Chapter Summaries

After the Heaven Dou Division preliminaries ended, Xue Ye offered titles and soul beasts to the advancing students, while Salas challenged the imperial promises. Outside the arena, Huo Wu invited Zhu Zhuqing to join Blazing Fire Academy as Zhu considered leaving Shrek Academy.

• Xue Ye awarded the five advancing teams and promised noble titles, imperial support, and soul beasts for top performers in the promotion matches.
• Salas objected to Xue Ye granting noble titles, and Xue Ye pointed out that the students and the Empire would have to choose between the Empire and Spirit Hall.
• Ning Fengzhi watched quietly, while Wriothesley dismissed the practical value of noble titles for powerful Soul Masters.
• Zhu Zhuqing questioned whether she should remain with Shrek Academy after its performance and prepared to leave.
• Huo Wu found Zhu Zhuqing outside the Great Soul Arena and invited her to join Blazing Fire Academy.

Wriothesley discussed Huo Wu and Huo Wushuang’s invitation for Zhu Zhuqing to join Blazing Fire Academy, urging Zhu Zhuqing to make her own choice. Zhu Zhuqing agreed to join after the promotion rounds, once she had repaid her debt to Shrek.

• Huo Wu invited Zhu Zhuqing to join Blazing Fire Academy, and Wriothesley agreed that the academy had stronger foundations than Shrek.
• Shui Binger said Zhu Zhuqing’s attribute was incompatible with Tianshui Academy, so joining it would not help her.
• Wriothesley told Zhu Zhuqing that she needed to learn to make her own choices and said Blazing Fire Academy’s invitation was hers to accept or refuse.
• Huo Wushuang explained that the tournament rules allowed a registered competitor to switch academies midway through the competition.
• Zhu Zhuqing worried that switching would count as forfeiting and proposed joining Blazing Fire Academy after the promotion rounds, once she repaid her debt to Shrek.

Wriothesley set a condition for Zhu Zhuqing to join Blazing Fire Academy: it had to defeat Shrek Academy, and Zhu Zhuqing agreed. Shui Binger proposed gathering the Elemental Academies, leaving Wriothesley considering the advantages of an early alliance.

• Wriothesley told Huo Wu that Zhu Zhuqing could join Blazing Fire Academy only if it defeated Shrek Academy, and Zhu Zhuqing agreed to the condition.
• Huo Wu accepted the deal and left with Huo Wushuang, after which Zhu Zhuqing also departed.
• Shui Binger asked Wriothesley why he had not directly decided for Zhu Zhuqing, and he said she needed to make her own choice.
• Shui Binger suggested gathering the Elemental Academies, and Wriothesley let her pursue the idea while considering the possible alliance's strength.

Flender announced Shrek Academy’s promotion-match draw and revealed that the tournament’s three top-grade Soul Bones were intended for Spirit Hall’s Golden Generation. Tang San and the others resolved to win them, while Ning Que worried about the strength of their rivals and the danger Spirit Hall might pose.

• Flender told Shrek Academy that they would face the weak Barrack Academy in their first promotion match.
• Flender revealed that the championship prize was three top-grade Soul Bones, including a Wisdom Skull that Tang San coveted.
• Ma Hongjun claimed the Explosive Burning Flame Right Arm Bone would suit him, while Xiao Wu mocked Spirit Hall’s confidence and Tang San vowed to win.
• Flender warned that Spirit Hall might target the winners, and Yu Xiaogang said they would be safe in Spirit City and could travel with the main group afterward.
• Ning Que judged that Spirit Hall, Royal Fight Team One, and Tianshui had stronger Soul Masters and better Martial Souls than Shrek Academy, but kept his concerns to himself.

The promotion matches began under growing political tension between Heaven Dou and the kingdoms, while Xue Ye considered how to strengthen the Empire without provoking Spirit Hall. As the fifteen teams prepared for fourteen days of competition, a Godwind Academy member pleaded with the captain to stop yielding to Huo Wu.

• Xue Ye watched Wriothesley and Sigewinne's independent healing work and regretted that Wriothesley had no interest in becoming a Duke of Heaven Dou.
• Xue Ye weighed the Empire's growing tensions with the kingdoms and Spirit Hall, deciding to delay conflict while gathering powerful allies.
• Xue Ye gave a brief speech, and the promotion matches officially began with fifteen teams scheduled to compete over fourteen days.
• The opening teams appeared weaker than the Five Element Academies, while the strongest ranking contest seemed likely to involve the five teams from Heaven Dou City.
• A Godwind Academy member begged the captain to stop yielding to Huo Wu before the team was sent home.

