Chapter Summaries

After Huo Yutong's successful performance helped resolve the dispute at Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, Qian Chaoguang warned her that the expelled students had acted on someone else's orders. Qian Duoduo then took the siblings to find lunch in Sun Moon City.

• Huo Yutong celebrated her acting with Qian Chaoguang and Qian Duoduo, who praised her while teasing Qian Chaoguang about spoiling her.
• Jing Hongchen returned with Wang Shaojie and Ke Ke, who tearfully apologized before leaving the academy.
• Huo Yutong said Wang Shaojie and Ke Ke deserved the consequences, and Qian Duoduo and Qian Chaoguang discussed how power shaped dignity and justice.
• Qian Chaoguang warned Huo Yutong that Ju Zi was likely behind the incident and told her to be careful around her.
• Qian Duoduo ended the discussion and took Huo Yutong and Qian Chaoguang to eat in Sun Moon City.

After Ju Zi left the academy, Qian Chaoguang settled into his studies and used his free time to practice space magic. He successfully constructed a teleportation array barehanded and arrived in the Undead Demi-plane, where he inspected its rich source of Death Breath Power.

• Ju Zi withdrew from the academy, leaving Zi Mu behind, and Qian Duoduo informed the remaining Soul Tool Department Inner Academy members of the arrangements.
• Qian Chaoguang trained in close-combat soul tools with Liu TieZhu during the day and practiced magic in the Undead Demi-plane at night.
• Qian Chaoguang built a Space Teleportation Array from Magic Runes using Spiritual Power and activated it with Spiritual Power and Soul Power.
• Qian Chaoguang teleported into the Undead Demi-plane and walked toward a black hillside beneath its purple-black sun.
• Qian Chaoguang observed the Demi-plane’s cycle of Death Breath Power and soul energy, which sustained its black soil and Undead Beings.

Qian Chaoguang trained under Electrolux in the Demi-plane, practicing spatial arrays amid the sleeping Undead legion. After hours of drills, he collapsed from exhaustion, while Electrolux continued to push him toward mastering instant spellcasting.

• Electrolux criticized Qian Chaoguang for taking thirty seconds to sketch a Spatial Teleportation Array and ordered him to practice one hundred variations three times each.
• Qian Chaoguang crossed a hill and greeted the hundreds of skeletons that recognized him and parted to reveal his workspace.
• Qian Chaoguang opened his notebook and practiced spatial arrays, relying on his written notes as he studied Magic Language and spellcasting.
• Qian Chaoguang reflected that mastering Space Magic would let him use the Demi-plane as storage and eventually summon an Undead legion through instant spatial transfer.
• After several hours of practice, Qian Chaoguang collapsed onto a mattress, exhausted.

Qian Chaoguang rested after exhausting his Spiritual Power while Electrolux completed a major research project. He reflected on his plan to steal the Snow Empress and a Humanoid Soul Tool from Mingde Hall in half a year, then watched Electrolux finish and organize his research.

• Qian Chaoguang replenished his Sea of Consciousness with the Life Aura from the Spirit's Watchblade while Electrolux worked through his calculations.
• Qian Chaoguang reviewed his plan to use the Body Sect's arrival in half a year to steal the Snow Empress and infiltrate Mingde Hall for a Humanoid Soul Tool.
• Qian Chaoguang planned to use a Small Tunneling Soul Tool and an Engineering Thermal Cutting Soul Tool to try to reach Mingde Hall's secret warehouse during the chaos.
• Electrolux finished his research, sorted the useful papers, and burned the discarded drafts.
• Qian Chaoguang admired Electrolux's precise control of magic and reminded himself to keep practicing.

Electrolux gave Qian Chaoguang his research on artificial Martial Souls, including ways to grant a second Martial Soul and create Soul Rings from Soul Beast talents. After discussing plans for the Snow Empress embryo, Qian Chaoguang asked whether Electrolux could improve the evolution of his ace troops.

• Electrolux handed Qian Chaoguang his research on artificial Martial Souls and explained that granting a second Martial Soul with a Soul Beast soul was technically viable.
• Electrolux said using the Snow Empress embryo could make the ritual nearly certain to succeed if she cooperated, and that extracting her innate talent as a Soul Ring should be relatively straightforward.
• Electrolux told Qian Chaoguang to study and practice the research over the next half year while he continued investigating Martial Souls and Weapon Martial Souls.
• Qian Chaoguang stored the manuscript and told Electrolux that his homeland had become a world without magic or spirits, where he had been unable to cultivate before reaching the Douluo Continent.
• Qian Chaoguang asked Electrolux about improving the evolution of his ace troops, and Electrolux said he had investigated the problem but found no good method before the pope cursed him.

