Chapter Summaries

Ye Chen found that Jing Hongchen had assigned him to a Rank Nine Laboratory under the Level 9 Soul Engineer Yin Fan, whom he knew was Yin Ming’s older half-brother. When he went to meet Yin Fan, a familiar silver-haired girl from the Star Dou Forest arrived instead.

• Ye Chen found his name listed among the members of Yin Fan’s Rank Nine Laboratory and realized that Yin Fan was Yin Ming’s half-brother.
• Ye Chen recalled Yin Ming’s account of how Yin Fan had saved him from Xu Tianran and learned why Yin Ming had suggested seeking his brother’s help.
• Ye Chen opened the laboratory with the card Lin Jiayi had given him and decided to observe Yin Fan before revealing his connection to Yin Ming.
• Ye Chen knocked on Yin Fan’s room, but received no answer and waited for someone to return.
• A silver-haired girl whom Ye Chen recognized as having been with Mu Yiyi in the Star Dou Forest entered the laboratory.

Ye Chen met Moon, a mysterious silver-haired student at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy, and learned that Yin Fan would return to the laboratory in the afternoon. After studying the laboratory’s Soul Tool equipment and reference books, Ye Chen prepared to practice, but Liu Yaxuan and a young man arrived together.

• Ye Chen questioned Moon about her origins and asked when Yin Fan would return, but she initially ignored him.
• Moon told Ye Chen that Yin Fan was at Ming De Hall in the mornings and said she was helping him because he had saved her.
• Ye Chen wondered how Moon recognized him and suspected she was concealing her true abilities.
• Ye Chen memorized the laboratory’s Rank 5 Soul Tool entrance and the structure of his crafting table, then planned to practice with metal.
• Liu Yaxuan entered the laboratory hand in hand with a young man wearing a Sun Moon Academy uniform.

Ye Chen met the silver-haired Moon at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy’s laboratory and learned that she knew he had saved her, despite his disguise. After studying the laboratory’s Soul Tool resources, he planned to keep learning and approach Moon again, but Liu Yaxuan and a male student arrived together.

• Ye Chen asked Moon when Teacher Yin Fan would return, and she told him Yin Fan spent mornings at Ming De Hall before warning him not to seek her out without a reason.
• Ye Chen realized Moon had recognized him as the person who saved her four months earlier, and he suspected she was hiding secrets.
• Ye Chen memorized the laboratory’s Rank 5 entrance Soul Tool, then went to his assigned room to study the Sun Moon Empire’s Soul Tool books and crafting table.
• Ye Chen left his room intending to practice with some metal, but Liu Yaxuan and a handsome male student entered the laboratory holding hands.

Ye Chen met Xu Tianchen at the laboratory and learned that the imperial family member wanted to study martial souls under him. They agreed to exchange knowledge instead, while Ye Chen began considering how he might protect Xu Tianchen from a future threat by Xu Tianran.

• Ye Chen approached Xu Tianchen, who surprised him by kneeling and asking to become his disciple.
• Xu Tianchen explained that he admired Ye Chen's tournament performances and hoped to learn about martial souls from him.
• Ye Chen refused a master-disciple relationship but agreed to exchange knowledge with Xu Tianchen, a Level 6 Soul Master and Soul Ancestor.
• Ye Chen suspected Xu Tianran might target Xu Tianchen before the next tournament and considered helping him if he proved trustworthy.
• Xu Tianchen offered to protect Ye Chen within the academy, then went to his room and said their exchange would begin the next day.
• Liu Yaxuan told Ye Chen he would understand Xu Tianchen's unusual behavior by that afternoon.

Ye Chen met Xu Tianchen, a gifted imperial prince who asked to become his disciple, but they agreed to exchange knowledge instead. Ye Chen suspected Xu Tianran might later target Xu Tianchen and considered helping him, while Liu Yaxuan hinted that Xu Tianchen’s unusual behavior had a reason.

• Ye Chen approached Xu Tianchen, who unexpectedly knelt and asked to become his disciple.
• Xu Tianchen explained that he admired Ye Chen’s tournament performances and wanted to learn about martial souls.
• Xu Tianchen revealed that he was a Level 6 Soul Master despite being only a Soul Ancestor, and offered to exchange knowledge with Ye Chen.
• Ye Chen agreed to exchange expertise with Xu Tianchen and considered seeking clues about Dragon Valley while watching for threats from Xu Tianran.
• Xu Tianchen promised to protect Ye Chen within the academy, then hurried to his room after Ye Chen asked him to stand up.
• Liu Yaxuan told Ye Chen that he would understand Xu Tianchen’s behavior by that afternoon.

