Chapter Summaries

Yan Qingshan and his companions chose treasures from the Library Pavilion, including powerful cultivation arts, Dou Skills, and a rare Beast Flame. Han Yue ultimately exchanged her original choice for a soundwave Dou Skill as the room’s treasures began to fade.

• Yan Qingshan obtained the Earth-tier Mid-grade Profound Wood Azure Dragon Art and the Earth-tier High-grade Azure Dragon Claw Strike, which could rival a Heaven-tier Dou Skill.
• Xiao Yi Xian took the Profound Wood Azure Dragon Art for Yan Qingshan and explained that she needed to slow her cultivation because of her Poisonous Body of Misfortune.
• Han Xian chose a golden flame, and Yan Qingshan identified it as the Illusory Golden Flame of a seventh-rank Illusory Fire Scorpion Dragon Beast.
• Lin Yan returned an Earth-tier Mid-grade Dou Skill scroll to the light barrier, while Han Yue remained undecided.
• Yan Qingshan inspected the Lion-Tiger Shattering Gold Roar, then let it fly back toward its barrier; Han Yue intercepted it and chose the soundwave Dou Skill instead of her treasure sword.

Yan Qingshan recruited Lin Yan to help him in the Inner Academy by giving him a Three-Pattern Clear Spirit Pill. After returning to his dormitory, Yan Qingshan found Han Yue visiting Xiao Yi Xian and Xuelan.

• Hu Gan advised Yan Qingshan and the others to cooperate and prepare for the Inner Academy, then anticipated that Black Fiend and White Fiend would face the exceptional newcomers.
• Yan Qingshan visited Lin Yan at his waterfall training spot and warned him that his extreme cultivation method could cause lasting harm.
• Lin Yan explained why he accepted the risks of rapid cultivation, and Yan Qingshan offered him a Three-Pattern Clear Spirit Pill in exchange for his help in the Inner Academy.
• Lin Yan accepted the pill and agreed to help Yan Qingshan, though he said he was not suited to building a faction.
• Yan Qingshan returned to his dormitory and found Han Yue visiting Xiao Yi Xian and Xuelan.

Yan Qingshan negotiated an alliance with Han Yue by explaining why he and Lin Yan shared the drive to grow stronger, then helped her study a rare sonic Dou Technique. Later, he used three pills and the third Lionheart Baptism to attempt a breakthrough from Da Dou Shi to Dou Ling.

• Yan Qingshan told Han Yue that Lin Yan had agreed to cooperate with him and explained how their difficult pasts had shaped their ambitions.
• Han Yue showed Yan Qingshan the Lion-Tiger Shattering Gold Roar and asked for his guidance in understanding the sonic Dou Technique.
• Yan Qingshan and Han Yue studied Dou Techniques through the night while leaving the terms of their alliance unsettled.
• Yan Qingshan prepared for a breakthrough with a Three-Pattern Azure Spirit Pill, two Purple Heart Breaking Barrier Pills, and materials for his third Lionheart Baptism.
• The pills raised Yan Qingshan to the peak of the nine-star Da Dou Shi realm, and he began absorbing the sixth-tier Amethyst Winged Lion King's essence blood inside an energy cocoon.

Yan Qingshan and the new students entered the Inner Academy and learned that their trial was to escape through the forest while protecting their Fire Energy Crystal Cards. After Bai Cheng and Bei Ju’s group was robbed by experienced students, Yan Qingshan and Lin Yan confronted the attackers.

• Yan Qingshan disguised his cultivation before meeting Xiao Yi Xian and the other students selected for the Inner Academy.
• Vice Principal Hu Gan escorted the students by Griffon Beasts to the Inner Academy, where they received Fire Energy Crystal Cards and began the escape trial.
• Yan Qingshan chose to follow Bai Cheng and Bei Ju’s group through the forest, and Lin Yan joined him.
• Five experienced students ambushed Bai Cheng, Bei Ju, and their companions, defeated them, and reduced their crystal cards from five days of fire energy to two.
• Yan Qingshan appeared behind the attackers as another powerful figure approached them from the front with a spear.

