Chapter Summaries

Yang Shan returned to Skull City after killing more than a hundred people in seven days, and Luo Xie confronted him before explaining the Soul Palace and its place among the Central Plains’ major forces. Yang Shan gained a Soul Palace token and agreed to keep a lower profile, but he stayed in the Black-Corner Region to keep searching for the Ghoul Lord Token.

• Luo Xie discovered that Yang Shan’s killing spree in Skull City had cost Black Skull Tomb more than twenty Dou Lings and demanded to know what he had been doing.
• Yang Shan admitted he had killed people for resources, then revealed he had not collected their souls because he thought Luo Xie might belong to the Azure Cloud Association.
• Luo Xie identified the Soul Gathering Pearl and gave Yang Shan a Soul Envoy Personal Decree, authorizing him to act as Luo Xie’s special envoy.
• Luo Xie told Yang Shan that the Soul Palace was one of the Central Plains’ top forces and urged him to join once he reached Dou Wang.
• Yang Shan agreed to keep his killings in the Black-Corner Region low-profile, then continued searching Skull City for the Ghoul Lord Token without finding it.

Yang Shan’s Ghoul Lord Token reacted in Rakshasa City and led him to Xiao Xun’er, the other token holder, whose strength and powerful family made him abandon thoughts of fighting. He disguised himself as a Jia Nan Academy recruit and joined her group, leaving the token’s mystery unresolved.

• Yang Shan received the Ghoul Lord Token’s signal near Rakshasa Gate’s southern gate and hid to identify the other holder.
• Yang Shan recognized Xiao Xun’er among Jia Nan Academy’s arriving students and feared her power and the protection of Ling Ying.
• Yang Shan decided to approach Xiao Xun’er as a recruit, showed her his admission invitation, and introduced himself as a new student.
• Mei Yangyang recognized Yang Shan and told Xiao Xun’er that he had placed first in Cloud Frost City’s recruitment competition.
• Yang Shan asked to travel with Xiao Xun’er’s group, and the older students backed off when he revealed he was a Four Star Dou Ling.

Yang Shan joined Xiao Xun'er’s escort team and openly acknowledged his interest in the Ghoul Lord Token, though they postponed discussing a trade. After the group left Rakshasa City without incident, Yang Shan contacted Su Yitang to arrange a way to create an opportunity.

• Yang Shan volunteered to escort Xiao Xun'er and the students, and Xiao Xun'er accepted him after he hinted that he wanted the Ghoul Lord Token.
• At an inn in Rakshasa City, players crowded Yang Shan, so he gave Mei Yangyang ten thousand Spirit Stones to share in exchange for keeping them away during the escort.
• Yang Shan learned that Xiao Xun'er’s mentor, Ruo Lin, had told her about him, and Xiao Xun'er said Ruo Lin considered him her second-best student prospect in fifty years.
• Yang Shan and Xiao Xun'er discussed trading for the Ghoul Lord Token, but neither knew what they wanted and agreed to talk later.
• After traveling for a day without trouble, Yang Shan messaged Su Yitang and asked which city was nearest to him.

On the journey toward Jia Nan Academy, Yang Shan gained Xiao Xun'er's trust by sharing food and telling her about a village destroyed by the Azure Cloud Association, earning a point of favorability while remaining determined to obtain her item. The group was then surrounded by four armed teams led by Dou Ling experts, including Fan Ling of the Blood Sect, who targeted Xiao Xun'er and the other students.

• Yang Shan asked Xiao Xun'er for a meat bun, then offered her his Fire Cloud Robe as a seat so they would be even.
• Yang Shan told Xiao Xun'er how the Azure Cloud Association slaughtered the villagers who had sheltered him, and she listened and asked about the village.
• Yang Shan said he would keep trying to obtain Xiao Xun'er's item, and Xiao Xun'er accepted that he was free to struggle for it.
• Xiao Xun'er thanked Yang Shan for helping her understand villages, and the system increased her favorability toward him by one point.
• Four groups of attackers surrounded the Jia Nan Academy students, and Fan Ling spotted Xiao Xun'er and grinned at her.

