Chapter Summaries

Lin Manshan tested the power he had stolen from Tang San, then used Tang San’s cultivation techniques to study the body’s meridians and develop his own methods. After returning to Nuoding City, he began experimenting with altered Soul Power circulation and nearly hurt himself before the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone protected him.

• Tang San tested his enhanced Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track and Mysterious Jade Hand while Lin Manshan observed and studied the techniques from afar.
• Lin Manshan cultivated the Mysterious Heaven Skill, found that it sped up his cultivation, and drained Tang San’s borrowed power overnight; Tang San woke to find his strength and the green glow in his meridians gone.
• Lin Manshan added Purple Demon Eye practice to his routine, spent a month in Sacred Soul Village, then returned to Nuoding City and visited Tie Shan's Family.
• Lin Manshan mapped the body’s meridians and Acupoints, compared them with the Mysterious Heaven Skill’s circulation route, and studied the techniques from the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record.
• Lin Manshan experimented with a new Soul Power route, found that it circulated more easily, and nearly overheated himself before the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone helped him recover.

From March to September, Lin Manshan completed revisions to the major techniques in the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record, improving his cultivation and combat methods. He planned to reach Rank 30 in Nuoding City around mid-November, then travel to the Star Dou Great Forest to hunt for his Third Soul Ring.

• Lin Manshan tested his improved Mysterious Jade Hand, which amplified his arm strength and worked especially well with his Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear External Soul Bone, and renamed it the Refined Jade Hand.
• Lin Manshan completed the Jing Tian Jue by adjusting the Mysterious Heaven Skill’s meridian routes, increasing his cultivation speed and giving his Soul Power traits linked to his martial soul.
• Lin Manshan renamed the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record the Jing Tian Treasure Codex, the Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track the Startled Swan Steps, and the Purple Demon Eye the Purple Cloud Eye.
• Lin Manshan opened the meridians in both arms and improved the Mysterious Jade Hand, while noting that the technique was difficult and risky to cultivate.
• Lin Manshan added offensive methods to Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon and renamed it the Dragon Catching Skill, though he planned to refine it further.
• Lin Manshan estimated that he would reach Rank 30 around mid-November and planned to hunt for his Third Soul Ring in the Star Dou Great Forest.

Lin Manshan returned to the Star Dou Great Forest to hunt a ten-thousand-year Spirit Beast, while planning his future moves against Tang San and to help Old Jack's family. After days of searching through spider- and snake-filled territory, he sensed another ten-thousand-year Spirit Beast and went to investigate.

• Lin Manshan planned to spend the New Year with Old Jack's family, then bring them and Uncle Tie Shan to Heaven Dou City and hire the blacksmiths.
• He decided to buy Plate Crystal from Flender's shop and recalled that he had asked Lou Gao to collect rare metals Tang San would need for top-tier hidden weapons.
• Lin Manshan tried to design a handgun by studying a smaller version of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow, but lacked practical knowledge of its internal mechanisms.
• In November, Lin Manshan reached the ten-thousand-year Spirit Beast area after four days of travel and used his Soul Perception Ability to navigate its dense forest.
• Lin Manshan avoided numerous Plant System Soul Beasts and passed over several unsuitable Spirit Beasts, including spiders, leopards, and snakes.
• After continuing farther from the river in search of a strength-type Spirit Beast, Lin Manshan sensed another ten-thousand-year Spirit Beast and went to look.

Lin Manshan ambushed a twelve-thousand-year Soul Devouring Spider King, then lured it through the forest while seeking a way past its defenses. The chapter ended as his Dragon Whisker Needles struck and burst inside all eight of the spider’s eyes.

• Lin Manshan identified the Soul Devouring Spider King as a powerful candidate for his next Soul Ring and decided to kill it.
• He wounded the spider’s silk-spinning organ with Thunder Fire Needles, then fled as it pursued him through the forest.
• Lin Manshan studied the spider’s weak points and prepared an enhanced Godly Zhuge Crossbow and Dragon Whisker Needles.
• He lured the spider to a thick tree, used the Void Evasion Technique to reach a branch, and attacked its exposed eyes with the needles.