Yan Qingshan’s group defeated five Inner Academy seniors and learned that the Black Fiend Team and White Fiend Team were powerful squads deployed to target talented freshmen. After Yan Qingshan recruited the defeated freshmen into a united force, the group prepared to hunt the seniors in return.

• Yan Qingshan used vines to restrain five Inner Academy seniors, while Lin Yan and the others helped defeat them.
• Yan Qingshan scanned the seniors, took their crystal cards, and questioned their strongest member about the Inner Academy and its teams.
• Yan Qingshan learned that the Black Fiend Team and White Fiend Team each had a One-Star Dou Ling leader and members at least at Five-Star Da Dou Shi.
• Yan Qingshan honored his promise to leave twenty days of fire energy on the senior’s card and released the five seniors.
• Bai Cheng angrily questioned Yan Qingshan, who punched him and warned him to earn back his dignity instead of raging.
• Yan Qingshan invited Bei Ju and the other freshmen to join forces against the seniors, and they all agreed, including Bai Cheng.

Yan Qingshan’s united freshmen defeated the other teams in the Fire Energy Hunt and confronted the final Black Fiend and White Fiend Teams. He prepared to fight their captains, Lin Xiuyuan and Liu Qing, while Lin Yan led the freshmen against the remaining members.

• Yan Qingshan’s group defeated two senior teams, took their Fire Energy, and recruited freshmen into the Azure Mountain Society.
• The Black Fiend and White Fiend captains learned that Qian Mo had been defeated and prepared for the approaching freshmen.
• Yan Qingshan’s fifty freshmen surrounded the two teams, prompting their captains to take the threat seriously.
• Lin Xiuyuan and Liu Qing introduced themselves as the team captains and acknowledged Yan Qingshan and Lin Yan as formidable opponents.
• Yan Qingshan told Lin Yan to lead the freshmen against the teams’ members while he challenged Lin Xiuyuan and Liu Qing.

Yan Qingshan revealed that he had become a two-star Dou Ling and used his sword qi and control over the forest to overwhelm Liu Qing and Lin Xiuyuan. As Lin Xiuyuan prepared his strongest technique, Liu Qing fought Yan Qingshan directly and was driven back by his sword threads and vines.

• Yan Qingshan ordered Lin Yan to lead the students against the remaining Black Fiend and White Fiend Team members, then confronted Liu Qing and Lin Xiuyuan himself.
• Yan Qingshan revealed that he had suppressed his cultivation before using pills and a secret technique to reach two-star Dou Ling.
• Lin Yan attacked a nine-star Da Dou Shi while Yan Qingshan trapped the opposing fighters in a sword-qi net without injuring the weaker students.
• Lin Xiuyuan began preparing his strongest Dou Technique while Liu Qing charged Yan Qingshan to hold him off.
• Yan Qingshan’s sword threads bent Liu Qing’s spear and drove him backward before vines surged toward him from every direction.

Yan Qingshan fought Liu Qing and Lin Xiuyuan, overcoming their coordinated attacks with his sword skills and a sudden soundwave assault. Liu Qing shielded Lin Xiuyuan and pulled him back, while Yan Qingshan’s fiery lion roar left them in a worsening position.

• Liu Qing attacked Yan Qingshan with the Great Fissure Coffin Splitting Claw, but Yan Qingshan countered with Explosive Thunder Flash.
• Lin Xiuyuan joined the fight with Azure Profound Wind Kill, but Yan Qingshan’s Azure Wood Sword Slash shattered the attack and sent him flying.
• Liu Qing and Lin Xiuyuan engaged Yan Qingshan together, with Lin Xiuyuan using Coiling Snake Hand to contain his close-range sword attacks.
• Lin Xiuyuan avoided Yan Qingshan’s gaze, so Yan Qingshan unleashed a roar and formed a flaming Amethyst Winged Lion King around himself.
• Liu Qing raised a golden light curtain and dragged the pain-stricken Lin Xiuyuan away from Yan Qingshan’s soundwave attack.