Yang Shan stayed behind to hold off Fan Ling and the Blood Sect while Xiao Xun'er escaped, hoping to earn her favor and claim Fan Ling’s loot. After Fan Ling badly wounded him, Xiao Xun'er returned to save him, raising her favorability toward Yang Shan to 2.

• Yang Shan urged Xiao Xun'er and the other students to flee while he faced Fan Ling, the Blood Sect elder, and their men alone.
• Yang Shan used repeated Overload explosions to halt the pursuers, then fought Fan Ling while pretending to be weaker than he was.
• Yang Shan provoked Fan Ling with talk of Jia Nan Academy and Liu Qing, and their clash intensified as Yang Shan’s blade momentum built.
• Yang Shan left himself exposed with a Mountain Splitting Chop when he sensed Xiao Xun'er returning, and Fan Ling struck him for nearly two thousand health.
• Xiao Xun'er caught Yang Shan before he fell and said she had returned because she did not like owing favors, increasing her favorability to 2.

Yang Shan and Xiao Xun'er fought Fan Ling and Red Elder after the Blood Sect pursued them, but Xiao Xun'er overwhelmed Red Elder with her golden Dou Qi. Fan Ling fled before Yang Shan could kill him, and Yang Shan rushed to Xiao Xun'er asking her to leave him the kill.

• Yang Shan refused to leave Xiao Xun'er alone and prepared to fight as Fan Ling ordered the Blood Sect members to capture them alive.
• Xiao Xun'er stopped Yang Shan from facing Red Elder and told him to hold off Fan Ling while she fought the Dou Wang.
• Xiao Xun'er emerged unharmed from Red Elder's flames and repelled his attacks with a golden Dou Qi barrier.
• Yang Shan tried to wear down Fan Ling and planned to kill him with Tyrant Blade—Seven Kills, but Red Elder's scream startled them both.
• Fan Ling used Blood Burst to escape, and Yang Shan activated Thunder Spirit Flash to rush to Xiao Xun'er and ask her to let him have the kill.

Yang Shan finished off Red Elder after Xiao Xun'er weakened him with the Golden Emperor Burning Flame, then collected and auctioned Red Elder's loot. His sale of the rare Burning Spirit Skill sparked a bidding war that earned him over eight million RMB.

• Xiao Xun'er withdrew her Golden Emperor Burning Flame, leaving Red Elder barely alive, and let Yang Shan claim the kill.
• Yang Shan killed Red Elder with his Thunderbolt Blade, and Xiao Xun'er gave him permission to take the drops before heading north to help the others.
• Yang Shan found the Mystic Rank Advanced Purple Word Seal skill Burning Spirit Skill among Red Elder's direct drops and listed it for auction at five hundred thousand.
• Wang Tianhao learned about the skill and joined the bidding, hoping to strengthen himself and the Tian Hao Alliance.
• The auction ended with Burning Spirit Skill selling for 8,210,000 RMB, and Yang Shan was set to receive 8,127,900 RMB after fees.

Yang Shan arrived at Jia Nan Academy after selling a valuable cultivation technique, and he quickly defeated Bai Shan when Bai Shan tried to challenge his identity. Ruo Lin welcomed Yang Shan in Canaan City, where he said he wanted to join the Enforcement Team instead of simply enrolling as a student.

• Yang Shan admitted in the group chat that he had sold the cultivation technique for 8,127,900 and encouraged Zhu Tianpeng and Chao Bafang to keep working toward valuable rewards.
• At Peace Town, Bai Shan tried to block Yang Shan from registering and accused him of possibly impersonating the real Yang Shan.
• Yang Shan knocked Bai Shan away with one kick, and Bai Shan realized Yang Shan was a Dou Ling.
• Xiao Xun'er took Yang Shan directly to Canaan City and brought him to Ruo Lin.
• Ruo Lin welcomed Yang Shan, and he announced that he wanted to join Jia Nan Academy's Enforcement Team directly.

Yang Shan asked to join Jia Nan Academy’s Enforcement Team so he could keep training in the Black-Corner Region, and Ruo Lin agreed to consider it after hearing of his strength. After receiving Yang Shan’s gift and learning he was a Four-Star Dou Ling, Ruo Lin told Hu Qian about him, and Hu Qian secretly went to investigate Yang Shan that night.

