Chapter Summaries

Huangfu Ji refused marriage alliances with Heaven Dou nobles and focused on cultivating, determined not to become bound to the empire. At fourteen, he reached Soul Power Level forty and prepared to enter the Star Dou Great Forest for his Fourth Soul Ring.

• Huangfu Ji rejected the nobles’ marriage proposals, telling Zhao Hong that strength mattered more than their support and that Qingyang’s future could be greater than a province.
• Zhao Hong guessed that Huangfu Ji intended to break free from Heaven Dou and perhaps claim an empire, though Huangfu Ji had never said so.
• Huangfu Ji spent the next two years cultivating, exchanging letters with Liu Erlong and Tang Yuehua, and learning that Tang Xiao and Tang Hao had left their sect for training.
• At fourteen, Huangfu Ji broke through to Soul Power Level forty and decided to seek a Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear in the Star Dou Great Forest for his Fourth Soul Ring.
• Wang Zhi’s intelligence organization trained its first recruits with Zhou Mu’s help, and Huangfu Ji considered meeting Zhou Mu after his trip.

Huangfu Ji chose a Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear for his Fourth Soul Ring and persuaded Meng Shenji to accompany him to Star Dou Great Forest. As they left the academy, an ambush party abandoned its attempt to kill Huangfu Ji when it saw Meng Shenji with him.

• Huangfu Ji told Meng Shenji he planned to hunt a Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear in Star Dou Great Forest for his Fourth Soul Ring.
• Meng Shenji warned Huangfu Ji about the beast’s strength and insisted on accompanying him instead of letting him go with Zhao Hong and the others.
• Huangfu Ji accepted Meng Shenji’s offer, and they left the Royal Academy the following morning.
• Seven soul masters hiding in the forest saw Meng Shenji escorting Huangfu Ji and gave up their planned ambush.
• The ambush leader concluded that Huangfu Ji was becoming too strong to kill and led the group away.

Huangfu Ji and Meng Shenji traveled into the Star Dou Great Forest to find a Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear, encountering the forest’s dangers as they searched. When Meng Shenji found Huangfu Ji a suitable five-thousand-year Golden Blade Mantis, Huangfu Ji refused it because he still wanted a ten-thousand-year Fourth Soul Ring.

• Huangfu Ji and Meng Shenji entered the Star Dou Great Forest and pressed deeper in search of a Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear.
• Huangfu Ji and Meng Shenji found a fifteen-thousand-year Three-tailed Scorpion and eight dead mercenaries, then buried the bodies before continuing cautiously.
• Huangfu Ji and Meng Shenji traveled deeper, where Thousand-Year and Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts became more common and human Soul Masters grew scarce.
• Meng Shenji spotted a five-thousand-year Golden Blade Mantis that he thought would suit Huangfu Ji as a Fourth Soul Ring.
• Huangfu Ji rejected the Golden Blade Mantis because he still intended to obtain a ten-thousand-year Fourth Soul Ring.

Huangfu Ji insisted on hunting a Ten-Thousand-Year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear for his fourth Soul Ring, despite Meng Shenji’s warnings. After they killed the bear, Huangfu Ji began recovering beside its corpse while Meng Shenji discovered a dark golden Left Arm Bone.

• Huangfu Ji chose a roughly seventeen-thousand-year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear, and Meng Shenji warned him that absorbing its Soul Ring as his fourth was dangerously reckless.
• Meng Shenji restrained the bear with his Black Demon Martial Soul, allowing Huangfu Ji to stab one of its eyes before its counterattack hurled him through seven trees.
• After recovering and gathering two-thirds of his Soul Power, Huangfu Ji released a golden Light Blade that severed the bear’s head.
• Huangfu Ji took restorative herbs from his Soul Tool and sat down to recover beside the bear’s corpse as its black Soul Ring condensed.
• Meng Shenji discovered a dark golden Soul Bone on the corpse and identified it as a Left Arm Bone.

Huangfu Ji endured the absorption of a Ten-Thousand-Year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear Soul Ring and gained the powerful Sky-Tearing Dragon Claw Fourth Soul Skill. After returning to Heaven Dou Royal Academy at Level 42, he learned that the Star Luo Empire's delegation had arrived in Heaven Dou City.

• Meng Shenji gave Huangfu Ji the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear's Left Arm Bone, and Huangfu Ji began absorbing its Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring.
• Huangfu Ji endured the night-long absorption and successfully obtained his Fourth Soul Ring.
• Huangfu Ji tested Sky-Tearing Dragon Claw, which tore a thick tree into five sections and could break defenses of opponents whose Soul Power was no more than ten levels higher than his.
• Huangfu Ji and Meng Shenji left the Star Dou Great Forest and traveled north, with Huangfu Ji reaching Level 42 by September.
• Zhao Hong told Huangfu Ji that the Star Luo Empire's delegation had arrived in Heaven Dou City.

