Chapter Summaries

Ling Qing tried to flee Gengxin City but was ambushed and captured by a black-clad woman who questioned him about Ling Si and the Spirit Bone. He denied killing Ling Si and blamed Lord Brand, while the woman demanded to know why Ling Si’s Spirit Bone was with him.

• Ling Qing hurried toward the city gates, fearing the man in red’s accomplice was still in Gengxin City.
• A black-clad woman knocked Ling Qing unconscious with a scented breath and took him away.
• Ling Qing woke in a dim room with nearly all his clothes removed and recognized the woman as his attacker.
• The woman asked Ling Qing whether he had killed Ling Si, and he denied it, claiming Lord Brand was responsible.
• The woman asked why Ling Si’s Spirit Bone was with Ling Qing, leaving him troubled by the mystery surrounding Spirit Bones.

Li Qing won the cooking match with catfish-and-squid noodles, then prepared to sell two kinds of popcorn at a stall. He also began deducing a better formation for his Spirit Power Milk Bottle, whose stored power dissipated too quickly.

• Han Yu and the other judges tasted Li Qing’s noodles and praised their flavor and texture, recognizing that he had combined catfish meat with Shredded Squid using Soul Power.
• Li Qing left Gourmet Plaza and decided to promote Earth’s delicacies by selling two kinds of popcorn.
• Li Qing arranged the ingredients and equipment for making popcorn, then returned to Xiangju Building and found that the Spirit Power Milk Bottle’s stored spirit power had dissipated.
• Li Qing spent two hours deducing formations to improve the milk bottle before going out to set up a popcorn stall in a quiet open area.
• Li Qing chose Exploding Corn for the movie-theater-style popcorn, realizing it could help attract customers with its rich aroma.

Ling Wu explained that the vortex in Ling Qing’s lower Dantian was not a Spirit Core but its rudimentary form, containing Soul Power, mental power, and energy from Ling Qing’s body. He began explaining its unusual ability to compress Soul Power, leaving Ling Qing and Liu Lin waiting to learn what it meant.

• Ling Qing told Ling Wu that the vortex inside his body had been losing control and thanked him for suppressing it.
• Ling Wu identified the vortex as the rudimentary form of a Spirit Core, surprising Liu Lin and renewing Ling Qing’s hopes.
• Ling Wu explained that the vortex contained Soul Power, mental power, and an unfamiliar energy that seemed to come from Ling Qing’s physical body.
• Ling Qing answered Ling Wu’s questions about Soul Power’s gaseous, liquid, and solid states and said a Spirit Core consisted of solid-state Soul Power.
• Ling Wu explained that Ling Qing’s vortex had already turned Soul Power liquid and automatically absorbed and compressed more Soul Power, then asked Ling Qing what he thought that meant.

Li Qing and Tang San enrolled at Nuoding Academy, where Yu Xiaogang recognized that they both had Twin Martial Souls and Innate Full Soul Power and accepted them as disciples. At the dormitory, Tang San defeated Wang Sheng, and Li Qing used their new brotherhood to make Tang San take responsibility for him.

• Old Jack brought Li Qing and Tang San to Nuoding City, where Li Qing waited for Yu Xiaogang so they could enter the academy without trouble.
• Yu Xiaogang examined both boys’ Spirit Hall certificates, recognized their Twin Martial Souls and Innate Full Soul Power, and asked them to become his disciples.
• Tang San accepted Yu Xiaogang as his teacher, and Li Qing followed after considering the benefits of the arrangement.
• Li Qing told Tang San to remember the phrase, “He is my brother. What do you think?” before they entered the dormitory.
• Wang Sheng challenged the newcomers, Tang San defeated him, and Li Qing announced that Tang San would look after him.

Kong Weiyang revealed his true strength by merging with his Shadow Demon, then used its greatly enhanced speed and control of arena shadows to corner Li Qing. As Li Qing struggled to escape the shifting encirclement, Ling Wu calmed him and prompted him to recognize a way to break the deadlock.

