Chapter Summaries

Xiao Heng refused Hu Jia’s attempts to learn about Xun Er’s past and followed her to his new courtyard, where he practiced swordsmanship. His training left him sensing that something had been missing, and he decided to keep the Immortal Slaying Sword with him.

• Xiao Heng told Hu Jia that he and Xun Er were not biological siblings, then refused to reveal Xun Er’s past despite Hu Jia offering him gold coins.
• Director Zhao sent Hu Jia to show Xiao Heng his nearby residence, and Xiao Heng followed her there with Bear Two.
• Xiao Heng tricked Hu Jia by pretending to share information, then continued following her to his own courtyard after she stormed ahead.
• Hu Jia returned to her courtyard angrily while Xiao Heng settled into his and practiced swordsmanship in the yard.
• Xiao Heng reflected on his recent neglect of sword practice, then took out the Immortal Slaying Sword and decided to keep it with him.

Xiao Heng arrived at Jia Nan Academy’s Inner Academy Selection Tournament and joined Yellow Class Eight, where he learned that all five classmates were competing. The tournament began with Zhao Zhu’s match, and he won, leaving the class encouraged for the contests ahead.

• Xiao Heng reached the crowded Martial Arts Arena, where the Vice Dean noticed him and predicted he could win the tournament.
• Xiao Heng joined Zhao Lin and the other members of Yellow Class Eight, learning that their class had only five students and that all of them would compete.
• The Vice Dean announced the official start of the Inner Academy Selection Tournament, and Zhao Zhu was called to fight Li Fei of Yellow Class Two.
• Xiao Heng assessed the fighters and reassured Zhao Lin that Zhao Zhu could win if he fought steadily.
• Zhao Zhu defeated Li Fei, and his classmates celebrated.

Xiao Heng won his Selection Tournament match with ease, and Xiao Xun'er and Xiao Yan also advanced as the tournament neared its end. After Huo De congratulated Class Eight, Xiao Heng returned to his courtyard and prepared to use Green Wind Liquid to aid his cultivation.

• Xiao Heng defeated Liu Neng by disarming him with two fingers, then encouraged him not to give up.
• Xiao Xun'er and Xiao Yan won their matches, and Xiao Yan reunited with Xiao Xun'er in front of the crowd.
• Huo De arrived after the matches and praised Xiao Heng for reaching Dou Ling strength.
• Xiao Heng returned to his courtyard, prepared a stone vat of water, and told Bear Two he planned to use Green Wind Liquid to stimulate his cultivation.

Xiao Heng used the Green Wind Liquid to strengthen his body and advance to three-star Dou Ling, then arrived at the Selection Tournament as the second round began. His first match was against Li Changfeng, who hesitated to fight him.

• Xiao Heng absorbed the emerald liquid in a stone vat, broke through to three-star Dou Ling, and strengthened his physical defense.
• Xiao Heng arrived at the arena and encouraged Zhao Lin, Zhu Zi, and the two girls before the tournament began.
• The referee announced that 175 contestants remained and called Xiao Heng and Li Changfeng for the first match.
• Xiao Heng entered the arena and told the nervous Li Changfeng to make his move while the spectators cheered for him.
• Xiao Yan and Xun Er watched from the stands and remarked on Xiao Heng's strength and popularity.

Xiao Heng advanced in the tournament after Li Changfeng conceded, then obtained the Dan Fire Skill from the Alchemy Department Head with Huo De’s help. The day ended with Xiao Heng returning to his courtyard after thanking Huo De and the instructor who had helped him.

• Li Changfeng conceded to Xiao Heng, and the Referee Stand elders discussed Xiao Heng’s strength and his status as a Fifth-grade Alchemist.
• Zhao Lin and Zhu Zi won their matches, while Xiao Yan, Xun Er, Hu Jia, and the others advanced; Xiao Heng asked Huo De about obtaining Lu Mu’s Dan Fire Skill.
• Xiao Heng told his classmates he was an alchemist, but kept his alchemist grade secret when they asked.
• After the tournament ended, Huo De took Xiao Heng to the Alchemy Department, where the Department Head gave Xiao Heng the Dan Fire Skill without requiring him to join the department.
• Xiao Heng gave medicinal pills to Huo De and the middle-aged instructor, then returned to his courtyard.

Xiao Heng studied the Dan Fire Skill and learned to shape his flames into weapons, then joined the fifty finalists for the final round of the Selection Tournament. The chapter ended as Vice Dean Hu Gan announced a change to the contest: a grand melee in which contestants ranked higher the longer they stayed in the arena.