Godwind Academy’s team protested Feng Xiaotian’s repeated attempts to yield to Huo Wu, while Shrek Academy’s match turned dangerous when Xiao Wu was poisoned and engulfed in flames. Wriothesley stopped Liu Erlong from charging onto the arena, leaving the unconscious Xiao Wu on the ground as Barrack Academy’s teacher invoked the rules.

• Godwind Academy’s members complained that Feng Xiaotian kept yielding to Huo Wu, and their vice-captain went onto the stage instead.
• Xiao Wu knocked out her first opponent, prompting Sigewinne to worry about the severity of the injury.
• A Barrack Academy Soul Ancestor used poisonous mist and a third soul skill against Xiao Wu, leaving her unconscious amid flames.
• Tang San rushed toward the arena, and Liu Erlong tried to attack Xiao Wu’s opponent before Flender followed her.
• Wriothesley struck Liu Erlong with an ice pillar to stop her, then challenged Barrack Academy’s teacher over fairness as the teacher pointed to the unconscious Xiao Wu.

After Xiao Wu was badly burned in the match, Salas and the Shrek Academy teachers argued over the rules until Wriothesley ordered the competition to continue. Sigewinne treated Xiao Wu’s injuries at the medical station and restored her burned skin, though she withheld direct healing because she felt Xiao Wu did not deserve it.

• Salas demanded that Shrek Academy be expelled after Tang San and the others entered the arena, while Flender pleaded that they had only rushed in to help Xiao Wu.
• Sigewinne mediated, and Wriothesley ruled that Shrek Academy should be expelled for breaking the rules, but Xiao Wu’s punishment balanced out her offense, so the match would continue.
• Flender carried unconscious Xiao Wu to the medical station, where a healer found that her burns were severe but not life-threatening and that poisonous mist had caused her to pass out.
• Sigewinne examined Xiao Wu and used her God's Eye to accelerate her natural recovery, restoring her burned abdomen while refusing to heal her directly.

Tang San decisively defeated Barrack Academy’s first challenger with a combination of soul skills, forcing the team to surrender. Barrack then withdrew from the tournament, and the remaining matches continued until evening.

• Tang San faced a Barrack Academy soul master and overwhelmed him with Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, Spider Web Restraint, and Blue Silver Thorn Array.
• Barrack Academy’s instructor surrendered, and Tang San stopped his attack and left the fog.
• Wriothesley, Salas, and Ning Fengzhi did not intervene in the match.
• Barrack Academy withdrew from the competition after its captain judged that sending up the remaining fighters would only lead to further defeats.
• The tournament resumed after lunch and continued until the Royal Knights escorted the academy teams back to their quarters.

Yu Xiaogang rallied Shrek Academy after their defeat by unveiling a Seven-in-One Fusion Skill that he claimed could secure a top-three finish. Meanwhile, Wriothesley reflected on the match before Xue Qinghe visited his residence with two Title Douluo bodyguards to apologize for the lack of a palace.

• Yu Xiaogang praised Shrek Academy's performance, criticized their shortcomings, and announced that he would teach them a Seven-in-One Fusion Skill.
• Dai Mubai and the other Shrek students regained their confidence and began believing they could win the tournament.
• Wriothesley considered how his presence had helped keep the kingdom teams from seriously harming Shrek Academy during the match.
• Xue Qinghe entered Wriothesley's room with Ci Xue and Snake Lance and apologized that no palace had been prepared for him.

Xue Qinghe asked Wriothesley to travel with her and the royal family to Spirit City for the tournament finals, while concealing that her grandfather wanted to meet him. She explained that the finals would be held earlier than usual, and Wriothesley realized they were only ten days away.

• Xue Qinghe offered to have another temporary palace built for Wriothesley, but he declined because he was staying only once.
• Xue Qinghe sent Ci Xue and She Long away after Wriothesley assured them he would not harm her.
• Xue Qinghe asked Wriothesley to travel to Spirit City with her and the royal family for the finals, and he agreed in principle.
• Xue Qinghe explained that the finals were scheduled earlier than usual, and Wriothesley inferred they would begin in ten days.