Lin Manshan killed the Soul Devouring Spider King and absorbed its ten-thousand-year Soul Ring, overcoming the beast’s resentful soul. As he used the ring’s energy to open his Eight Extraordinary Meridians, eight spider-like limbs grew from his back, and he eventually stirred with a groan.

• Lin Manshan wounded the Soul Devouring Spider King with his Godly Zhuge Crossbow and Dark Night Fierce Light, then pursued it and dealt the fatal blow.
• Lin Manshan waited for the poison around the corpse to seep into the ground, prepared the area, and began absorbing the Soul Ring.
• The ring’s icy, resentful soul entered Lin Manshan’s mind, but its illusory Soul Devouring Demon Spider dissolved under his focused gaze.
• Lin Manshan channeled the Soul Ring’s energy into opening the first and second of his Eight Extraordinary Meridians.
• Eight dark-green, horned spider legs burst from Lin Manshan’s back as he continued absorbing the Soul Ring energy.
• After an unknown length of time, Lin Manshan groaned softly in the darkness.

Lin Manshan tested the powers of his new Eight Spider Lances and returned through the Star Dou Great Forest, where he drove off one Gale Wolf pack. When he discovered the pack pursuing two female Spirit Masters, he intervened and killed its leader, then approached the exhausted masked woman.

• Lin Manshan absorbed the Soul Devouring Spider King's remaining life force, assessed his improved strength and Soul Power, and collected its venom in bottles.
• Lin Manshan tested his sharper Great Saber Martial Soul, then traveled back through the forest using insect coordinates to find his way.
• A pack of Gale Wolves surrounded Lin Manshan by the river, but fled when he revealed his Eight Spider Lances and Refined Jade Hand.
• Lin Manshan sensed the Gale Wolves pursuing two female Spirit Masters and rushed toward the stronger woman, whom the pack was trying to capture alive.
• Lin Manshan struck down the Gale Wolf leader and two nearby wolves with a powerful saber attack, then went to help the wounded, masked Spirit Master.

Lin Manshan rescued the poisoned Zhu Zhuyun and the wounded Zhu Zhuqing, treated and healed them beside a pool, then waited while they slept. By noon, as he cooked snake soup, one of the women began to stir.

• Lin Manshan gave Zhu Zhuyun a Detoxification Pill and rushed to save the other woman, whom he recognized as Zhu Zhuqing.
• The Gale Wolves fled, and Lin Manshan carried both unconscious women away after giving Zhu Zhuqing a Detoxification Pill.
• Lin Manshan absorbed Life Energy from the dead Gale Wolves and brought the women to a clear pool to treat their wounds.
• He washed and disinfected both women, healed their injuries with Life Energy, and dressed them in spare clothes.
• Lin Manshan spent the night cultivating beside the sleeping women, then cooked fish and snake soup the next day.
• A soft moan sounded beside Lin Manshan as he prepared the snake soup.

Lin Manshan explained how he had treated Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Zhuqing, then offered them three choices: leave with him escorting them, marry him, or kill themselves. After he left to hunt, Zhu Zhuyun brought food to Zhu Zhuqing.

• Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Zhuqing woke, realized their injuries had healed, and confronted Lin Manshan about what he had done.
• Lin Manshan explained that their wounds had been poisoned and required immediate treatment, and said their clothing had prevented him from treating them without removing it.
• Lin Manshan offered the women the choices of pretending nothing happened and leaving, marrying him, or killing themselves, and said he would hunt while they decided.
• After Lin Manshan left, Zhu Zhuyun filled two bowls with snake stew and brought one to Zhu Zhuqing.

Zhu Zhuyun explained that she had staged the pursuit to help Zhu Zhuqing escape the Star Luo Empire and described the dangers facing women caught in the royal succession struggle. She decided she could no longer return home, leaving Zhu Zhuqing to ask what she planned to do and whether she intended to marry A'man.