• Xiao Heng learned the Dan Fire Skill, formed Purple Flame into weapons and a lotus, and reflected on how it made flames the main force of his attacks.
• Xiao Heng met Xiao Yan and Xun Er on the crowded way to the square, joked with Xiao Yan, and later admitted to his classmates that he admired Hu Jia's personality.
• Bai Shan glared at Xiao Heng and vowed to make him pay after they entered the Inner Academy.
• Hu Gan announced that the final round would rank the fifty contestants by how long they survived in a grand melee, where teaming up and any means of fighting were permitted.

Xiao Heng waited unchallenged during the Inner Academy Selection Tournament until the referees changed the rules so that every contestant had to confront him. The contestants launched a combined attack, and Xiao Heng unleashed purple Dou Qi and lightning-laced flames to meet them.

• Xiao Heng reassured Zhao Lin and Zhu Zi that he could help them reach the top ten, while Xiao Yan chose to form his own team with Xun Er.
• Bai Shan, Hu Jia, and Wu Hao allied, and the contestants began fighting while no one dared approach Xiao Heng.
• Hu Gan and the other referees changed the contest into a confrontation with Xiao Heng, declaring that whoever knocked him from the Arena would take first place.
• Xiao Heng challenged the contestants to attack together, and Xiao Yan, Xun Er, Bai Shan, Hu Jia, and Wu Hao joined the charge.
• Zhao Lin, Zhu Zi, and the other contestants joined the attack, and Xiao Heng answered with purple Dou Qi and lightning-laced flames.

Xiao Heng overwhelmed most of the arena with his flames, then survived a combined attack from Xiao Yan, Hu Jia, Bai Shan, and Wu Hao that shattered the platform. As the fight continued, he countered Bai Shan’s lightning and dodged attacks from Xun’er and Hu Jia.

• Xiao Heng unleashed a huge wave of purple fire that swept most fighters off the arena, leaving only a dozen standing.
• Xiao Yan raised his strength with the Heavenly Fire Three Profound Transformations, and he, Hu Jia, Bai Shan, and Wu Hao attacked Xiao Heng together.
• Xiao Heng countered their combined techniques with Blazing Flames, Kill, and the collision shattered the arena while he, Xun’er, Xiao Yan, Hu Jia, Bai Shan, and Wu Hao remained standing.
• Xiao Heng invited Xun’er to attack, then dodged Hu Jia’s whip and Wu Hao’s sword before clashing with Bai Shan’s lightning spear.
• Xiao Heng redirected Bai Shan’s lightning into the ground, then evaded Xun’er’s golden palm imprint and Hu Jia’s renewed whip attack.

Xiao Heng survived Xiao Yan and Xun Er’s combined attack and prepared an Earth Grade Combat Skill as Xiao Yan readied one of his own. The two attacks were about to clash, leaving Hu Jia and the referees prepared to intervene.

• Xiao Yan formed and hurled a Fire Lotus at Xiao Heng while Xun Er struck him with a golden palm, and Xiao Heng endured the explosion behind his defenses.
• Xiao Heng tore through the flames with his sword and rose into the sky with his aura still strong, startling Xiao Yan and the others.
• Xiao Heng gathered lightning along his sword and summoned a massive thunder whale, which Xiao Yan recognized as an Earth Grade Combat Skill.
• Xiao Yan drew the Black Giant Ruler and began charging his own Earth Grade Combat Skill as Hu Jia ordered the referees to prepare to save everyone.

Xiao Heng defeated Xiao Yan and the other finalists with his Earth Tier Thunder Whale skill and won first place in the Inner Academy Selection Tournament. After recovering and breaking through to Four-Star Dou Ling, he used the system lottery and obtained a cultivation art, only to learn that future draws would cost more.

• Xiao Heng unleashed Thunder Whale Descends, overwhelming Xiao Yan, Xun Er, Hu Jia, Bai Shan, and Wu Hao and leaving the Arena in ruins.
• Hu Gan declared Xiao Heng the tournament champion as the spectators cheered, and Xiao Heng left the venue with Bear Two.
• Hu Jia, Bai Shan, and Wu Hao woke from their injuries and each reacted to Xiao Heng's overwhelming strength.
• Xiao Heng recovered from the battle and broke through to Four-Star Dou Ling while consolidating his strength.
• Xiao Heng made three system draws and received a Seventh-grade Alchemist Inheritance, five Hundred-year Vermilion Fruits, and the Heavenly Cicada Reincarnation Canon.
• The system raised the cost of each lottery draw to two Heavenly Dao Points, leaving Xiao Heng unhappy but resigned.

Xiao Heng hesitated to cultivate the Heavenly Cicada Reincarnation Canon because its Cicada Molt left practitioners weak for one hundred days, then felt inexplicably restless. Elsewhere, Xiao Yi Xian escaped her pursuers, broke through to Dou Wang, and killed the clan leader who was chasing her.