• Yang Shan told Ruo Lin he wanted to join the Enforcement Team to continue training in the Black-Corner Region, and Ruo Lin promised to answer the next day.
• Xiao Xun'er confirmed Yang Shan had traveled through the Black-Corner Region alone, and Ruo Lin learned he was already a Four-Star Dou Ling.
• Yang Shan gave Ruo Lin a Tier-3 Bone Sculpting Pill, then went to his guest room and began refining pills.
• Ruo Lin told Hu Qian that Yang Shan was a powerful prospective student who wanted to join the Enforcement Team immediately.
• Hu Qian secretly went to Yang Shan's lodging and sensed that Yang Shan was also a Tier-4 Alchemist.

Yang Shan faced Hu Qian’s test for joining the Enforcement Team and was invited to take part in the Inner Courtyard’s Fire Energy Hunting Competition. Hu Qian offered him a bonus reward for earning more Fire Energy Points than Hu Jia, and the chapter ended with Yang Shan and Ruo Lin slipping away while Hu Qian reminisced.

• Ruo Lin brought Yang Shan before Hu Qian, who challenged him to prove himself worthy of joining the Enforcement Team.
• Hu Jia attacked Yang Shan with her whip, but he dodged every strike and hid behind Hu Qian when she escalated her assault.
• Hu Qian privately asked Yang Shan to help humble Hu Jia and set the terms for their trial; Yang Shan demanded extra pay.
• Hu Qian promised Yang Shan 100 additional Fire Energy Points if he earned more than Hu Jia in the Fire Energy Hunting Competition.
• Ruo Lin explained that Yang Shan, Hu Jia, and Xiao Xun'er would enter the forest trial, where Inner Courtyard students hunted participants for their Fire Energy Points.
• Hu Qian began reminiscing about his past with Su Qian, and Yang Shan and Ruo Lin quietly left him talking.

Yang Shan, Xiao Xun'er, and Hu Jia began the Fire Energy Hunting Competition and ran into Inner Courtyard students hoping to take their Fire Energy Points. Yang Shan swiftly defeated the seniors and started collecting their points, leaving the rest fleeing through the forest.

• Hu Qian flew Yang Shan, Xiao Xun'er, and Hu Jia to the competition grounds, where Green Poisonous Snakes attacked them.
• Yang Shan and Hu Jia fought through the snake swarm, and five Inner Courtyard senior students prepared an ambush nearby.
• Xiao Xun'er sensed the five seniors, but Yang Shan charged ahead and used his perception to locate their hiding places.
• Yang Shan broke one senior’s Dou Qi Armor, held him at bladepoint, and took twenty Fire Energy Points from his Crystal Card.
• Yang Shan subdued a second senior with one slash and demanded his Fire Energy Points as the remaining seniors tried to flee.

Yang Shan defeated the Black Killing Squad and collected their Fire Energy Points during the Hunting Competition. He then encountered Inner Courtyard powerhouses Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing, and fled when he realized he could not safely face both at once.

• Five members of the Black Killing Squad found Yang Shan forcing an older student to swipe his card after he had already defeated four teams.
• Yang Shan asked how many points he would receive for defeating the Black Killing Squad, then shattered Sha Tie’s Black Sand Body Protection and made him swipe his card.
• Yang Shan defeated the other four Black Killing Squad members and collected their Fire Energy Points.
• Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing appeared nearby, and Yang Shan recognized them as Golden Word Seal experts ranked second and third in the Inner Courtyard.
• Liu Qing challenged Yang Shan, but Yang Shan used Thunder Spirit Flash to escape.

Yang Shan faced Lin Xiuya in the mountain forest after the Inner Courtyard sent its top students to rein in the Outer Courtyard newcomers. He landed an embarrassing kick on Lin Xiuya before Liu Qing joined the confrontation, and Xiao Xun'er intervened as Lin Xiuya became captivated by her.

• Hu Qian challenged Su Qian's arrangements for the trial, but Su Qian sent Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing to keep watch over the newcomers.
• Lin Xiuya caught up with Yang Shan and demanded three hundred Fire Energy Points, so Yang Shan refused and drew the Thunderbolt Blade.
• Yang Shan and Lin Xiuya exchanged attacks, and Yang Shan redirected a kick to strike Lin Xiuya's chest and leave a conspicuous footprint on his robes.
• Liu Qing arrived and moved to attack Yang Shan, but Xiao Xun'er stopped him with a streak of golden Dou Qi.
• Lin Xiuya became captivated by Xiao Xun'er, who asked Yang Shan whether the two seniors had bullied him.

