Recaps

Lu Heng used Su Qian's token to obtain the rare materials he needed to balance his five attributes and awaken the Mystic Water Body. He began a ten-day seclusion in the Secret Chamber while Han Yue promised to guard him.

• Zi Yan accompanied Lu Heng to Elder Li's counter, where Lu Heng used Su Qian's token to claim twenty-five Fifth-Grade Magic Cores and fifty Fifth-Grade Medicinal Herbs.
• On the way back, Zi Yan threw two fighting old students into a mud pit, and Lu Heng picked up the earth-yellow Medicinal Fruit they had dropped.
• Lu Heng told Han Yue he would cultivate in seclusion for ten days, and she agreed to guard him and keep Zi Yan from disturbing him.
• Lu Heng entered the Secret Chamber, placed the Magic Cores and Medicinal Herbs around the Spirit Gathering Array, and prepared to cultivate.

Lu Heng completed his five physiques at Fifth Rank, but the Book of Destiny revealed that future breakthroughs required high-rank Magical Beast essence blood. After emerging from seclusion, he learned the Strong Ranking Tournament would begin in half a month, with Great Elder Su Qian offering a mysterious prize to the top three.

• Lu Heng awakened his Mystic Water Body, bringing all five physiques to Fifth Rank and demonstrating that his body could withstand a Refined Steel dagger.
• The Book of Destiny warned Lu Heng that ordinary Magic Cores would no longer help him advance and that he needed high-rank Magical Beast essence blood.
• Lu Heng left seclusion, gave Zi Yan a jar of candy pills, and accidentally shattered Han Yue’s ceramic teacup with his increased strength.
• Han Yue told Lu Heng that the Strong Ranking Tournament would begin in half a month, with rewards for the top ten, top five, and top three.
• Zi Yan learned that Su Qian had canceled the first-place reward because she kept winning and eating the prizes, then angrily threatened to pluck his beard.

Lu Heng emerged from seclusion with an aura so concealed that his friends thought him like an ordinary person, then heard their report on the Strong Ranking List’s top ten. Cao Yue’s Central Plains origins, Fire Attribute, and alchemy made him suspect she might be connected to the Cao Clan of the Pill Tower, while the chapter ended at a secluded courtyard filled with Fire Attribute medicinal ingredients.

• Lin Xiuya, Yan Hao, Liu Qing, and Lin Yan entered the courtyard and were stunned by Lu Heng’s lack of detectable Dou Qi fluctuations.
• Lu Heng’s friends discussed his rapid progress and joked that he had consumed much of the Great Elder’s medicinal stock.
• Lin Xiuya reviewed the Strong Ranking List’s top ten, including the powerful Chu Yuan, Xiao Zhanting, and Mo Chen.
• Yan Hao, Lin Yan, and Lin Xiuya warned Lu Heng that third-ranked Cao Yue was a mid-stage Nine-Star Dou Ling and peak fourth-tier alchemist who used pills in battle.
• Lu Heng connected Cao Yue’s surname, Central Plains origin, Fire Attribute, and alchemy to the Cao Clan of the Pill Tower.
• The scene shifted to a secluded Inner Academy courtyard where rare Fire Attribute medicinal ingredients grew in medicinal fields.

Cao Yue visited Lu Heng in the Secluded Bamboo Forest, hoping to exchange pill-refining insights and learn whether his methods could help her break through to the Fifth-Rank. Her arrival surprised Lu Heng’s companions, and the chapter ended as she joined them at the stone table.

• Cao Yue learned that Lu Heng had ended his seclusion and reflected on his remarkable pills and her own stalled progress at the peak of the fourth grade.
• Cao Yue decided to seek Lu Heng’s guidance on pill refining and went with her junior sister to the Secluded Bamboo Forest.
• Lin Xiuya and Yan Hao discussed the Strong Ranking List tournament with Lu Heng when Cao Yue arrived at his courtyard.
• Cao Yue greeted Zi Yan with a gift of Honey Fruit Preserves, then sat opposite Lu Heng.
• Cao Yue praised Lu Heng and Han Yue as a perfect match.

Cao Yue visited Lu Heng to seek an exchange of alchemy insights, offering him a rare soul-nourishing herb. Lu Heng declined the gift and revealed that his soul realm had reached the Late-Stage Mortal Realm, leaving Cao Yue shocked.

• Cao Yue explained that Lu Heng's pills had surpassed her knowledge and asked him to guide her toward breaking through to Fifth-Rank alchemy.
• Cao Yue offered Lu Heng a Fifth-Rank Phantom Spirit Nine-Star Grass as a token of introduction.
• Lu Heng returned the herb, saying he welcomed an exchange of insights but that Cao Yue needed the plant more than he did.
• Lu Heng revealed that his soul realm had reached the Late-Stage Mortal Realm, stunning Cao Yue.

Lu Heng revealed that he had reached the Late-Stage Mortal Realm and explained the soul-realm stages to the others. After the students left to train for the Strong Ranking Tournament, Cao Yue demonstrated her Hundred Flower Array Cauldron technique for Lu Heng.