• Zhu Zhuqing accused Zhu Zhuyun of pretending and refused to help her harm A'man, but Zhu Zhuyun revealed that the pursuit had been staged to let Zhu Zhuqing flee the Star Luo Empire.
• Zhu Zhuyun explained that Zhu Family women were used to secure political alliances and said she had hoped to arrange a safer marriage for Zhu Zhuqing and Zhu Yu.
• Zhu Zhuyun said Dai Weisi had killed several maids he had used, and she feared he would eventually discard her as well.
• Zhu Zhuyun warned that rumors about their encounter with the Gale Wolves would ruin their reputations, making it safer to flee than return to the Star Luo Empire.
• Zhu Zhuqing asked what Zhu Zhuyun would do next and whether she planned to marry A'man.

Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Zhuqing agreed to travel with Lin Manshan and learn more about him before deciding whether to marry him, while planning to find Dai Mubai in the Heaven Dou Empire. Lin Manshan accepted their proposal and learned their identities, leaving Zhu Zhuyun unsettled by how much she cared about his reaction.

• Zhu Zhuyun argued that Lin Manshan had shown good character and proposed they spend time with him before deciding whether to marry him.
• Zhu Zhuyun suggested visiting Dai Mubai and judging whether he had cultivated diligently or fallen into depravity, and Zhu Zhuqing tacitly agreed.
• Lin Manshan returned to the pool after overhearing the women’s conversation and told them his name and background.
• Zhu Zhuyun asked Lin Manshan to help find Dai Mubai in the Barak Duchy, and Lin Manshan agreed.
• Zhu Zhuyun introduced herself and Zhu Zhuqing, and Lin Manshan asked Zhu Zhuqing how she planned to find Dai Mubai.

Lin Manshan told Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Zhuqing that he would take Zhu Zhuqing to find Dai Mubai after the New Year, then travel to Heaven Dou City to reunite with his female companions. After learning Lin Manshan had only just absorbed his third Soul Ring, Zhu Zhuyun began to see him as a promising prospect she could shape.

• Zhu Zhuqing said she planned to search for Dai Mubai by asking around at soul arenas, and Lin Manshan agreed to take her after the New Year.
• Lin Manshan revealed that he had female companions waiting in Heaven Dou City and warned Zhu Zhuqing that seeing Dai Mubai might disappoint her.
• Lin Manshan roasted rabbit for the women and told Zhu Zhuyun how he had met his companions, including Dugu Yan and the two Shui Family women.
• Zhu Zhuyun asked about Lin Manshan's strength, and he said he had just absorbed his third Soul Ring.
• Zhu Zhuyun dismissed Lin Manshan's claim that diligence explained his rapid growth and privately resolved to cultivate his potential, watching him like prey.

Zhu Zhuyun decided to marry Lin Manshan after leaving her old life and the Star Dou Great Forest behind, while Lin Manshan, Zhu Zhuyun, and Zhu Zhuqing settled at an inn for the night. The chapter left the three cultivating in their shared room before setting out again the next morning.

• Zhu Zhuyun declared that she intended to marry Lin Manshan, and he redirected the conversation toward finishing lunch and leaving the forest.
• Lin Manshan led Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Zhuqing out of the Star Dou Great Forest and to an inn ten kilometers away.
• Lin Manshan rented one room, and the three went upstairs despite other guests whispering about them.
• Lin Manshan began cultivating near the door while Zhu Zhuqing and Zhu Zhuyun took turns washing up.
• Zhu Zhuyun reflected on her choice to leave her family and Dai Weisi, concluded that she would not regret choosing Lin Manshan, and decided to cultivate to support him.
• After washing, Lin Manshan returned to his carpet and cultivated alongside Zhu Zhuqing and Zhu Zhuyun.