Huangfu Ji learned that the Star Luo delegation had challenged Heaven Dou’s young soul masters to a Martial Soul Exchange, and the academy added him to its roster. As both sides prepared, Dai Yutian warned Zhu Yi to take Huangfu Ji seriously, and the exchange party headed to the Royal Hunting Ground.

• Zhao Hong told Huangfu Ji that Dai Yutian had brought Star Luo’s young soul masters to propose a Martial Soul Exchange.
• Meng Shenji added Huangfu Ji to Heaven Dou Royal Academy’s roster despite concerns about his status as Grand Duke Qingyang.
• Huangfu Ji continued his punishing cultivation while Yan Ming and the other selected students underwent special training.
• Dai Yutian warned Zhu Yi that Huangfu Ji had already reached Level forty and obtained his Fourth Soul Ring, but Zhu Yi promised to deal with him carefully.
• Three days later, Meng Shenji and the other two brought Huangfu Ji and the others to the Royal Hunting Ground.

Huangfu Ji attended the Martial Soul Exchange between the Heaven Dou and Star Luo Empires, where he observed the rival sides and their spectators. The event began with Hou Xun stepping forward as Heaven Dou’s first competitor.

• Huangfu Ji assessed the powerful Royal Knights and teased Yan Ming for looking nervous about the exchange.
• Huangfu Ji spotted Xue Ye, Ning Fengzhi, Dai Yutian, Xiao Zuo, and Tang Yuehua among the VIPs, and Tang Yuehua introduced him to her Second Uncle.
• The Heaven Dou and Star Luo Soul Masters gathered in their respective resting areas as Xue Ye urged the participants to show their strength and stop their matches at the proper point.
• Hou Xun volunteered to go first, introduced himself as a Level 48 Power Attack System Battle Soul Master, and activated his Blazing Vajra Martial Soul.

Hou Xun defeated two Star Luo fighters before Lu Hai exhausted him and knocked him from the arena. Yan Ming then fought Lu Hai but was pierced through the shoulder, leaving Heaven Dou’s side in danger as Huangfu Ji waited to compete.

• Xu Yu used his Lightning Dog Martial Soul and Thunderbolt to paralyze Hou Xun, but Hou Xun broke free with Blazing Charge and knocked him out of the arena.
• Hou Xun defeated Star Luo’s next fighter, a Level 42 Soul Ancestor, while spending more of his Soul Power.
• Lu Hai entered with his Coiled Snake Spear and defeated the fatigued Hou Xun by piercing his shoulder and throwing him out of the arena.
• Huangfu Ji sent Yan Ming to fight Lu Hai, and the two exchanged weapon strikes and Soul Skills.
• Yan Ming sent Lu Hai flying with Yellow Dragon Stirring Water, but Lu Hai returned to the attack and pierced Yan Ming’s shoulder with his enhanced spear.

Lu Hai and Zhu Yi defeated several Heaven Dou contestants, leaving the team reluctant to face Zhu Yi until Huangfu Ji entered the arena. After Zhu Yi recovered his Soul Power, Huangfu Ji activated his dragon Martial Soul, provoking an instinctive fear in Zhu Yi’s Hell Spirit Cat as their fight began.

• Lu Hai defeated three Heaven Dou contestants before stepping down, and the next match between a Heaven Dou Power Attack Soul Ancestor and a Star Luo defense-type Soul Ancestor ended in a draw.
• Zhu Yi challenged Heaven Dou and defeated two contestants with his speed and Martial Soul, then taunted the team when nobody else stepped forward.
• Huangfu Ji entered the arena and insisted that Zhu Yi recover his Soul Power before they fought, declaring that he would defeat him.
• After Zhu Yi recovered, Huangfu Ji activated his dragon Martial Soul, and Zhu Yi felt his Hell Spirit Cat grow afraid.

Huangfu Ji revealed a Ten-Thousand-Year fourth Soul Ring and decisively defeated Zhu Yi in the Heaven Dou–Star Luo soul fights. Heaven Dou ultimately lost the competition, and Huangfu Ji left the arena with Tang Yuehua to stroll around the Royal Hunting Ground.

• Huangfu Ji displayed his Ten-Thousand-Year fourth Soul Ring, shocking Zhu Yi, Dai Yutian, Xue Ye, and the others.
• Huangfu Ji defeated Zhu Yi, broke more than a dozen of his bones, and stopped only when Xue Ye ordered him to.
• The Star Luo soul masters declined to challenge Huangfu Ji, and the later fights ended with Star Luo holding a slight advantage and Heaven Dou losing overall.
• Huangfu Ji prepared to visit Heaven Dou City, then met Tang Yuehua and strolled with her around the Royal Hunting Ground.