• Lu Heng released his soul power, convincing Cao Yue that he had reached the Late-Stage Mortal Realm.
• Lu Heng explained the four soul realms and described the abilities and limits of the Mortal and Spirit Realms.
• Lin Yan, Liu Qing, Yan Hao, and Lin Xiuya left to train or prepare for the Strong Ranking Tournament, while Zi Yan and Han Yue stayed with Lu Heng and Cao Yue.
• Lu Heng asked Cao Yue to demonstrate how she refined a Peak Fourth-Grade Pill, and she brought out her Hundred Flower Array Cauldron.
• Cao Yue formed five connected flames inside the cauldron, creating a balanced miniature fire formation that caught Lu Heng's interest.

Lu Heng helped Cao Yue refine a Peak Fourth-Grade Red Sun Soul-Stabilizing Pill, then showed her how to turn an imperfection in her fire array into an advantage. Cao Yue gave Han Yue the Phantom Spirit Nine-Star Grass and looked forward to Lu Heng’s upcoming Strong Ranking List competition, warning him about Chu Yuan.

• Cao Yue used her intricate fire array to refine ingredients while Han Yue and Zi Yan watched and discussed her technique.
• Lu Heng identified a flaw in Cao Yue’s fire control and used Water Attribute dou qi to strengthen the flame, helping her form a Peak Fourth-Grade Red Sun Soul-Stabilizing Pill.
• Cao Yue praised Lu Heng’s insight and bowed to him, realizing she had been too focused on perfection.
• Cao Yue gave Han Yue the Phantom Spirit Nine-Star Grass, and Lu Heng promised to refine it into Nine-Star Beauty-Preserving Powder.
• Cao Yue wished to see how Lu Heng would fare in the Strong Ranking List competition and warned him to be careful if he faced Chu Yuan.

With the Strong Ranking Tournament about to begin, Lu Heng drew the attention and hostility of several top-ranked students while his friends trained to catch up. As the tournament opened, Han Yue was prepared to compete, while Zi Yan remained the uncontested first-place favorite.

• Cao Yue warned Lu Heng that several people were targeting third place, and he teased her before she left with a younger student.
• Second-ranked Chu Yuan and eighth-ranked Zhao Lie voiced their hostility toward Lu Heng, while Mo Chen dismissed his chances as an alchemist.
• Liu Qing, Yan Hao, Lin Yan, and Lin Xiuya trained hard and resolved to prove themselves in the tournament.
• Lu Heng found Zi Yan asleep after she ate his Fifth-Grade pills, and Han Yue said her peak Three-Star Dou Ling cultivation had stabilized.
• The Strong Ranking Tournament arrived as scheduled.

The Strong Ranking Tournament began, and Zi Yan defeated Wu Dahu with one punch. Lu Heng drew Qin Lie, a powerful Strong Ranking List veteran, as his first opponent, and both men stepped toward the arena.

• Lu Heng, Han Yue, and Zi Yan arrived at the crowded tournament plaza, where Su Qian announced the rules and began the draw.
• Zi Yan faced Wu Dahu and knocked him unconscious with a single punch, winning her match.
• Lin Xiuya, Liu Qing, and other leading students defeated their opponents during the opening round.
• Lu Heng was drawn against Qin Lie, a peak Six-Star Dou Ling ranked twenty-third on the Strong Ranking List.
• Lin Xiuya warned Lu Heng about Qin Lie's Mountain-Burning Fist, and Qin Lie entered the arena as Lu Heng approached.

Lu Heng defeated Qin Lie in the Strong Ranking List tournament, first evading his attacks and then breaking through his ultimate fire technique with his flame-resistant abilities. The spectators recognized that Lu Heng’s combat strength far exceeded that of a typical Four-Star Dou Ling Peak.

• Qin Lie mocked Lu Heng’s cultivation and challenged him to face the gap between a freshman and an experienced Strong Ranking List fighter.
• Lu Heng used Water Cloud Step to evade Qin Lie’s Mountain-Burning Fist barrage while studying his attack patterns.
• Qin Lie unleashed Blazing Fire Burns Heaven, but Lu Heng’s Li Fire Body dispersed the flames without harming him.
• Lu Heng rushed through the lingering fire and struck Qin Lie with Azure Wood Explosive Flame Seal, defeating him with one blow.
• The spectators marveled at Lu Heng’s victory, and Lin Xiuya concluded that Lu Heng might be invincible among Dou Lings.

Lu Heng instantly defeated Qin Lie, drawing attention from the Inner Academy’s strongest students. Han Yue then began her match against Wei Qingshan, evading his opening attack and preparing an Ice Soul Wind Blade.