Lin Manshan returned to Nuoding City with Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Zhuqing, where Zhu Zhuyun agreed to meet his adoptive family before they married. That night, she slipped into his room and asked him to help Zhu Yu.

• Lin Manshan and the two women returned to Nuoding City after an eight-day carriage journey and settled back into his home.
• Zhu Zhuyun asked Lin Manshan when they would marry, and he proposed taking her to meet his adoptive parents and visit his birth parents' graves.
• Lin Manshan told Zhu Zhuyun that he was a blacksmith and Lou Gao's direct disciple, startling both women.
• Zhu Zhuyun entered Lin Manshan's room late at night, climbed into his bed, and said she needed his help with Zhu Yu.

Zhu Zhuyun explained that Zhu Zhuyu might be forced into a political marriage after the family believed Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Qing were dead. She asked Lin Manshan to help get a message to Zhu Zhuyu, and revealed that meeting her at Star Luo Royal Academy could be possible.

• Zhu Zhuyun told Lin Manshan that the Zhu women were used to secure marriage alliances and that Zhu Zhuyu's status was now precarious.
• Zhu Zhuyun explained that two Soul Elders who escaped the Gale Wolf attack would report that she and Zhu Qing had died, leaving Zhu Zhuyu as the Zhu Family's most prominent unmarried woman.
• Lin Manshan and Zhu Zhuyun considered whether Zhu Zhuyu might be married to Dai Weisi, and Zhu Zhuyun feared her family might offer her as a lesser consort instead.
• Zhu Zhuyun asked Lin Manshan to have Lou Gao secretly deliver a letter to Zhu Zhuyu, confirming that she and Zhu Qing were alive.
• Zhu Zhuyun explained that Zhu Zhuyu was studying at Star Luo Royal Academy and that the academy's rules and her own family token could make a private meeting possible.

Lin Manshan and Zhu Zhuyun affirmed their commitment, shared a private wedding rite, and he taught her a powerful cultivation technique. The next morning, Zhu Zhuyun warned Zhu Zhuqing to keep the technique secret, offered to teach it to her with Lin Manshan’s consent, and turned to discuss Zhu Yu.

• Zhu Zhuyun accepted Lin Manshan’s feelings but asked to postpone their wedding until he could hold a grand ceremony that would let her avenge herself on the Zhu Family.
• Lin Manshan and Zhu Zhuyun drank wine to complete their wedding rites, then he guided her through a new technique from the Jing Tian Treasure Codex.
• The next morning, Zhu Zhuqing visited Zhu Zhuyun, who said Lin Manshan’s research gave her confidence she could become a Title Douluo and warned her not to reveal its secrets.
• Zhu Zhuqing admitted she still needed time before committing to Lin Manshan, and Zhu Zhuyun said she would seek his permission to teach her the technique.
• Zhu Zhuyun changed the subject and began discussing Zhu Yu’s matter with Zhu Zhuqing.

Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Zhuqing arranged to contact Zhu Zhuyu and invite her to leave the Zhu Family and join them, while Lin Manshan set out to retrieve her. After traveling by carriage into the Star Luo Empire, Lin Manshan arrived at the gates of Star Luo City.

• Zhu Zhuyun asked Zhu Zhuqing to write to Zhu Zhuyu because Zhu Yu had grown wary of her, and Zhu Zhuqing agreed to add a personal letter.
• Lin Manshan accepted their letters, a map of Star Luo Royal Academy, and Zhu Zhuyu's portrait, then said he would travel to Star Luo City while the women stayed safely in Nuoding City.
• Zhu Zhuyun asked to accompany Lin Manshan, but he told her to remain with Zhu Zhuqing and continue practicing what he had taught her.
• Zhu Zhuyun told Lin Manshan that Zhu Zhuqing had already decided to learn the Jing Tian Treasure Codex, and he agreed to teach her.
• Lin Manshan traveled day and night by carriage, crossed into the Star Luo Empire with Lou Gao's travel pass, and reached the gates of Star Luo City.