Ye Chen explored the laboratory’s materials room, learned to operate its crafting table, and went to eat after avoiding Yue and declining Xu Tianchen’s invitation. At the cafeteria, someone unexpectedly offered to pay for his meal.

• Ye Chen took several Level 2 Soul Tool materials from the laboratory’s materials room, avoiding the restricted cabinets.
• Ye Chen practiced with the crafting table in his room and learned its operation by the end of the morning.
• Ye Chen encountered Yue outside his room, but she left without speaking to him.
• Xu Tianchen invited Ye Chen to eat with him, but Ye Chen declined and went alone to the advanced-area cafeteria.
• A hoarse voice offered to put Ye Chen’s 659 Gold Soul Coin meal on their tab.

Ye Chen explored the Level 9 Soul Engineer laboratory, practiced with its Soul Tool crafting table, and went to the advanced cafeteria for lunch. As he prepared to pay for his meal, someone behind him offered to put it on their tab.

• Ye Chen entered the materials room, collected a few materials for Level 2 Soul Tools, and avoided the restricted cabinets containing Rank 9 materials.
• Ye Chen learned to operate the crafting table and sketched several Soul Tools while keeping watch on his doorway.
• Ye Chen encountered Yue outside their rooms, then declined Xu Tianchen's invitation to eat with him and his companion.
• Ye Chen entered the advanced cafeteria and ordered the highest-tier food, which cost 659 Gold Soul Coins.
• A hoarse voice behind Ye Chen told the attendant to put the bill on their tab.

Ye Chen met Yin Fan, the eccentric Level 9 Soul Engineer who had agreed to teach him, and learned that Yin Fan had chosen him because he hated Jing Hongchen. After Yin Fan baited him with wine and a promise of exclusive techniques, Ye Chen spotted a chance to pursue his plan to poach him.

• Yin Fan summoned Ye Chen to a cafeteria corner, and Ye Chen recognized him as Teacher Yin Fan.
• Yin Fan said he had watched the tournament footage repeatedly and praised Ye Chen's performance.
• Yin Fan admitted he took Ye Chen as a student because Ye Chen had humiliated the Hongchen Siblings, Jing Hongchen's grandchildren.
• Yin Fan offered to teach Ye Chen exclusive techniques if he drank with him, then smugly said he was still not happy after Ye Chen finished the wine.
• Ye Chen looked at the wine cup and realized he could use the situation to advance his plan to poach Yin Fan.

Ye Chen met his new teacher, Yin Fan, in the cafeteria and discovered the old man was a bizarre, heavy-drinking Level 9 Soul Engineer. Yin Fan admitted he took Ye Chen on partly because Ye Chen had humiliated the Hongchen Siblings, and Ye Chen saw an opportunity to use their drinking session to persuade him.

• Yin Fan summoned Ye Chen to a cafeteria corner, where Ye Chen recognized him as Teacher Yin Fan.
• Yin Fan revealed that he had watched Ye Chen's tournament footage more than ten times and praised his performance.
• Yin Fan admitted he had accepted Ye Chen as a student because he disliked Jing Hongchen and enjoyed seeing the Hongchen Siblings humiliated.
• Ye Chen worried that spending two and a half years around Yin Fan and the other laboratory members might change his personality.
• Yin Fan offered Ye Chen wine in exchange for keeping him company, but after Ye Chen drank it, Yin Fan said he was not in a good mood.
• Ye Chen considered using the drinking session to poach Yin Fan.

Ye Chen tried to win Yin Fan over with the promise of exceptional liquor, then followed him to the laboratory for private lessons in Soul Tool basics. He met Yue there, whose bleak response to his advice about smiling hinted at troubles she kept hidden.

• Ye Chen challenged Yin Fan to taste the finest wine on the continent within a month in exchange for one favor, but Yin Fan refused to bet.
• Yin Fan took Ye Chen from the cafeteria and explained that his laboratory books contained his own years of Soul Tool research, then offered to teach Ye Chen the basics personally.
• Yin Fan invited Yue to join the lesson when she returned to the laboratory early.
• Ye Chen advised Yue to smile, and she questioned whether smiles could truly relieve the pain people carried.
• Yue's reply made Ye Chen reflect that people often hid their suffering behind forced smiles.

Ye Chen tried to win Yin Fan over by promising him fine wine, but Yin Fan refused to bet. Yin Fan then began giving Ye Chen special lessons on Soul Tools, and Yue’s response to Ye Chen’s advice about smiling hinted at hidden sorrow.