• Kong Weiyang praised Li Qing's talent, then revealed the Shadow Demon's true form and merged with it.
• The Shadow Demon's influence changed Kong Weiyang's demeanor, and his strength and speed increased sharply.
• Kong Weiyang sent his shadow after Li Qing, who dodged with Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track and fled to an unshadowed edge of the arena.
• Kong Weiyang connected his shadow to the spectator stands, spreading control over two-thirds of the arena and forcing Li Qing to spend Soul Power escaping.
• Ling Wu calmed Li Qing and pointed out that he had already discovered how to break the situation, prompting him to realize the answer.

Ling Qing and his companions received Brand’s gold and healing herbs, then read the wanted notice describing Zhang San’s violent history and growing strength. The notice revealed that Zhang San had killed a Soul Ancestor and a Soul Elder, leaving the group shaken by how dangerous he was.

• Brand gave Tang San a thousand Gold Soul Coins and promised to send herbs suited to Ling Qing’s injuries.
• Xiao Wu and Ling Ren admired the money, and Xiao Wu secretly pocketed some before Tang San stopped the teasing.
• Tang San agreed to give Grandpa Jack six hundred Gold Soul Coins for the village.
• Brand sent healing herbs and Zhang San’s wanted notice that afternoon.
• Tang San read the notice, which described Zhang San’s rise to Soul Elder rank and his killings, including two Spirit Hall officials.
• Ling Qing, Tang San, Xiao Wu, and Ling Ren were shocked by the notice’s account of Zhang San’s strength and brutality.

Li Qing trained his Chakra control by climbing a tree, hoping to prepare for combining Chakra and Soul Power in a Sage Spiraling Sphere. After finally reaching the top, he returned to the academy and stumbled upon Tang San pushing Xiao Wu on a swing.

• Li Qing planned to combine Chakra and Soul Power outside his body, and decided to train his control by climbing a tree.
• Li Qing fell repeatedly as he practiced climbing without Soul Power, while onlookers dismissed his efforts.
• Li Qing eventually climbed a straight tree and celebrated his success as the first stage of his Spiraling Sphere training.
• Li Qing changed clothes after bathing, then found Tang San and Xiao Wu together by a swing and hurried away after teasing them.
• Xiao Wu sang a corrected version of Li Qing's swing song while Tang San listened helplessly.

Li Qing began a punishing physical training regimen and steadily built his endurance and strength over three months. As his Soul Power rose by one rank, a voice announced that he had obtained the Eight Inner Gates cultivation method.

• Li Qing ran until he collapsed after twenty-four and a half laps, and his body absorbed Soul Power rapidly while he was unconscious.
• Tang San found Li Qing on the track, carried him back to the dormitory, and gave him warm water when he woke.
• Li Qing bought training clothes and continued running, doing push-ups, and doing sit-ups, improving his results day by day.
• Over the next three months, Li Qing increased the sandbag weight on each leg to five kilograms, reached fifty laps, and gained a rank in Soul Power.
• While Li Qing was running, a voice announced that he had obtained the Eight Inner Gates cultivation method.

Ling Qing defeated the white-clothed youth and won a pouch of money and a formation diagram, but he fainted after releasing the Eight Inner Gates. After recovering and reaching level fifteen, he returned to training with a plan to develop a special Spiraling Sphere.

• Ling Qing defeated the white-clothed youth, who gave him the money pouch and formation diagram before leaving with the black-robed elder.
• Ling Qing fainted after releasing the Eight Inner Gates, and Tang San and Xiao Wu brought him back to the dormitory.
• The white-clothed youth told the black-robed elder that Ling Qing was interesting and continued toward his destination.
• Ling Qing woke, recovered his meridians, and gained enough Soul Power to reach level fifteen.
• Ling Qing used the money pouch to buy a large meal, then assured Master he was well and promised to avoid recklessness.
• Ling Qing reviewed his cultivation plan and began preparing to create a special Spiraling Sphere.

Ling Qing used the Eight Inner Gates and the Scythe of Severance to protect Old Wang and fight the man in black, but the fight left him badly weakened. The man in black unleashed his Demon Howl, rupturing Ling Qing’s eardrums and knocking him down as he advanced to finish him off.