Yan Qingshan survived Liu Qing and Lin Xiuyuan’s combined attacks by taking to the sky with his Purple Cloud Wings. He began drawing on the sun and stirring the forest’s natural energy, leaving the watching elders alarmed.

• Liu Qing pulled Lin Xiuyuan clear of Yan Qingshan’s Roaring Lion’s Roar and endured the blast, then reunited with him to face Yan Qingshan.
• Liu Qing unleashed Great Fissure Rock while Lin Xiuyuan attacked with Azure Brilliance Sword Aura, and their combined strikes engulfed Yan Qingshan’s position.
• Yan Qingshan emerged above the wreckage with Purple Cloud Wings, astonishing the students and elders who suspected he was a Dou Wang.
• Yan Qingshan said the unrestricted battle let him use Flying Dou Skills and began forming seals to draw on the sun as the forest’s natural energy grew violent.

Yan Qingshan unleashed the Earth-tier Emerald Light Sun Flame against Liu Qing and Lin Xiuyuan, alarming the watching students and elders with its immense power. Liu Qing and Lin Xiuyuan refused to retreat and attacked together, leaving the forest engulfed in green light as the chapter ended before their clash was resolved.

• Yan Qingshan summoned the Emerald Light Sun Flame, drawing down sunlight and surrounding himself with scorching green-gold energy.
• Qian Mo identified the technique as an Earth-tier Dou Skill, and the spectators were stunned by its power.
• Liu Qing and Lin Xiuyuan realized they could not avoid Yan Qingshan's attack but chose to fight rather than surrender.
• Liu Qing launched Great Fissure Rock while Lin Xiuyuan unleashed Adamant Sword at Yan Qingshan.
• Yan Qingshan fired Emerald Light Sun Flame, filling the forest with dazzling green light and frightening even the elders.

Yan Qingshan emerged from the Fire Energy Hunt with Lin Xiuyuan and Liu Qing, then secured their promise to protect the Azure Mountain Society during his planned three-month seclusion. He entered the Inner Academy with the other new students and arranged a separate courtyard for himself, Xiao Yi Xian, and Han Yue.

• Yan Qingshan defeated Lin Xiuyuan and Liu Qing, then persuaded them to watch over the Azure Mountain Society while he secluded himself for three months.
• Yan Qingshan received a Crimson Fire Crystal Card with nearly a hundred days of Fire Energy and traveled with the new students toward the Inner Academy.
• An elder assigned the new students to shared courtyards, but Yan Qingshan asked for a separate one and convinced the elder to grant it.
• The elder explained the Inner Academy's weekly visits to the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda and the use of Fire Energy to exchange for resources.
• Yan Qingshan, Xiao Yi Xian, and Han Yue moved into their own small courtyard.

Yan Qingshan entered the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda and endured its Heart Fire, strengthening his Dou Qi while his Amethyst Beast Flame reacted. After Elder Liu recognized his strength and identity as the Rookie King, the surrounding students learned he had defeated Liu Qing and Lin Xiuyuan.

• Yan Qingshan reached the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda as the tower doors opened and the Inner Academy students rushed inside.
• The tower’s Heart Fire ignited within Yan Qingshan, and he used his Dou Qi to withstand it while recording its properties with Intelligent Brain Dawn.
• Elder Liu arrived to check on Yan Qingshan, but Yan Qingshan released his Purple Flame and soon calmed the fire within him.
• Elder Liu identified Yan Qingshan’s Beast Flame as the source Fire Seed of a sixth-tier Amethyst Winged Lion King and praised his strength.
• Elder Liu revealed that Yan Qingshan was a two-star Dou Ling and the Rookie King who had defeated Liu Qing and Lin Xiuyuan, shocking the older students.