Qian Chaoguang described the End Sect’s records of undead beings that cultivated their souls and evolved, giving Electrolux a possible new path to advance the undead. The chapter left Electrolux eager to hear more, while Qian Chaoguang noted that Electrolux would first need to restore his remnant soul.

• Qian Chaoguang told Electrolux about the End Sect and the many cultivation paths recorded in its books.
• Qian Chaoguang explained that some cultivators were undead beings who could cultivate without consuming flesh and blood.
• Qian Chaoguang described how undead beings evolved by igniting an Undead Flame and condensing a Heart of the Undead, a Heart of the Soul, and eventually a Soul of Mourning.
• Qian Chaoguang suggested that Electrolux could become a terrifying Undead Archlord by condensing a Soul of Mourning, but first needed to restore his remnant soul.

Qian Chaoguang showed Electrolux how the Eternal Heart might lead to an Undead Empire, prompting Electrolux to begin researching how to advance undead souls. Qian returned to his studies and settled back into his daily training.

• Qian Chaoguang explained that an Undead Monarch could rule an Undead Empire through soul connections and a faith system, and said Electrolux was close to creating such a path.
• Qian pointed to Electrolux's Eternal Heart as a model for creating a Heart of the Undead, and Electrolux excitedly began theorizing about how to refine it.
• Electrolux returned to Qian's Sea of Consciousness and entered seclusion to research undead advancement, leaving Sky Dream Ice Silkworm confused.
• Qian used a Space Teleportation Array to return to his dormitory, then meditated through the night.
• Qian attended Liu TieZhu's class, and the two left their earlier conversation unmentioned.
• Qian continued studying Soul Tools by day and practicing forging, magic, and other skills in the Undead Demi-plane each evening.

Qian Chaoguang visited Mingde Hall with Liu TieZhu and learned how the academy’s enormous research facility depended on Soul Masters repeatedly exhausting their Soul Power. The chapter left him aware of the severe, permanent harm inflicted on the Power Supply Team.

• Liu TieZhu told Qian Chaoguang that Mingde Hall offered little for their interests and that Lab One gave them more freedom to work on Close-Combat Soul Tools and Soul Armor.
• Liu TieZhu led Qian Chaoguang through Mingde Hall’s security checkpoints and into its underground research hall.
• Qian Chaoguang examined the facility’s lighting and surveillance systems and asked how many people were needed to supply them with power.
• Liu TieZhu explained that the Power Supply Team ran in eighteen groups across rotating shifts and that members were reassigned after no more than ten years.
• Liu TieZhu said the work irreversibly damaged the workers’ meridians and prevented their Soul Power cultivation from improving.

Qian Chaoguang learned that the Power Supply Teams' volunteers silently sustained the Sun Moon Empire's Soul Tool research, then explored Mingde Hall's advanced experimental equipment. In the God Realm, Sea God Tang San resented the dwindling Power of Faith and began making new arrangements.

• Liu TieZhu told Qian Chaoguang that Power Supply Team members volunteered to support Soul Tool research and received lifelong allowances after ten years of service.
• Qian Chaoguang expressed respect for the volunteers, and Liu TieZhu gave him a new identity card and Rank 5 Soul Engineer badge before leading him to an experimental area.
• Liu TieZhu said he disliked Mingde Hall, deepening Qian Chaoguang's curiosity about his background.
• Qian Chaoguang tested the multifunctional experimental table and judged that the Sun Moon Empire's technology gave it a decisive advantage over the Three Douluo Kingdoms.
• Tang San complained that nourishing Wu Tong's Soul Fragment had consumed too much Power of Faith and worried that the lower realm was sending less.
• Tang San blamed Destruction for spending Power of Faith on the God Realm and strode into the surveillance chamber to make arrangements.

Tang San used a Divine Sense Fragment to plant strange memories in the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, hoping to claim the Star Dou Great Forest’s fortune. Believing his plan had worked, he flew to the Asura God Temple to replenish his Divine Sense with the Asura God's Power of Faith, despite the danger it posed to Xiao Wu.

• Tang San sent a Divine Sense Fragment toward the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, and it left her with unfamiliar memories of a pinkish-blue-haired girl and a blue-haired human with a golden trident.
• Myriad Demon King noticed the Three-Eyed Golden Lion acting strangely, but she dismissed his concern and demanded his help capturing Qian Chaoguang so she could shave off all his hair.
• Tang San celebrated in the Sea God Temple, convinced he had gained control over the auspicious beast and could take the Star Dou Great Forest’s fortune.
• Tang San flew toward the Asura God Temple to use its Power of Faith to restore his Divine Sense, knowing that Xiao Wu would suffer the effects of the Asura Divine Power.
• Tang San told himself that Xiao Wu loved him and resolved that she should sacrifice herself for his plan, promising to compensate her afterward.