• Ling Qing removed his leg weights and opened the first three Eight Inner Gates as the man in black became excited by the smell of his blood.
• Old Wang came outside to curse at the noise, and Ling Qing intercepted the man in black’s attack before it could hit him.
• Ling Qing dodged the man in black’s wings, kicked him away, and shattered his claw strikes with the Scythe of Severance.
• The man in black used his third soul skill, Demon Howl, to rupture Ling Qing’s eardrums and send him crashing to the ground.
• The man in black walked toward the injured Ling Qing, intending to finish him off.

Li Qing, Tang San, and Xiao Wu drank and played cards at Old Eight Tavern, where Li Qing sold Zhu Liu several decks. Drunk and lost on their way back, the three stopped in a cemetery and agreed to become sworn siblings.

• Li Qing challenged Xiao Wu and Tang San to play Run Fast, and the three drank whenever they lost.
• Zhu Liu offered to buy Li Qing's cards, so Li Qing sold him ten decks and taught him Fight the Landlord.
• After Wang Sheng and the others left, Li Qing, Tang San, and Xiao Wu stayed at the tavern until it closed and left drunk.
• Li Qing vomited on a gravestone, and Tang San told him they were in a cemetery as the three continued walking in the wrong direction.
• Li Qing proposed that the three become sworn siblings, and Xiao Wu and Tang San agreed.

Li Qing confronted a fast, bat-Mutated Martial Soul Soul Elder who attacked him and threatened Ling Ren. Ling Ren fled to get Tang San and the others, while Li Qing held off the man in black and broke one of his claws, but the fight continued with Li Qing still in danger.

• Li Qing sensed the man in black’s soul power and told Ling Ren to run for help if trouble started.
• The man in black revealed his bat Martial Soul and three yellow Soul Rings, and Ling Ren recognized the heavy resentment surrounding him.
• The man in black lunged at them, so Li Qing shoved Ling Ren away and blocked his claws with the Scythe of Severance.
• Ling Ren ran to the blacksmith shop to fetch Tang San and the others while Li Qing stayed behind to delay the attacker.
• Li Qing used Blood Wash Four Directions to clash with the man’s claws and snapped one, but the man regenerated it and challenged Li Qing to keep fighting.

Li Qing’s fireworks display amazed Qian Renxue, who came to thank him and told him they would soon part ways. She left him with a promise that no one would be allowed to bully him as one of her people.

• Li Qing launched a fireworks display that stunned Qian Renxue, Wu Jian, and Ailaso.
• Qian Renxue asked Ailaso to take her to Li Qing, then told him she liked the fireworks.
• Li Qing tried to hide his face from Qian Renxue, but she lowered his hands and laughed at his pimples.
• Qian Renxue thanked Li Qing and recalled how happy she had been during her stay in Kus City.
• Qian Renxue told Li Qing she would leave for Heaven Doue City the next day and promised no one could bully him.

Li Qing and Tang San visited Spirit Hall to have their Soul Power tested, then Li Qing struggled to find a restaurant job. He cooked Magic Wolf hamburgers for the work-study students, who eagerly discovered how delicious they were.

• Master sent Li Qing and Tang San to Nuoding City's Spirit Hall, where they received Soul Master badges and gold coins.
• Li Qing searched several restaurants for work, but none would hire him because he was too young.
• Li Qing bought ingredients and cooking tools, then prepared Magic Wolf hamburgers in the academy cafeteria.
• Li Qing served the hamburgers to the work-study students, and Tang San and the others praised their delicious taste.

Li Qing and Tang San demonstrated their second soul skills, and Master warned them not to abandon their principles after hearing how they had killed mercenaries. Later, Li Qing began analyzing Twenty-Four Bridges Moonlight Night in an inn, discovering that focused study made the analysis progress faster.

• Master assessed Li Qing and Tang San's Martial Soul Fusion Skill, named it Red Storm, and told them to keep it secret.
• Li Qing demonstrated his teleporting second soul skill, while Tang San showed how his Parasite skill bound and pierced a tree with Blue Silver Grass.
• Li Qing told Master that two mercenary groups had tried to rob them and that he and Tang San had killed them; Master reminded them to hold on to their principles.
• Heaven Dou Empire soldiers entered the town near the Soul Hunting Forest and posted a ban on fighting, while Cai Xukuan shuddered at the memory of Li Qing.
• Li Qing rented a room in Nuoding City and used his Replication Eye to analyze Twenty-Four Bridges Moonlight Night, finding that concentrated study increased his progress.