Yan Qingshan entered the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda and began switching to the Earth-tier Profound Wood Azure Dragon Art in a fifth-floor cultivation room. As his body underwent a deep transformation, it absorbed the room’s heart-flame energy at a startling rate.

• Elder Liu led Yan Qingshan through the pagoda and stopped him from approaching the central black hole, where Yan Qingshan glimpsed a sleeping Formless Fire Python with his azure flame.
• Yan Qingshan chose the fifth floor and used his five hundred fire energy points to claim a vacant high-grade cultivation room.
• Yan Qingshan studied the Profound Wood Azure Dragon Art and used it to guide his Dou Qi along a new, more complex circulation route.
• Yan Qingshan entered a deep transformation as azure flames appeared around him and the pagoda’s heart-flame energy surged into his body.

Yan Qingshan emerged from nearly a hundred days of seclusion in the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda with an Earth-tier Cultivation Technique and greatly increased strength. He learned that the Azure Mountain Society was being targeted by the Small Knife Society and heard how Bai Cheng and Bei Ju had helped provoke the conflict.

• Yan Qingshan left the high-level training room after reaching peak two-star Dou Ling and finding his Dou Qi far more powerful.
• Elder Liu questioned Yan Qingshan about his long seclusion, learned he had obtained an Earth-tier Cultivation Technique from the Library Pavilion, and told him Lin Xiuyuan and Liu Qing had helped shield him from trouble.
• Han Yue, Xiao Yi Xian, Han Xian, and Lin Yan discussed the Small Knife Society's repeated attacks and warned against provoking its six-star Dou Ling leader, Yang Sheng.
• Yan Qingshan arrived at the meeting and asked what Bai Cheng and Bei Ju had done.
• Han Yue explained that Bai Cheng resented Liu Qing's punishment after the Fire Energy Hunt, while Bei Ju and Bai Cheng joined the Small Knife Society and helped it target the Azure Mountain Society.

Yan Qingshan learned why the Small Knife Society was targeting the Azure Mountain Society and challenged its leader, Yang Sheng, to a duel. As the two faced off in the arena, Yan Qingshan calmly warned Yang Sheng that fighting him was the wrong choice.

• Yan Qingshan heard that the Azure Mountain Society’s growth had angered established factions, and he sent Lin Yan to tell Yang Sheng to meet him at the arena the next day.
• A large crowd gathered at the arena to watch Yan Qingshan and Yang Sheng settle their conflict, while faction leaders and students debated whether the newcomer could defeat the Strong Ranking expert.
• Yang Sheng stepped onto the platform to cheers from the Small Knife Society, and Yan Qingshan appeared opposite him with striking speed.
• Yan Qingshan assessed Yang Sheng, a six-star Dou Ling, and calmly told him that challenging him was the wrong decision.

Yan Qingshan fought Small Knife Yang Sheng, who attacked him to avenge the humiliation he and Bai Cheng had suffered during the Fire Energy Hunt. Yan Qingshan figured out the secret behind Yang Sheng’s Thunderbolt Steps and drew on the sun’s essence, leaving Yang Sheng wary of what he would do next.

• Yang Sheng explained that old students had scarred him during his first Fire Energy Hunt and said he supported Bai Cheng’s revenge against Yan Qingshan.
• Yang Sheng attacked Yan Qingshan with a lightning-wreathed knife and used Thunderbolt Steps to evade his counterattacks.
• Shuguang simulated Yang Sheng’s movement pattern as Yan Qingshan struggled to track his true position.
• Yan Qingshan realized Thunderbolt Steps used light refraction to create a false image of Yang Sheng’s position.
• Yan Qingshan gathered the sun’s essence in his palm, and Yang Sheng suspected that Yan Qingshan had uncovered the secret of his movement technique.