• Xiao Heng read that the Heavenly Cicada Reincarnation Canon enhanced aptitude through successive Cicada Molts but set the technique aside because of its hundred-day recovery period.
• Xiao Heng felt an unexplained palpitation and looked out at the sky as Xiao Yi Xian remembered him while fleeing through the Izumo Empire.
• Xiao Yi Xian consumed a seven-colored fruit and broke through to Dou Wang while the clan leader pursued her to avenge his son, Fei'er.
• Xiao Yi Xian used her poisonous gray Dou Qi and leaves to corrode the clan leader's attacks as they fought in the air.
• Xiao Yi Xian killed the clan leader, then departed on the Blue Eagle.

Xiao Heng and the other top contestants entered the Library Pavilion to claim items, where the elders recognized the Heavenly Flames controlled by Xiao Heng and Xiao Yan. Xiao Heng secured two scrolls and waited to learn what they contained.

• Hu Gan led the six top contestants through a hidden passage to the Library Pavilion and explained that they could each take only one item, though Xiao Heng was allowed two as a reward.
• Two Gray-robed Men identified Xiao Yan's Green Lotus Core Flame and questioned Xiao Heng about his unusual flame before opening the pavilion's spatial seal.
• Xiao Heng and the others entered the Library Pavilion and gathered in a room filled with Energy Barriers.
• Flowing Lights burst from the barriers, and the contestants leaped up to seize them.
• Xiao Heng used his Soul Power to catch a golden scroll, then grabbed a second scroll that flew directly toward him and stopped collecting items.

Xiao Heng and Xiao Yan left the Library Pavilion with their chosen scrolls, then exchanged gifts at Xiao Heng’s residence. Xiao Heng received the Earth Grade Three Thousand Lightning Movement and looked ahead to entering the Inner Academy in two days.

• Xiao Heng gave Xiao Yan a Mystic Grade High sound-wave Dou Technique in exchange for help obtaining another scroll, and Xiao Yan handed over the scroll he had found.
• Hu Jia accused Xiao Heng and Xiao Yan of cheating, while Xiao Yan teased Xiao Heng by showing affection toward Xun Er.
• The six students left the Library Pavilion after the Gray-robed Men warned them to keep its secrets, and Hu Gan told them to return in two days to enter the Inner Academy.
• Hu Gan warned the newcomers that Inner Academy students could outmatch them, then Xiao Heng brought Xiao Yan to his residence.
• Xiao Heng exchanged for the Lion's Roar Skill for Xiao Yan, and Xiao Yan gave him the scrolls for Three Thousand Lightning Movement and another Dou Technique.

Xiao Heng acquired rare Earth Tier sword techniques and fused two movement arts into a new technique, then set out with Bear Two to practice it. Meanwhile, Jia Nan Academy’s elders approved Bear Two’s entry into the Inner Academy and agreed that Xiao Heng should be nurtured.

• Xiao Heng examined four scrolls and found Earth Tier movement, sword cultivation, and sword array techniques among them.
• Xiao Heng spent resources to fuse Three Thousand Lightning Movement with Wind Travel Across Earth into Wind Thunder Heaven and Earth Travel, then obtained Gale Force from the system to meet its cultivation requirements.
• Xiao Heng invited Bear Two to accompany him outside, and Bear Two eagerly agreed after Xiao Heng promised he could explore the Inner Academy soon.
• Xiao Heng found a suitable practice site near the academy, and Bear Two used his Fifth-tier Magical Beast aura to drive away nearby Magical Beasts.
• Hu Gan told the elders that the Great Elder had approved Bear Two entering the Inner Academy, and the elders agreed to support Xiao Heng’s development.

Xiao Heng learned to use the Earth Grade Combat Skill Wind Thunder Heaven and Earth Travel, then returned to the academy after refining his control. There, he crossed paths with the girl in red and provoked her before they both went home.

• Xiao Heng absorbed Gale Force, used the Thunder Gang Purple Lotus Fire to subdue it, and opened the meridians needed for the combat skill.
• Xiao Heng drew purple lightning from the Heavenly Flames and practiced Wind Thunder Heaven and Earth Travel, repeatedly crashing into trees as he learned to move.
• After a day of practice, Xiao Heng could use the skill with less noise, though he had not yet reached its first layer, Wind Thunder Step.
• Xiao Heng and Bear Two returned to the academy, where Xiao Heng reflected on the peaceful autumn evening.
• The girl in red confronted Xiao Heng, and he teased her about her injuries and followed her toward their nearby courtyards.
• Xiao Heng went into his courtyard, while the girl in red slammed her door and muttered, "Bastard!"