After the Martial Soul Exchange, Huangfu Ji attended a royal banquet, where nobles sought his favor and Tang Yuehua kept him company. Xiao Zuo offered Spirit Hall's help in restoring Huangfu control of Qingyang if Huangfu Ji joined them, but Huangfu Ji refused.

• Huangfu Ji sat apart from the nobles until Tang Yuehua joined him and toasted him.
• Young noblemen approached Tang Yuehua while young noblewomen toasted Huangfu Ji, making Tang Yuehua privately jealous.
• Xue Ye welcomed Huangfu Ji, and Ning Fengzhi praised him and invited him to visit the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
• Xiao Zuo offered Spirit Hall's support to help Huangfu Ji reclaim Qingyang if he joined them, but Huangfu Ji declined.

Huangfu Ji met Zhou Mu at a tea house after Tang Yuehua accompanied him and taught him to play chess. Zhou Mu impressed Huangfu Ji by declaring that he could help him seize the world.

• Tang Yuehua followed Huangfu Ji to the tea house, where she began teaching him chess and advised him to develop patience and a broader view.
• Wang Zhi arrived with Zhou Mu and reported that the trained spies were ready to be sent out.
• Huangfu Ji ordered Wang Zhi to place spies in the Yuan, Cheng, and Wang Families, explaining nothing further.
• Wang Zhi described Zhou Mu's role in training the spies, and Huangfu Ji invited Zhou Mu to meet him.
• Zhou Mu told Huangfu Ji that he was the kind of person who could help him seize the world.

Zhou Mu urged Huangfu Ji to seize the realm and outlined how Qingyang could expand by taking nearby territories. Huangfu Ji listened with growing interest, but Wang Zhi questioned whether Qingyang had the strength and Soul Masters needed to carry out the plan.

• Zhou Mu told Huangfu Ji he could help him seize the realm, stirring Huangfu Ji’s buried ambition.
• Huangfu Ji tested Zhou Mu by lunging at him with a dragon claw, but stopped when Zhou Mu remained calm and said he knew the Grand Duke would not kill him.
• Zhou Mu admitted he was from Star Luo and explained how Wang Zhi’s purchase of slaves had given him the chance to meet Huangfu Ji.
• Zhou Mu urged Huangfu Ji to envision Qingyang as a unified Empire forged by him.
• Zhou Mu used chess pieces to explain how Qingyang could take Shanyang and Buren Provinces, hold Shanyang Pass, and then defeat the Siren Kingdom.
• Wang Zhi questioned whether Qingyang had enough military strength and powerful Soul Masters to execute Zhou Mu’s plan.

Zhou Mu outlined how Huangfu Ji could expand Qingyang Duchy and eventually challenge the Empire, while Huangfu Ji revealed that Tang Yuehua had overheard their conversation. At the Imperial Palace, Xue Xing and Ning Fengzhi discussed how to keep Huangfu Ji under imperial control, leaving Xue Ye to consider granting him a different grand-ducal title.

• Zhou Mu proposed that Huangfu Ji secure Qingyang Duchy, conquer neighboring territories, and eventually unify the continent, though Spirit Hall would become an obstacle.
• Huangfu Ji revealed that Tang Yuehua was eavesdropping, and she entered the room after Wang Zhi nearly reached for his sword.
• Huangfu Ji identified Tang Yuehua as the Clear Sky Sect master's daughter, and she insisted she would not report him while warning that Qingyang could not defeat the Empire.
• After Tang Yuehua left, Huangfu Ji ordered Wang Zhi to send out all the spies and told Zhou Mu to accompany him.
• Xue Xing warned Xue Ye that Huangfu Ji could become uncontrollable, and Ning Fengzhi suggested keeping him in Heaven Dou by granting him a grand-ducal title elsewhere.

Xue Ye and Ning Fengzhi arranged to reward Huangfu Ji and keep him in Heaven Dou, while rejecting Yuan Hao as a potential ruler of Qingyang because his loyalties were suspect. Huangfu Ji accepted the Emperor’s lavish gifts and moved into his new mansion, while privately planning to endure his situation until he became strong enough to change it.

• Xue Ye approved Ning Fengzhi’s proposal to regrant Huangfu Ji a title later and decided Qingyang should be granted to a loyal minister rather than reclaimed by the Empire.
• Xue Xing recommended Yuan Hao, but Xue Ye rebuked him for accepting gifts and rejected Yuan Hao because of his unclear ties to Spirit Hall.
• Xue Ye, Ning Fengzhi, and Xue Xing agreed to treat Huangfu Ji generously, regrant him a title, and keep him in Heaven Dou to serve the imperial family.
• The next day, an envoy delivered Xue Ye’s rewards to Huangfu Ji: a mansion in Heaven Dou City and more than a million Gold Soul Coins.
• Zhou Mu explained that the rewards were meant to keep Huangfu Ji in Heaven Dou and would also protect him from the Empire and Yuan Hao.
• Huangfu Ji submitted a Memorial of thanks, moved into the new mansion, kept the people Xue Ye had assigned there, and appointed Zhou Mu as steward.