• Ye Chen challenged Yin Fan to bet that he could provide the continent’s best wine within a month, but Yin Fan refused.
• Yin Fan took Ye Chen from the cafeteria and explained that his laboratory books contained insights he had compiled through years of Soul Tool research.
• Yin Fan offered Ye Chen individual instruction in the basics because of his weak foundation.
• Ye Chen and Yin Fan returned to the laboratory and found Yue arriving early to study; Yin Fan invited her to listen to Ye Chen’s lesson.
• Ye Chen advised Yue to smile, and she replied that if smiles could cure misery, few people would suffer.

Ye Chen spent his first day studying Soul Tool fundamentals under Yin Fan, a Level 9 Soul Engineer whose clear explanations and extensive notes offered knowledge Shrek lacked. He later reunited with Fan Yu, Huo Yuhao, and He Caitou and told them about his mentor as they went to get food.

• Yin Fan spent two hours teaching Ye Chen basic Soul Tool knowledge and advised him to build a solid foundation.
• Ye Chen read Yin Fan’s collected notes in the laboratory until it closed for the evening.
• Ye Chen met Fan Yu, Huo Yuhao, and He Caitou at the dormitory entrance and joined them to get food.
• He Caitou described his guarded mentor, while Huo Yuhao admitted that he had taught his classmates a lesson.
• Ye Chen revealed that Hall Master Hongchen had assigned him a Level 9 Soul Engineer as a mentor and privately recounted what he had learned that day.

Ye Chen learned soul tool fundamentals from Yin Fan, a Level 9 Soul Engineer whose open teaching impressed him. After returning to the dormitory area, Ye Chen met Fan Yu, Huo Yuhao, and He Caitou and told them about his mentor and first day at the academy.

• Yin Fan spent two hours teaching Ye Chen and Yue soul tool fundamentals and urged them to build a firm foundation.
• Ye Chen read Yin Fan's books for the rest of the afternoon, memorizing the insights before the laboratory closed.
• Ye Chen met Fan Yu, Huo Yuhao, and He Caitou at the dormitory entrance and joined them to get food.
• He Caitou said his teacher had guardedly explained soul tool knowledge, while Huo Yuhao admitted he had fought some classmates.
• Ye Chen revealed that Hall Master Hongchen had assigned him a Level 9 Soul Engineer as his mentor, then privately recounted his day's experiences to the others.

Ye Chen shared new soul-tool knowledge with Huo Yuhao, He Caitou, and Fan Yu, then drew a Rank 7 Soul Tool blueprint before the Ice Empress warned him that Yue seemed unusually powerful. The chapter ended with Yue searching the vast Sun Moon Empire for two things she could only faintly sense.

• Ye Chen transmitted the knowledge he had learned to Huo Yuhao, He Caitou, and Fan Yu, and they agreed to share what they learned in the future.
• Ye Chen told Fan Yu that his mentor was Yin Ming's older half-brother, and Fan Yu urged him to learn from the Level 9 Soul Engineer while remaining cautious.
• After dinner, Ye Chen drew the blueprint for Jing Hongchen's Rank 7 Soul Tool and prepared to meditate.
• The Ice Empress warned Ye Chen that Yue seemed to be concealing her true nature and that she felt pressure from her.
• Yue stood at the window of the girls' dormitory and lamented that she had not found the two things she sought during her four months in the Sun Moon Empire.

Ye Chen shared the knowledge he had learned at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy with Huo Yuhao, He Caitou, and Fan Yu, then discussed his mentor’s identity and drafted a Rank 7 Soul Tool blueprint. The Ice Empress warned him that Yue seemed to conceal an unusual depth, while Yue herself remained in the Sun Moon Empire searching for two items.

• Ye Chen transmitted his recorded knowledge to Huo Yuhao, He Caitou, and Fan Yu, who were astonished by what they learned.
• Ye Chen told Fan Yu that his mentor was Yin Ming’s paternal half-brother, and Fan Yu urged him to learn from the Level 9 Soul Engineer while staying cautious.
• Ye Chen returned to his room and completed a blueprint of Jing Hongchen’s Rank 7 Soul Tool.
• The Ice Empress warned Ye Chen that Yue gave her an inexplicable sense of oppression, but Ye Chen decided not to investigate without cause.
• Yue stood in her dormitory room and lamented that she had spent over four months searching the vast Sun Moon Empire for two items without success.

Ye Chen and Xu Tianchen exchanged knowledge about Soul Tools and martial souls, then Ye Chen asked about unusual places near Mingdu. Xu Tianchen offered to help him obtain grain amid tightening resource controls, leaving Ye Chen’s question unanswered.