Xiao Heng and the other top students traveled with Hu Gan to the hidden entrance of the Inner Academy, where they met its elders and current students. Elder Su revealed that passing the Selection Tournament had not yet completed their entry, leaving the newcomers awaiting another test.

• Xiao Heng joined Xiao Yan, Xun Er, Hu Jia, Bai Shan, and Wu Hao as they gathered before Hu Gan, who assigned Xiao Heng to travel alone.
• Hu Gan led the students by Griffin through the academy’s back mountains to a concealed silver gate that opened into the Inner Academy.
• Xiao Heng entered the Inner Academy and anticipated competing for its Fire Energy and resources.
• Hu Gan introduced the top six newcomers, including Xiao Heng, to Elder Su and Elder Qing, surprising them with the extra participant.
• Elder Su warned the newcomers that their selection was not over and tossed each of them a black crystal tablet.

Xiao Heng entered the Inner Academy’s Fire Energy Hunt Competition and turned the tables on the hunters who tried to rob him. After taking Fire Energy from two teams, he continued through the forest in search of more prey.

• Elder Su explained that the new students had to reach the Inner Academy through the forest while protecting their crystal cards, then declared the Fire Energy Hunt Competition underway.
• A team of five ambushed Xiao Heng, but he revealed his Dou Ling strength and used Wind Thunder Step to defeat one of them in a single strike.
• Xiao Heng demanded the team’s cards, took their Fire Energy, and let them leave after his card’s number rose to 123.
• Two old men watching from a tree remarked that Xiao Heng was stronger than two students from their year and expected trouble for the other teams.
• More than twenty minutes later, Xiao Heng subdued another team, collected their Fire Energy, and set off to find another group.

Xiao Heng ambushed two gathered teams, forced them to hand over all their Fire Energy, and received a map of the remaining competitors from Liu Hua. He set his sights on the Black Fiend Team and White Fiend Team as he continued hunting.

• Xiao Heng spotted ten competitors from two teams discussing reports of a hunter who targeted other hunters.
• Xiao Heng struck the group with a powerful purple Dou Qi lion, injuring most of them and leaving captains Liu Hua and Xu Gang able to fight.
• Xiao Heng demanded their Crystal Cards, and after Xu Gang attacked and Xiao Heng swiftly evaded him, Liu Hua agreed to surrender all their Fire Energy.
• Xiao Heng returned Liu Hua's card and let the group leave after transferring their Fire Energy to his own card.
• Liu Hua gave Xiao Heng a map and information about the other teams, including the Black Fiend Team and White Fiend Team.
• Xiao Heng memorized the map and decided to take on the two strongest teams.

Xiao Heng tracked the Black Fiend Team to the White Fiend Team, the last remaining hunters in the competition, and challenged their leader, Luo Hou. After defeating Luo Hou and his teammates, Xiao Heng demanded their crystal cards.

• Xiao Heng followed the Black Fiend Team to the finish area and found Luo Hou and the White Fiend Team waiting there.
• Xiao Heng confronted Luo Hou and demanded the team's crystal cards, then revealed his overwhelming Dou Ling aura.
• Luo Hou attacked Xiao Heng with his ice-element staff, but Xiao Heng blocked every strike with his Heavenly Flames-wrapped sword.
• Ye Han and the other White Fiend Team members joined the fight, and Xiao Heng's Breath Sever sword technique injured all four at once.
• Luo Hou launched his Round Cold Spin Staff attack, but Xiao Heng dodged it by leaping onto a nearby tree canopy.
• Luo Hou admitted defeat, and Xiao Heng descended and demanded the White Fiend Team's crystal cards.

After Xiao Heng defeated the White Fiend Team, Elder Su declared the new students the winners of the Fire Energy Hunting Competition and awarded their rewards. He led them into the Inner Academy, where Xiao Heng and the others saw the vast basin city and arrived at their new pavilion.

• Elder Su praised Xiao Heng, then welcomed Xiao Yan and the other new students and announced their victory in the Fire Energy Hunting Competition.
• Xiao Heng checked on the injured Zhu Zi and Zhao Lin, gave Zhu Zi a medicinal pill, and heard how Zhu Zi had been beaten again for insulting his opponents.
• Elder Su awarded fire energy and Green Fire Crystal Cards to the new students, giving Xiao Heng fifty days of fire energy and a Green Fire Crystal Card.
• Elder Su explained the crystal card ranks and led the students up the stairs, where they looked down upon the vast Inner Academy basin.
• Elder Su guided the new students toward the Inner Academy, and Xiao Heng later entered an elegant two-story pavilion with a courtyard and pond.