Qian Chaoguang left Mingde Hall after secretly surveying its facilities and collecting Rare Metals, while Jing Hongchen and Lin Jiayi discussed how to monitor Shrek’s students. He then visited the academy’s cultivation zone and learned that its services were divided into five grades.

• Qian Chaoguang finished tinkering at Mingde Hall, packed up the Rare Metals, and left.
• Jing Hongchen and Lin Jiayi watched Qian Chaoguang and agreed that his Soul Engineer talent seemed limited.
• Jing Hongchen told Lin Jiayi to record Huo Yutong’s Soul Tool work and personally hinder He Caitou’s progress.
• Qian Chaoguang searched for the cultivation zone and spotted a domed building that appeared to gather World Origin Energy.
• Qian Chaoguang entered the cultivation zone and asked a receptionist about its services.
• The receptionist explained that the cultivation zone had five grades, each offering different World Origin Energy concentrations and services.

Qian Chaoguang bought a two-year membership to Mingde Hall’s Red Rank Training Area and tested its Gravity Chamber, only to find the gravity too weak to challenge him. As he trained in the Trial Area, an unexpected set of footsteps broke the silence.

• Qian Chaoguang inspected the five training areas and chose the Red Rank Training Area after finding its cultivation environment comparable to Shrek’s Inner Academy.
• Qian Chaoguang bought a two-year membership at a discounted price after the receptionist identified him as a Mingde Hall member.
• Qian Chaoguang explored the Red Rank Training Area and tried its Gravity Chamber, but found even its maximum setting too weak to provide meaningful training.
• Qian Chaoguang realized Jiang Nannan had used her Gravity Control Soul Skill during their sparring, though he had barely noticed it.
• Qian Chaoguang stopped swinging his blade when unfamiliar footsteps sounded in the otherwise silent training area.

Qian Chaoguang met Ji Juechen in the Red Rank Training Area, and the two sword enthusiasts agreed to fight after Qian recovered. The chapter ended as they faced off and unleashed their formidable blade and sword auras.

• Qian Chaoguang recognized the arriving Ji Juechen and suspected the woman with him was Jing Ziyan.
• Ji Juechen challenged Qian Chaoguang, who accepted after asking for time to rest.
• While Qian meditated, Ji Juechen studied the unique blade across his legs and sensed its distinctive will.
• Qian and Ji Juechen rose and faced each other across the Trial Area as their sharp auras began to clash.
• Ji Juechen summoned his six Soul Rings, while Qian revealed four black Soul Rings and wrapped himself in Blood Mist as he prepared to fight at full strength.

Qian Chaoguang and Ji Juechen clashed their Blade Intent and Sword Intent in the Trial Area, pushing each other into an increasingly intense duel. As their weapons collided, Qian Chaoguang completed the second form of his Blade Art, Ruler's Descent.

• Qian Chaoguang unleashed his Blade Intent against Ji Juechen's Sword Intent, and their invisible clash damaged the Trial Area.
• Ji Juechen realized his Sword Intent was being suppressed and charged at Qian Chaoguang with a powerful sweeping strike.
• Qian Chaoguang stepped forward and swung his blade in a silver-white arc, meeting the tip of Ji Juechen's sword.
• Qian Chaoguang completed the second form of his Blade Art, Ruler's Descent, as their weapons collided and Jing Ziyan staggered from the shockwave.

Qian Chaoguang and Ji Juechen clashed in a contest of Blade Intent and Sword Intent, leaving the training area wrecked and both men injured. Qian Chaoguang gained a second Blade Art move, and the rivals introduced themselves before Qian healed Ji Juechen.

• Qian Chaoguang and Ji Juechen exchanged a devastating clash that sent them both flying and shattered equipment throughout the training area.
• Qian Chaoguang’s saber Visualization Diagram transformed in his Sea of Consciousness, and he gained the second move of his Blade Art, Ruler’s Descent.
• Ji Juechen conceded defeat in their contest of intent, and Jing Ziyan arranged treatment for him.
• Qian Chaoguang introduced himself to Ji Juechen, and the two recognized each other as kindred spirits.
• Qian Chaoguang declined treatment for himself and used Divine Cure to heal Ji Juechen.

Qian Chaoguang healed Ji Juechen, advanced his cultivation, and spent a month training before Ji Juechen returned to thank him for their earlier contest. Ji Juechen said deep meditation had given him a deeper understanding of the sword, leaving the two men reunited in the Trial Area.