• Ye Chen met Xu Tianchen and Liu Yaxuan at the laboratory and discovered Liu Yaxuan had reached Soul King cultivation and Level 5 Soul Master status.
• Xu Tianchen taught Ye Chen about Level 2 Soul Tools, demonstrating their construction and core formation techniques.
• Ye Chen taught Xu Tianchen and Liu Yaxuan about martial souls, focusing on Light and Fire Attributes.
• The three became so engrossed in their discussions that they forgot lunch, while Yin Fan chose not to interrupt them and Yue remained absent.
• Ye Chen said he needed to visit Mingdu to buy grain for brewing liquor, and Xu Tianchen explained that strategic resources were tightly controlled.
• Ye Chen asked Xu Tianchen whether he knew of any peculiar places near Mingdu.

Ye Chen and Xu Tianchen exchanged expertise on Soul Tools and martial souls, while Liu Yaxuan listened in. Before leaving to buy grain in Mingdu, Ye Chen asked Xu Tianchen about unusual places nearby.

• Ye Chen met Xu Tianchen and Liu Yaxuan outside the laboratory and joined them for a discussion.
• Xu Tianchen taught Ye Chen about Level 2 Soul Tools by explaining their construction and demonstrating how to make them.
• Ye Chen shared his knowledge of Light and Fire Attribute martial souls, answering Xu Tianchen’s questions.
• The three talked until evening, and Xu Tianchen warned Ye Chen that grain and other strategic resources were tightly controlled.
• Ye Chen said he planned to buy grain in Mingdu to brew wine and asked Xu Tianchen whether he knew of any unusual places nearby.

Ye Chen asked Xu Tianchen about mysterious places in the Sun Moon Empire and learned of a lifeless forest in the Starry Night Mountain Range where Xu Tianchen’s companions had withered into corpses. Xu Tianchen asked to accompany Ye Chen back there to confront the trauma that had stalled his cultivation.

• Ye Chen explained that he was searching for a naturally strange place, and Xu Tianchen recalled one in the empire’s westernmost mountains near the sea.
• Xu Tianchen described how he had visited the Starry Night Mountain Range seeking a Light Attribute soul beast for his fourth soul ring.
• Xu Tianchen recounted finding a perfectly circular forest where all vegetation had withered and more than half of his companions died after entering.
• Ye Chen suspected that something in the forest had drained their life force and decided the place warranted investigation.
• Xu Tianchen told Ye Chen that the incident had become a heart demon and asked to join him on the journey; Ye Chen agreed to investigate.

Ye Chen questioned Xu Tianchen about strange places in the Sun Moon Empire while searching for clues to Dragon Valley. Xu Tianchen described a deadly, lifeless forest in the Starry Night Mountain Range and insisted on joining Ye Chen to face the place again.

• Ye Chen asked Xu Tianchen about unexplained places, and Xu Tianchen recalled a strange location far west of Mingdu.
• Xu Tianchen explained that the place was a barren circular forest deep in the Starry Night Mountain Range, where more than half of his companions withered and died after entering.
• Ye Chen suspected that something inside the forest had drained their life force and concluded that it was unlikely to be Dragon Valley or the Qiankun Realm of Emotion Valley.
• Xu Tianchen told Ye Chen that the forest had become an inner demon that stalled his cultivation, and he demanded to join Ye Chen if he investigated it.
• Ye Chen agreed to investigate the forest, concerned that a dangerous treasure or evil object could become a threat if the Holy Spirit Cult found it.

Ye Chen and Xu Tianchen arranged to leave Mingdu for a research project so they could investigate the Starry Night Mountain Range. On their way through the academy, Ye Chen encountered a mysterious youth whose aura suggested he was connected to the Holy Spirit Cult; Yin Fan approved their trip, and they planned to depart in three days.

• Ye Chen, Xu Tianchen, and Liu Yaxuan discussed how to leave Mingdu safely and agreed that Xu Tianchen would ask Yin Fan to authorize a research project.
• Ye Chen sensed an intensely evil aura from a black-clad youth who passed him, and suspected the youth was from the Holy Spirit Cult.
• Ye Chen returned to his dormitory, reflected on the dangers of the planned expedition, and meditated on his Soul Power.
• The next day, Ye Chen and Xu Tianchen continued discussing Soul Tool knowledge while Liu Yaxuan was called home.
• Xu Tianchen told Ye Chen that Yin Fan had approved their departure for a research project, and they would leave in three days.