Hu Yuchen cultivation manuals, weapons, and training tasks while warning them to avoid the Mu Family.
• Hu Haoran, Taohua, and Niu Dagui reached Biyun City, where Niu Dagui went to arrange lodging and Hu Haoran took Taohua sightseeing.
• Hu Haoran bought a mask for himself and a veil for Taohua, then received a voice transmission inviting him to Jade Lake Pavilion.
• At Jade Lake Pavilion, a green-robed Soul Elder offered Hu Haoran a strange violet mask and told him to try it on if he could claim it as his master.
• Hu Haoran identified the mask as the evolvable fourth-grade Soul Tool Asura's Grin, bonded with it using his blood and spiritual power, and put it on.
• The green-robed young man explained that the mask was his family heirloom and left, saying he was dying and they would never meet again.

Hu Haoran registered for the National Youth Soul Master Competition under the false name Niu Dafu and received a match assignment for the next day. He watched the preliminaries with Taohua and Niu Dagui, analyzing the fighters as he prepared for his own match.

• Hu Haoran disguised himself with Asura's Grin and went with Taohua and Niu Dagui to the Biyun City martial arena.
• Hu Haoran registered as Niu Dafu, claiming to be seven years old with a Rank 28 Soaring Sword martial soul, and received contestant number thirty-two in the Gold Group B Division.
• The Douluo System activated the competition quest and announced rewards for passing the preliminaries and winning battles.
• Hu Haoran chose to stay and observe the matches while Taohua and Niu Dagui watched with him.
• Hu Haoran predicted that Li Hai would lose because his aerial attacks wasted Soul Power, and Zhang Da soon knocked Li Hai off the arena.

Hu Haoran learned that the top ten contestants in Biyun City’s preliminary round would receive the Qinghua Sword Technique, and he resolved to claim it. The next day, he arrived at the arena for his first match as the Gold Group Division B contestant Niu Dafu.

• Hu Haoran returned to the inn with Taohua and Niu Dagui after watching a Silver Group battle, then treated them to a meal.
• Hu Haoran overheard patrons explain that the He Clan had offered the Qinghua Sword Technique as a prize for the top ten contestants, and he decided to obtain it.
• Niu Dagui chose to study the Bore God Bull Art and cultivate instead of watching Hu Haoran’s match, while Taohua vowed to grow stronger and find her parents.
• An arena guard told Hu Haoran that his match was scheduled for the morning and that the second round would wait until the first round was complete.
• Hu Haoran entered the arena as contestant Niu Dafu and stepped onto the stage for his Gold Group Division B match.

Hu Haoran, competing as Niu Dafu, overwhelmed Wang Dami in his first tournament battle and won. Back at the inn, he decided to take Taohua and Niu Dagui to hunt for their first soul rings before his next match in a week.

• Hu Haoran revealed his unusual soul rings and challenged Wang Dami to defeat him in three exchanges.
• Hu Haoran dodged Wang Dami’s first attack, stopped his second with the Soaring Sword, and met his strongest strike head-on, knocking Wang Dami away.
• Wang Dami admitted defeat, and the referee declared contestant Niu Dafu the winner; Hu Haoran received 10,000 Douluo Crystal Points.
• A guard told Hu Haoran that his second-round match would be announced at the inn in one week.
• Hu Haoran returned to the inn, reassured Taohua that he had won, and decided to hunt for soul rings with Taohua and Niu Dagui.

Hu Haoran led Taohua and Niu Dagui into Black Sand Forest to find their first Soul Rings, while Hu Moxie learned of his younger brother’s remarkable achievements and sought to bring him to Shrek Academy. The Douluo System detected a suitable Iron-Blooded Mangrove Golden Bull nearby.

• Hu Haoran hired a mercenary group and took Taohua and Niu Dagui into Black Sand Forest, planning to hunt an Iron-Blooded Mangrove Golden Bull for Niu Dagui and a Thousand-Jun Ant for Taohua.
• Jiang Jiayao told Hu Moxie that Hu Haoran had reached Level 28, helped their mother advance to Level 90, and possessed two Thousand-Year Soul Rings; he also showed Hu Moxie his evolved Ultimate Spirit.
• Hu Moxie decided to speak with the Sea God Pavilion elders about taking Hu Haoran as a disciple, while Jiang Jiayao planned to report his Ultimate Spirit to his clan.
• Hu Haoran led Taohua and Niu Dagui deeper into Black Sand Forest while the Douluo System searched for their target soul beasts.
• The Douluo System detected a lone 420-year Iron-Blooded Mangrove Golden Bull five hundred meters southwest, suitable for Niu Dagui’s first Soul Ring.

Hu Haoran found a lone 420-year-old Iron-Blooded Mangrove Golden Bull suitable for Niu Dagui and fought it to weaken it for him. Hu Haoran handed Niu Dagui the chance to prove himself, and the two faced off as the bull sought a way to escape.

• Hu Haoran told Niu Dagui and Taohua that he had found a suitable Iron-Blooded Mangrove Golden Bull and approached it alone.
• Hu Haoran summoned the Soaring Sword and overpowered the bull in a contest of strength.
• Hu Haoran used Character 'Zhi' Thunder Kill to cut off the bull's horns, then blinded its right eye with Vicious Thunder Stab.
• Hu Haoran called Niu Dagui forward to finish the fight and blocked the bull's escape route.
• Niu Dagui and the wounded Iron-Blooded Mangrove Golden Bull studied each other in a brief standoff.

Hu Haoran and Niu Dagui defeated the Iron-Blooded Mangrove Golden Bull, allowing Niu Dagui to absorb his first soul ring and reach level nineteen. With Taohua's soul ring still to find, the group decided to wait until morning and seek shelter for the night.

• The wounded Iron-Blooded Mangrove Golden Bull charged Niu Dagui, who counterattacked with his Bore God Bull Art while Hu Haoran warned him about its Golden Talisman Iron Armor.
• Niu Dagui used the first form of the Ox Demon Shakes Heaven Fist, Mad Bull Breaks from the Gate, to fatally injure the beast.
• After Niu Dagui killed the Iron-Blooded Mangrove Golden Bull, its yellow soul ring appeared, and he absorbed it while Hu Haoran stood guard.
• Niu Dagui emerged with his Soul Power at level nineteen and offered to hunt Taohua's soul ring, but Hu Haoran said they would continue searching the next day.
• Hu Haoran, Niu Dagui, and Taohua began looking for a cave where they could spend the night and roast the bull.

Hu Haoran, Niu Dagui, and Taohua took shelter in a cave, where they discovered they had entered a Thousand-Jun Ant nest. As the ant tide chased them, Hu Haoran made a plan to hold off the swarm while Niu Dagui attacked its leader.

• Hu Haoran, Niu Dagui, and Taohua found a hidden cave and roasted the Iron-Blooded Mangrove Golden Bull's meat.
• Niu Dagui noticed strange rustling, and Hu Haoran used a torch to reveal that person-sized Thousand-Jun Ants were surrounding them.
• Hu Haoran identified the ants as Taohua's intended first soul-ring target and led the others out of the cave as the swarm pursued them.
• Hu Haoran learned that killing the ant tide's leader, a Thousand-Jun Ant over four hundred years old, could stop the swarm.
• Hu Haoran asked Niu Dagui to kill the leader while he held back the ant tide and protected Taohua, and the three stopped to face the ants.