Yang Shan and Xiao Xun'er faced Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing during the trial, splitting into separate duels after Xiao Xun'er admitted she could not safely use her Heavenly Flame. Yang Shan fought Liu Qing alone and concealed his real plan as the stronger senior pressed his attack.

• Xiao Xun'er stepped in when Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing bullied Yang Shan, but told him she could defeat only one of them quickly without using her Heavenly Flame.
• Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing agreed to separate one-on-one fights, with Lin Xiuya taking Xiao Xun'er and Liu Qing facing Yang Shan.
• Lin Xiuya mistook Xiao Xun'er's encouragement of Yang Shan for romantic interest and grew jealous as he left with her to fight elsewhere.
• Yang Shan attacked Liu Qing first, but Liu Qing blocked his blade and demonstrated his powerful Earth Attribute defense and wide-ranging attacks.
• Yang Shan dodged and countered while building momentum with his Thunderbolt Blade, letting Liu Qing dismiss his blade technique as mediocre.

Yang Shan outmaneuvered Liu Qing during their duel, but Xiao Xun'er arrived after defeating Lin Xiuya and ended the confrontation. She and Yang Shan agreed to a pact over the Ghoul Lord Token, then traveled north together.

• Yang Shan bound Liu Qing with Thunder Guiding Lock and baited him into anger, but Liu Qing broke free and prepared to fight again without activating his Dou Qi Armor.
• Xiao Xun'er arrived with a dejected Lin Xiuya, and Lin Xiuya persuaded Liu Qing to stop fighting her.
• Xiao Xun'er apologized to Yang Shan because her cyan magic core had cracked and used up the beast flame source; Yang Shan accepted the loss without blaming her.
• Yang Shan learned that Hu Jia had gone after upperclassmen and that Xiao Xun'er had encountered the White Killing Squad.
• Xiao Xun'er agreed to a pact giving each of them one opportunity to request the other's assistance, with their halves of the Ghoul Lord Token as compensation.
• Yang Shan and Xiao Xun'er headed north together, while Ling Ying watched approvingly as Xiao Xun'er spent time with a friend.

Yang Shan and Xiao Xun'er arrived at the Inner Courtyard after defeating its senior students in the Fire Energy Hunting Competition. Yang Shan refused offers to study under powerful elders, joined the Enforcement Team, and received news that Su Yitang had cleared the parchment opportunity.

• Lin Xiuya admitted that Yang Shan had defeated him, while Liu Qing claimed he could have beaten Yang Shan if Lin Xiuya had not held him back.
• Yang Shan and Xiao Xun'er left the Martial Arts Practice Square and met Great Elder Su Qian, who welcomed them into the Inner Courtyard and arranged for Xiao Xun'er to visit Ruo Lin.
• Su Qian offered Yang Shan a chance to become a Dou Emperor elder's disciple, but Yang Shan declined and chose to join the Enforcement Team despite the dangers of the Black-Corner Region.
• Yang Shan signed the contract, received an Enforcement Team token, and said goodbye to Xiao Xun'er after visiting Ruo Lin.
• Yang Shan went to the Treasure Depository Pavilion, where Su Yitang messaged him that he had cleared the parchment opportunity.

Yang Shan bought a Tier-4 Body Tempering Pill formula, then teamed up with Su Yitang to pursue Fu Dongyun, a Thousand Speck City deacon wanted by several groups. Su Yitang’s strange new inheritance remained secret as they followed Fu Dongyun out of the city, where he set out to hunt a Scarlet Python and break through to Dou Wang.