Xue Qinghe wondered why Qian Daoliu had emerged from seclusion to meet Wriothesley, then invited Wriothesley to meet her grandfather in Spirit City. When she accidentally revealed that the person who wanted to meet him was her grandfather, Wriothesley and Sigewinne exposed that they had known her true identity from their first meeting.

• Xue Qinghe questioned why Qian Daoliu cared so much about Wriothesley and whether he might be a god or a future god.
• Xue Qinghe invited Wriothesley to meet someone in Spirit City, then accidentally began to identify Qian Daoliu as her grandfather.
• Wriothesley and Sigewinne smiled at Xue Qinghe, prompting her to admit that she had been disguising herself.
• Wriothesley said he had recognized Xue Qinghe from their first meeting, and Sigewinne explained that her disguise had failed to conceal her sex.

Wriothesley explained that he had identified Xue Qinghe as an impostor through her behavior, and Qian Renxue revealed her true identity to him and Sigewinne. The group accepted her disclosure, while Wriothesley wondered why Qian Daoliu favored him and learned that the High Priest had changed the tournament finals’ location and soul bone rewards.

• Wriothesley told Xue Qinghe that her unusual behavior had led him to confirm her identity.
• Xue Qinghe removed her disguise and introduced herself as Qian Renxue, daughter of Qian Xunji and Bibi Dong, who was infiltrating the Heaven Dou Empire.
• Sigewinne reacted casually to Qian Renxue’s confession, and Qian Renxue reflected on the flaws in her disguise and plans.
• Qian Renxue said they could call her Qinghe while she wore the mask and Qian Renxue when she removed it.
• Wriothesley asked about Qian Daoliu’s regard for him, and Qian Renxue said her grandfather had changed the finals’ location and the soul bone rewards.

After learning that Spirit Hall had replaced one of its tournament soul bones with an ice-element bone, Wriothesley and Qian Renxue wondered why Qian Daoliu was making such an unusual offer. Qian Renxue returned to speak with her grandfather, leaving Wriothesley and Sigewinne to decide to keep addressing her as Xue Qinghe.

• Qian Renxue explained that Spirit Hall's three tournament soul bones included a new ice-element bone, and Sigewinne advised Wriothesley to delay meeting Qian Daoliu.
• Qian Renxue chose to return and speak with Qian Daoliu, and Wriothesley agreed that she should go.
• After Qian Renxue left, Sigewinne wondered whether Qian Daoliu had deliberately chosen the ice-element bone, while Wriothesley called him interesting.
• Wriothesley and Sigewinne decided to keep calling Qian Renxue Xue Qinghe because she had not revealed her real name to them.
• Qian Renxue asked She Long to arrange a safe place to talk and sent Ci Xue back to Spirit City to inform Qian Daoliu about what had happened.

Wriothesley and Sigewinne discussed Qian Daoliu’s invitation to Spirit City, and Wriothesley decided to meet him. At Shrek Academy’s camp, Jiangzhu envied Zhu Zhuqing’s position as Wriothesley’s disciple and worried she had little role in the upcoming individual match.

• Sigewinne warned Wriothesley to avoid Spirit City in case Qian Daoliu tried to fight him, but Wriothesley judged that Qian Daoliu meant no harm.
• Wriothesley concluded he should meet Qian Daoliu because moving the finals to Spirit City was clearly intended to draw him there.
• Jiangzhu praised Zhu Zhuqing for becoming Wriothesley’s disciple and privately envied the status and advantages that came with it.
• Jiangzhu worried she would be unnecessary in Shrek Academy’s individual match against Blazing Fire Academy because she was a healer and Doctor Sigewinne could provide healing.

Jiangzhu questioned whether Shrek Academy could still help her pursue her dream of becoming the first healing or auxiliary Title Douluo, and considered leaving after the tournament. Zhu Zhuqing persuaded her to wait and see, while Tianshui prepared to face Godwind Academy the next day.