Wu Jian brought Li Qing to Martial Soul Hall Academy and persuaded Dean Liu Qianxin to admit him by revealing his exceptional soul rings. After Wu Jian left to deliver Li Qing’s ring to the Saintess, Li Qing remained alone with the dean.

• Wu Jian led Li Qing to Dean Liu Qianxin’s office at Martial Soul Hall Academy.
• Liu Qianxin refused to admit Li Qing because the academy was not accepting students, and she threw a pen at Wu Jian when he joked about her.
• Wu Jian told Li Qing to release his martial soul, and Liu Qianxin changed her mind after seeing his scythe and one yellow and two purple soul rings.
• Wu Jian agreed to deliver Li Qing’s ring to the Saintess and left the academy.
• Liu Qianxin appraised Li Qing while he remained in her office, feeling uncomfortable under her gaze.

Liu Lin reached Kus City to report to the emperor, but Xue Qinghe refused to see him while the emperor was poisoned. After meeting Wan Tianlin, Liu Lin revealed that he knew the antidote to Mysterious Nether Absolute Powder and was brought to meet Xue Qinghe.

• Liu Lin arrived at the Chef's Association headquarters and presented proof that he was Duke Yan, but Xue Qinghe refused to see him.
• Liu Lin met Wan Tianlin at a restaurant, and Wan told him the emperor had been poisoned with Mysterious Nether Absolute Powder.
• Liu Lin said he knew the antidote, which he had memorized from a scroll recording his ancestor's formula.
• Wan Tianlin brought Liu Lin to Xue Qinghe, who was shocked to learn that Duke Yan knew the antidote.

Ling Qing examined Xue Ye and prescribed an antidote that used poison to counter poison, despite suspicion from the imperial physician and the guards. The ingredients were requested, but the chapter ended before the treatment began.

• Ling Qing agreed to treat Xue Ye, but Gu Xiang sealed his meridians and shackled him before taking him to the Emperor.
• Xiao Xue saw Ling Qing in chains and felt an unexpected pang of concern for him.
• Ling Qing examined Xue Ye and learned from Imperial Physician Wang that the poison would reach the Emperor’s heart meridians within two days.
• Ling Qing demanded poisonous ingredients for an antidote, explaining that he would fight poison with poison.
• Imperial Physician Wang questioned the formula, then began repeating Ling Qing’s explanation as he grasped the idea.

Li Qing risked absorbing the Praying Mantis Tiger’s Soul Ring while Tang San and Ling Ren remained unconscious. He survived by forcing his Soul Power and Chakra to interact, then discovered Ling Ren was only asleep.

• Li Qing began absorbing the Praying Mantis Tiger’s Soul Ring despite his severe injuries.
• The Soul Ring’s fierce Soul Power battered Li Qing’s body and mind, worsening his back wound as he endured the pain.
• Li Qing’s Chakra emerged and collided with his Soul Power, forming a vortex that fused the energies and absorbed the Soul Ring.
• Li Qing stopped the vortex from draining his remaining Soul Power by forcing the Chakra back inside, leaving the energies to fuse slowly.
• After several hours, Li Qing checked Ling Ren, found his injuries were minor, and woke him with three slaps after he rolled over and snored.

Li Qing watched the Best Chef Competition and came up with a plan to sell popcorn, milk tea, and stinky tofu to the crowds. When his match began, he decided to make catfish noodles using his Soul Power.

• Li Qing learned that the competition’s top performers could earn Gold Soul Coins and catch Xue Ye’s eye as potential imperial chefs.
• While watching contestants cook with their martial souls, Li Qing realized he could make money selling popcorn and other snacks to the spectators.
• Li Qing and Huang Wenxin took their places in the third group when their turn came to compete.
• Li Qing saw squid, catfish, and sea bream among his ingredients and decided to attempt the catfish noodles he had been unable to make in his previous life.