• Qian Chaoguang used a healing divine art to restore Ji Juechen, startling Jing Ziyan, who recognized him from the Soul Fighting Competition.
• Qian Chaoguang tried the Red Rank Training Area's medicinal bath, then returned to his dormitory and advanced from Level 44 to Level 45 while cultivating in the Undead Demi-plane.
• Qian Chaoguang spent the next month studying Soul Tools, practicing magic, and training, while Ji Juechen did not reappear.
• Qian Chaoguang practiced his blade in the Trial Area when Ji Juechen arrived with Jing Ziyan.
• Ji Juechen told Qian Chaoguang that deep meditation after their earlier encounter had improved his understanding of the sword, and thanked him.

Qian Chaoguang explained to Ji Juechen that the sword’s true purpose was protection, prompting Ji to enter deep meditation. He then spoke with Jing Ziyan, learned about Ji’s unusual position at the academy, and asked about Liu TieZhu.

• Qian Chaoguang named his blade technique Ruler's Descent and explained how the blade and sword represented different paths.
• Qian Chaoguang asked Ji Juechen what his sword wished to protect, sending Ji into deep meditation.
• Jing Ziyan marveled at Qian Chaoguang’s ability to trigger another enlightenment, and introduced herself.
• Qian Chaoguang guessed that Jing Ziyan’s mother was named Zhaoxianglu, then awkwardly changed the subject.
• Jing Ziyan explained that Ji Juechen was the Control System chief at Mingde Hall and the academy’s only non-Soul Engineer.
• Jing Ziyan told Qian Chaoguang that Liu TieZhu was another unconventional figure who opposed Mingde Hall’s research philosophy.

Qian Chaoguang learned why Liu TieZhu and Ji Juechen had become sworn enemies, then showed Jing Ziyan the saber he had forged with his teacher’s help. The chapter ended with Jing Ziyan learning that the saber, Xuan Hui, incorporated a Moon Shadow Wolf King Soul Bone and had unusual powers.

• Jing Ziyan explained that Liu TieZhu had beaten Ji Juechen after mistaking his silent reaction to losing for mockery, and the two had avoided each other ever since.
• Qian Chaoguang felt sympathy for both men and realized Ji Juechen might have wanted Liu TieZhu to make him a sword if he had known who forged the Sword of Judgment.
• Jing Ziyan asked about Qian Chaoguang’s saber, and he said he and his teacher had made it together.
• Qian Chaoguang named the saber Xuan Hui and explained that it contained an eighty-thousand-year Moon Shadow Wolf King Soul Bone and could command moonlight.
• Jing Ziyan examined Xuan Hui but could not identify its grade or materials, while Qian Chaoguang described its Condensing Light and Condensing Moon skills.

After months of training and study, Qian Chaoguang approached Level Forty-Seven while Huo Yutong and the exchange students made rapid progress in Soul Tool research. The chapter ended with Qian Chaoguang heading to Mingde Hall again, where Liu TieZhu asked what he had been working on.

• Electrolux had enchanted Qian Chaoguang's Xuan Hui Saber with seven powerful buffs, including Soul Curse, which harmed opponents' souls.
• Ji Juechen awakened from deep meditation, realized the Way of the Sword involved protecting something, and left to seek what he wanted to protect.
• Over the next half year, Qian Chaoguang advanced toward Level Forty-Seven while balancing Soul Tools, blade practice, magic, forging, and cultivation.
• Huo Yutong expanded her lock on skill to target anything her Spiritual Power Tendrils could perceive and improved quickly by studying Soul Tools at Mingde Hall.
• He Caitou and the other exchange students made major progress in Soul Tool manufacturing, though Mingde Hall kept its most important research restricted.
• Liu TieZhu asked Qian Chaoguang why he had been visiting Mingde Hall for over a month, and Qian Chaoguang said its lab tables were convenient for making things.

Qian Chaoguang waited at Mingde Hall for the Body Sect’s surprise assault, then protected Huo Yutong when four bombs detonated across the research base. The two survived beneath a table as Body Sect members emerged from underground and began killing the researchers.

• Qian Chaoguang turned down Liu TieZhu’s offer to get more experiment tables and went to Mingde Hall, where Huo Yutong was already working.
• Qian Chaoguang used his Divine Sense to watch for the Body Sect’s attack while continuing his research.
• Qian Chaoguang sensed a disturbance and tackled Huo Yutong beneath an experiment table, activating two defensive barriers as she raised her Mind Barrier.
• Four explosions devastated Mingde Hall, killing about a hundred Soul Engineers at the blast centers and injuring many others.
• Qian Chaoguang and Huo Yutong survived the blasts, then watched black-clad Body Sect members emerge from underground and attack the researchers.