• Yang Shan spent 580 Fire Energy Points on a Tier-4 Body Tempering Pill formula, startling the Pavilion elder with his apparent alchemy skill.
• Yang Shan and Su Yitang compared assassination listings and chose Fu Dongyun, a veteran Thousand Speck City deacon with bounties from three groups.
• Yang Shan left Jia Nan Academy while Xiao Xun'er and Ruo Lin watched, and Xiao Xun'er privately questioned whether proper cultivation was worth leaving home to gain experience.
• Su Yitang reported that she had marked Fu Dongyun with tracking powder, but refused to show Yang Shan the cultivation method and Dou Techniques from her new inheritance.
• When Su Yitang's flying insect detected Fu Dongyun moving, Yang Shan followed him as he disguised himself as an old woman and left Thousand Speck City to hunt a Scarlet Python in hopes of becoming a Dou Wang.

Yang Shan and Su Yitang followed Fu Dongyun to Crimson Earth Forest, where he fought a Scarlet Python that evolved into a Fourth Order Thousand Beast King. After killing Fu Dongyun, they prepared to face the Scarlet Serpent, and Su Yitang revealed an unusual guqin inheritance by singing.

• Yang Shan and Su Yitang used Aura Concealing Pills to follow Fu Dongyun to Crimson Earth Forest, where Yang Shan recognized his target as a Scarlet Python.
• Fu Dongyun fought the Scarlet Python, but Yang Shan sensed the beast was evolving and ordered Su Yitang to kill the weakened Fu Dongyun.
• Su Yitang killed Fu Dongyun, and Yang Shan negotiated their share of the Mystic Rank Water Attribute Skill and promised her a Body Tempering Pill.
• The Scarlet Python completed its evolution into a Fourth Order Scarlet Serpent, and Yang Shan decided they would try to kill it.
• Yang Shan sent Su Yitang to fight first and watch her new inheritance, so she summoned a guqin and began singing to the Scarlet Serpent.

Yang Shan and Su Yitang killed the Scarlet Serpent, securing the first kill of a Fourth Order Thousand Beast King and revealing the power of Su Yitang’s rare Wind Zenith Sound technique. After collecting the drops, Yang Shan learned more about the parchment opportunity and the skill’s enormous damage potential.

• Yang Shan fought the Scarlet Serpent while Su Yitang sang to prepare her Dou Technique, then bound the beast with Thunder Guiding Lock so she could unleash Wind Zenith Sound.
• Su Yitang’s attack stripped away the Scarlet Serpent’s scales and devastated its health, but left her too weak to move; Yang Shan rescued her from the beast’s Fire Refining Thousand Needles and shielded her from the explosions.
• When the wounded Scarlet Serpent tried to flee, Yang Shan kicked Su Yitang out of danger and killed it with Thunder Guiding Lock and Tyrant Blade—Seven Kills, earning the first-kill global announcement.
• Yang Shan gave Su Yitang a pair of the Scarlet Serpent’s fangs, collected the remaining drops, and obtained the Scarlet Serpent Flame.
• Su Yitang explained that her parchment opportunity granted the high Xuan-rank Wind Scroll Profound Skill and the low Earth-rank Wind Zenith Sound, which accumulated power while she played and sang.

Yang Shan helped Jin Shankao and Ye Suifeng understand why Hero King Manor could not finish off a Fourth Order Thousand Beast King, then sent Chao Bafang and Zhu Tianpeng to assist them. He returned to Rakshasa City with Su Yitang, where he planned to await Xiao Xun'er and pursue more assassination work as conflict with the Azure Cloud Association approached.

• Bai Xiaosheng's guide explained that Fourth Order Thousand Beast Kings were hard to find, difficult to damage, and smart enough to escape large guilds.
• Jin Shankao and Ye Suifeng's Hero King Manor repeatedly failed to trap a Fourth Order Thousand Beast King, then began wearing it down with successive groups of attackers.
• Yang Shan secured the first kill of a Fourth Order Thousand Beast King, prompting Jin Shankao to ask him for advice; Yang Shan offered Chao Bafang and Zhu Tianpeng's help for a share of the kill contribution.
• Yang Shan showed the group that Su Yitang had dealt 68% of the damage in their previous kill, then agreed to travel with her to Rakshasa City while she continued working with Rakshasa Gate.
• Yang Shan explained that he was waiting for Xiao Xun'er and hoped to obtain the Soul Accumulation Pearl as the Azure Cloud Association's conflict with Jia Ma's factions escalated.
• At the Rakshasa City branch, Luo Xie greeted Yang Shan as Cheng E while reviewing Bloodshed Hall's recent personnel losses.