Yan Qingshan defeated Yang Sheng by using controlled light, a newly devised illusory art, and ventriloquism to disguise his attack. After Yang Sheng conceded the match and promised the Small Knife Society would yield to the Azure Mountain Society, Yan Qingshan offered to trade his Method of Splitting Light and Shadow.

• Yan Qingshan dazzled Yang Sheng with a controlled light source and created two convincing copies of himself, disrupting Yang Sheng's movement technique.
• Yang Sheng attacked the wrong Yan Qingshan and was struck by petal-like energy attacks that left him severely injured.
• Yan Qingshan revealed that he had used ventriloquism and insights from Yang Sheng's movement technique to create his illusory art and trap him.
• Yang Sheng admitted defeat, formally saluted Yan Qingshan, and pledged that the Small Knife Society would yield by three steps whenever it faced the Azure Mountain Society.
• Yan Qingshan offered to trade the Method of Splitting Light and Shadow, and Yang Sheng eagerly asked whether he was serious.
• Yan Qingshan told Yang Sheng that the trade depended on what price he was willing to pay.

Yan Qingshan secured Thunderbolt Steps in a trade with Yang Sheng, then created a new movement-and-illusion Dou Skill called A Single Thought Blooms. When he went to meet the Snow Demon Heavenly Ape, he found it missing and suspected trouble.

• Yan Qingshan told Han Yue that Grand Elder Su Qian and two other elders had witnessed his trade with Yang Sheng, and he considered the exchange for Thunderbolt Steps a good bargain.
• Yan Qingshan teased Han Yue, then spent the night with Xiao Yi Xian while Han Yue listened from her room.
• Yan Qingshan tested a new Dou Skill in the forest, creating two convincing clones amid a rain of petals, and named it A Single Thought Blooms.
• Yan Qingshan explained that he had combined movement and illusion techniques with knowledge from the fragmentary map of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame to create the skill.
• Yan Qingshan rode the Two-headed Fire Spirit Snake to the Snow Demon Heavenly Ape's valley for their arranged meeting, but found the ape absent.

Yan Qingshan investigated the theft of the Snow Demon Heavenly Ape’s Life Origin Fruit and discovered that treasures had vanished from several magical beasts’ territories. After gathering the beasts’ accounts, he suspected the thief was a small creature connected to the Thunder Dragon Leopard’s bloodline.

• Crimson Serpent translated the Gale Demonic Wolf King’s denial, and Yan Qingshan confirmed it had not taken the Life Origin Fruit.
• Yan Qingshan apologized to the Gale Demonic Wolf King with a medicinal pill and asked it to help search for the fruit’s trail.
• The wolf packs revealed that two other fifth-tier magical beasts had fought after a Heaven Material and Earthly Treasure vanished nearby.
• Yan Qingshan found the Tiger-striped Blasting Bear and Thunder Dragon Leopard fighting over another stolen treasure, then persuaded them to join the search with healing pills.
• The Thunder Dragon Leopard said the thief’s aura resembled the source of its bloodline and had filled it with instinctive fear.
• After learning that many magical beasts had lost guarded treasures without noticing, Yan Qingshan suspected a small habitual thief and began planning to catch it.

Yan Qingshan captured Ziyan, a clever little girl who had been stealing Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, and forced her into a contract to gather treasures for him. He later gave her a Vajra Bodhi Pill, which she eagerly ate and wanted more of.

• Ziyan approached a pool of silver liquid in the Endless Forest Sea and was trapped by Yan Qingshan and a group of magical beasts.
• Yan Qingshan stopped the beasts from attacking Ziyan, gave them pills to compensate for their losses, and took her away.
• At the Snow Demon Heavenly Ape's valley, Yan Qingshan confronted Ziyan over the stolen Life Origin Fruit and the cost of rescuing her.
• Yan Qingshan tickled Ziyan until she submitted and agreed to an extremely harsh contract.
• Ziyan returned to Yan Qingshan with a sour expression after searching for treasures, then ate the Vajra Bodhi Pill he gave her and eyed the bottle for more.