Huangfu Ji settled into his new mansion, left Heaven Dou City to cultivate, and gained Xue Ye’s favor, while Yuan Hao plotted to prove his loyalty and remained wary of Huangfu Ji. After Dai Yutian became emperor of Star Luo, he led a massive expedition against Heaven Dou Empire in retaliation for its invasion.

• Huangfu Ji hosted a banquet at his new mansion, where Tang Yuehua misread his friendly invitation and hurried away in embarrassment.
• Huangfu Ji wrote to Liu Erlong, graduated early from the Royal Academy, and left for Sunset Forest to cultivate while Zhou Mu managed his affairs in Heaven Dou City.
• Yuan Hao learned that Xue Ye rejected Prince Xue Xing’s proposal to make him Grand Duke of Qingyang, so he resolved to demonstrate his loyalty while guarding against Huangfu Ji’s revenge.
• Dai Yutian ascended the Star Luo throne after the emperor died, and Xue Ye’s invasion of Star Luo ended in a crushing defeat with sixty thousand troops and a Soul Emperor lost.
• After stabilizing Star Luo, Dai Yutian personally led seven hundred thousand troops and several hundred Soul Masters into Heaven Dou Empire, accompanied by the empress.

As the Star Luo Empire invaded, Yuan Hao sent Jing Hong to kill Huangfu Ji, while Zhao Yuan told Huangfu Ji that Liu Erlong’s mother had died. Huangfu Ji was still cultivating at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, unaware of the news.

• Yuan Hao sent one hundred thousand Qingyang troops to aid the Empire under Sun Ke and denied Jing Hong command of the army.
• Yuan Hao ordered Jing Hong to kill Huangfu Ji outside Heaven Dou City, promising him command of the Qingyang Army if he succeeded.
• Jing Hong realized Yuan Hao might be using him as a scapegoat and began considering a return to the Huangfu Family.
• Zhao Yuan wrote to Huangfu Ji that Mother Liu had died and sent the letter to Heaven Dou City.
• Huangfu Ji continued cultivating at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, having advanced from Level 42 to Level 47 in a year.

After learning that Liu Erlong’s mother had died, Huangfu Ji left Heaven Dou City and traveled to Qingyang to find her. He comforted Liu Erlong at her mother’s grave, while his planned journey to the City of Slaughter remained ahead.

• Huangfu Ji received Zhao Yuan’s letter about Liu Erlong’s mother and ordered Zhou Mu to manage Heaven Dou City while he trained in the City of Slaughter.
• Huangfu Ji set out for Qingyang Duchy, and Tang Yuehua learned of his destination too late to stop him.
• Huangfu Ji found Liu Erlong mourning at her mother’s grave and held her as she cried.
• Huangfu Ji learned that Liu Erlong had been staying beside the grave and that she did not know what to do next.

Huangfu Ji told Liu Erlong he was heading to the deadly City of Slaughter and refused to take her with him. Before leaving, he gave her a Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum, which raised her Soul Power to level forty and left her ready to obtain her Fourth Soul Ring.

• Liu Erlong insisted on following Huangfu Ji, but he refused and explained that he was going to the City of Slaughter to train.
• Huangfu Ji described the City of Slaughter’s dangers, while Liu Erlong begged him not to go; he explained the burden of protecting the Huangfu Family and the threats beyond Yuan Hao.
• Huangfu Ji gave Liu Erlong a Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum and explained how to absorb it.
• Liu Erlong absorbed the herb, broke through to Soul Power Level forty, and embraced and kissed Huangfu Ji in gratitude.
• Huangfu Ji told Liu Erlong it was time to obtain her Fourth Soul Ring.

After leaving Liu Erlong, Huangfu Ji traveled to the City of Slaughter and proved himself by surviving its tavern trial. He entered the city under the purple moon, where a woman in black awaited him at the gate.

• Liu Erlong promised to write to Huangfu Ji, then set out to travel and grow stronger after he left.
• Huangfu Ji reached the town outside the City of Slaughter and ordered Yellow Springs Dew at a tavern.
• When the tavern patrons attacked him, Huangfu Ji killed all eleven without being injured.
• The waiter opened the passage to the City of Slaughter and warned Huangfu Ji that entry did not guarantee exit.
• Huangfu Ji emerged before the city, received the black plaque numbered 8848 from a knight, and saw a woman in black waiting at the opened gate.