Lin Manshan infiltrated Star Luo Royal Academy at night and reached Zhu Zhuyu’s dormitory to deliver letters from Zhu Zhuqing and Zhu Zhuyun. Zhu Zhuyu read them and then looked up at him, beginning to question her visitor.

• Lin Manshan entered Star Luo City and spent the day resting before heading to Star Luo Royal Academy after nightfall.
• Lin Manshan crossed the academy’s walls and avoided its Spirit Beasts and sleeping Mentors as he made his way to Zhu Zhuyu’s courtyard.
• Lin Manshan entered Zhu Zhuyu’s room and woke her, showing her Zhu Zhuyun’s hair crown and the pendant he had given Zhu Zhuqing.
• Lin Manshan introduced himself as A'man and gave Zhu Zhuyu the letters from Zhu Zhuqing and Zhu Zhuyun.
• Zhu Zhuyu read both letters, then looked up at Lin Manshan and softly called his name.

Lin Manshan smuggled Zhu Zhuyu out of the Star Luo Imperial Capital and began taking her toward the Heaven Dou Empire. After the Royal Academy discovered she was gone, its committee members struggled to explain how she had disappeared.

• Lin Manshan helped Zhu Zhuyu pack, then led her through the academy grounds and forest, crossing the walls with her concealed against him.
• Lin Manshan and Zhu Zhuyu hid in a grove until morning, then met two drivers at the Post Station and set off by carriage.
• A Mentor told the Royal Academy committee that Zhu Zhuyu had disappeared, and the investigators found signs that a man had crossed the forest wall to take her.
• The committee members found no trail beyond the forest and speculated that Zhu Zhuyu had left willingly or been abducted.
• The committee members wondered whether the same rescuer who had saved Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Zhuqing had come to take Zhu Zhuyu, but one dismissed the idea as a fairy tale.

Lin Manshan returned to Nuoding City with Zhu Zhuyu, where Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Zhuqing welcomed them home. Zhu Zhuyu agreed to follow Lin Manshan, and Zhu Zhuyun prepared to teach her the supreme arts from the Jing Tian Treasure Codex.

• Lin Manshan and Zhu Zhuyu arrived in Nuoding City and reunited with Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Zhuqing at home.
• Lin Manshan left to visit Tie Shan's Family and Ma Xiunuo while the three women shared their stories.
• Zhu Zhuyun explained that Zhu Zhuqing had chosen to bind her Destiny to Lin Manshan after learning the Jing Tian Jue.
• Zhu Zhuyun suggested that Zhu Zhuyu follow Lin Manshan too, and Zhu Zhuyu agreed because she trusted him and wanted to stay with her sister.
• Zhu Zhuyun said she would teach Zhu Zhuyu the supreme arts and promised to speak with Lin Manshan.

Lin Manshan visited Spirit Hall to repay Ma Xiunuo for helping him awaken his martial soul, then told Ma Xiunuo and Su Yuntao that he planned to move to Heaven Dou City after the New Year. He donated 100,000 Gold Soul Coins to the Nuoding City Branch Hall and left to discuss bringing Tie Shan's Family to the city to work with him.

• Lin Manshan arrived at Spirit Hall with gifts and reunited with Ma Xiunuo and Su Yuntao, who told him Su Yuntao and Sisi had broken up.
• Lin Manshan said he planned to move to Heaven Dou City after the New Year and hoped to compete in the next All-Continent Advanced Spirit Master Elite Competition.
• Lin Manshan gave Ma Xiunuo 100,000 Gold Soul Coins to support the Nuoding City Branch Hall and explained that he had earned the money reselling rare metals from Gengxin City.
• Ma Xiunuo accepted the donation after initially refusing and said he would report it and arrange an honor for Lin Manshan.
• Lin Manshan visited Tie Shan's Family, proposed bringing them to Heaven Dou City to forge precision machinery components and sell finished goods, and Tie Shan agreed they would go if needed.