• Jiangzhu criticized Liu Erlong and Shrek Academy’s decline, saying the academy no longer suited her ambitions.
• Jiangzhu suggested that she and Zhu Zhuqing withdraw after the tournament and said she could join Spirit Hall instead.
• Zhu Zhuqing warned Jiangzhu against leaving hastily, and Jiangzhu agreed to observe the academy a little longer.
• Tianshui’s students gathered to discuss the next day’s match against Godwind Academy, with Shui Binger expected to be difficult to defeat.

As Shrek Academy prepared to face Blazing Fire Academy, Xue Ye learned that Thunder Academy had joined forces with Godwind Academy through a tournament loophole and chose not to intervene. Huo Wushuang’s team discussed their strategy against Shrek, while the match had not yet begun.

• Xue Ye asked why Thunder Academy members were with Godwind Academy, and Xue Qinghe explained that Thunder had made a deal to let registered contestants join Godwind.
• Xue Ye accepted the arrangement, while Wriothesley saw no reason to challenge the loophole or the emperor’s decision to overlook it.
• The referee announced that Blazing Fire Academy was ready, and Xue Ye signaled for the match to begin.
• Huo Wushuang warned his teammates not to underestimate Shrek, but said they could handle the team unless Zhu Zhuqing took the field.
• Huo Wushuang’s teammates joked confidently about beating Shrek as both academies prepared for the match.

Shrek Academy faced Blazing Fire Academy, where Fire Hammer defeated Tailong and then transformed the arena with his third soul skill before surrendering. Jing Ling remained to fight on the blazing battlefield, leaving Shrek Academy to face the next match at a disadvantage.

• Blazing Fire Academy sent Fire Hammer, an agility-attack fighter, to face Tailong, and Fire Hammer taunted him before the match began.
• Fire Hammer harassed Tailong with his speed and knocked him out of the arena with a punch.
• Fire Hammer stayed onstage and challenged Shrek Academy's next fighter, so Jing Ling stepped up.
• Fire Hammer released his third soul skill and spread flames across the arena to prepare the battlefield.
• After exhausting his Soul Power, Fire Hammer surrendered and left Jing Ling facing the blazing arena.

Blazing Fire Academy transformed the arena into a fire-favored battlefield, and Huo Jun used the conditions and evasive tactics to wear down Shrek’s fighters. Jing Ling was knocked out of bounds, and Ma Hongjun faced Huo Jun next as the match continued.

• Blazing Fire Academy filled the arena with fire, leaving Jing Ling struggling in the intense heat.
• Jing Ling accused Huo Jun of fighting unfairly, but Huo Jun defended the arena changes as tactics.
• Huo Jun struck Jing Ling and sent him out of bounds, prompting Shrek’s teachers and students to check his injuries.
• Ma Hongjun challenged Huo Jun, who dodged him until Ma Hongjun had exhausted his Soul Power.
• Huo Jun mocked Ma Hongjun for demanding a head-on fight while continuing to evade him.

Blazing Fire Academy used the arena’s fire elements to wear down Ma Hongjun, but Dai Mubai forced him to withdraw and entered the match himself. Dai Mubai and Huo Yun then began a head-on fight.

• Huo Jun shifted the arena’s fire elements toward Blazing Fire Academy, then stepped down after Ma Hongjun became enraged and tried to fight him.
• Huo Lie and Huo Yu kept preparing waves of fire elements while Ma Hongjun struggled to absorb them.
• Tang San wanted Ma Hongjun to endure another wave, but Dai Mubai ordered him to switch out and took his place.
• Huo Wushuang told Huo Yun to continue with the original strategy despite Dai Mubai’s unexpected entrance.
• Dai Mubai and Huo Yun exchanged challenges and immediately clashed at high speed.

Huo Yun fought Dai Mubai to wear him down but was defeated after Dai used his area attack and followed with a close-range blast. Huo Wushuang entered the arena and challenged Shrek Academy to send Zhu Zhuqing or surrender, while Wriothesley and Sigewinne observed how fighters were adopting his terrain-based style.

• Huo Yun dodged and fought Dai Mubai to exhaust him, but Dai struck him with his Fourth Soul Skill and White Tiger Fierce Light Wave.
• Huo Wushuang pulled Huo Yun out of the fight and took his place against Dai Mubai.
• Huo Wushuang taunted Shrek Academy and demanded that Zhu Zhuqing take the field or that they surrender.
• Wriothesley shook his head as Sigewinne remarked that fighters across the continent were copying his terrain-based sparring style.