• Lu Heng defeated Qin Lie with a single palm strike, and Su Qian and Elder Huo judged his strength to rival the Strong Ranking List’s top ten.
• Cao Yue heard of Lu Heng’s victory and decided to go watch the remaining matches.
• Lu Heng explained Qin Lie’s weaknesses to Han Yue, while Zhao Lie and Mo Chen reacted to Lu Heng’s display and Chu Yuan sensed the energy from afar.
• Han Yue’s match against Wei Qingshan was announced, and Lu Heng told her not to drag it out.
• Han Yue dodged Wei Qingshan’s charge with the Nine-Turn Wind-Roaming Steps and prepared her Ice Soul Wind Blade.

Han Yue defeated Wei Qingshan with her Ice Soul Wind Blades, while Lu Heng and Han Yue continued winning their Strong Ranking List matches decisively. Zi Yan received another bye and demanded an opponent, but the first day ended with her having fought only once.

• Han Yue froze Wei Qingshan's joints with her Ice Soul Wind Blades and forced him to concede in under thirty breaths.
• Zi Yan received a bye for the forty-second match and complained to Su Qian that she wanted to fight, but he ignored her.
• Lu Heng and Han Yue each won all three of their matches, while Lu Heng ended one fight before his wounded opponent could continue.
• The first day's forty-eight matches ended before sunset, and Zi Yan had fought only once because her other two matches were byes.

After the first day of the Strong Ranking Tournament, Lu Heng tried to derive a Five Elements Origin Slash that could approach Dou Wang-level power, but his early attempts failed. The next day, he faced Zhou Kui in the elimination round for the top sixteen.

• Lu Heng reasoned that incorporating Water Attribute into his Four Symbols Origin Slash could balance the five elements and reduce the burden on his soul power.
• Lu Heng made several attempts to fuse the five attributes, but incorrect proportions and conflicts between water and fire caused the formations to collapse.
• Han Yue assessed her own limits and believed Lu Heng could contend for the tournament's top three if he completed the new technique.
• Zi Yan asked Lu Heng to show her the move when he finished researching it, then fell asleep beside her candy beans.
• The next day, Lu Heng met Zhou Kui, a late seven-star Dou Ling ranked nineteenth, in the second round; Zhou Kui said he had to fight to show the juniors he was not weak.
• Zhou Kui began the battle by using his signature technique.

Lu Heng defeated Zhou Kui, and Han Yue advanced to the top sixteen by beating Zhao Kun before falling to Zi Yan. The tournament shifted to a round-robin format, with Zi Yan assigned first place without competing in the ranking matches.

• Lu Heng cut through Zhou Kui's poisonous vines with Golden Light Slash, disabled his arm with Azure Wood Seal, and won after Zhou Kui conceded.
• Han Yue followed Lu Heng's advice to keep her distance and used Ice Soul Wind Blades to defeat Zhao Kun and advance to the top sixteen.
• Han Yue, Lin Xiuya, Yan Hao, Liu Qing, and Lin Yan lost their matches, while Lu Heng and Zi Yan made the top sixteen.
• Su Qian announced that the sixteen contestants would compete in two round-robin groups, with the top five from each advancing to ranking matches.
• Su Qian said Zi Yan's first-place position would be decided from her round-robin performance, and Lu Heng persuaded her to stay seated and watch.

Lu Heng drew the Strong Ranking List’s exemption and watched the morning matches, but Murong Ling challenged him for a place in the top ten. Lu Heng accepted, and the two prepared to fight as the crowd returned to the arena.

• Zi Yan was exempt as the first-place contestant, and Lu Heng drew the other exemption, advancing directly to the top ten.
• Lu Heng watched Chu Yuan win every morning match and assessed the strengths of Chu Yuan, Cao Yue, and the other leading contestants.
• Murong Ling confronted Lu Heng and invoked the Revival Challenge rule to take his place in the ranking battles.
• Lu Heng accepted Murong Ling’s challenge, and the spectators gathered to watch their fight.

Lu Heng defeated Murong Ling’s ice techniques with his Li Fire Body and a fused Dou technique, retaining his place in the top ten. As the ranking battles began, Lu Heng had to choose his first challenge target from the other contestants.

• Murong Ling opened with Ice Seal of a Thousand Miles, but Lu Heng’s Li Fire Body melted the ice before it could hinder him.
• Murong Ling attacked with Ice Soul Spirit Origin Slash, and Lu Heng shattered it with Earth Gold Mountain-Suppressing Edge, forcing Murong Ling to concede.
• The referee declared Murong Ling’s revival challenge failed, and Lu Heng retained his top-ten position.
• Su Qian and Elder Huo discussed Lu Heng’s fused Dou techniques, while Zi Yan complained that his fight ended too quickly.
• The afternoon ranking battles began, and the rankings placed Lu Heng tenth, making him the first contestant to choose a challenge target.

Lu Heng challenged Mo Chen to test his Dark Attribute techniques, but Mo Chen trapped him in a Shadow Domain that blocked sight, sound, and perception. Lu Heng revealed his powerful soul perception and located Mo Chen, leaving the fight poised to turn in his favor.

• Lu Heng chose to challenge Mo Chen, the fifth-ranked student, for a fight without attribute suppression.
• Mo Chen entered the arena and spread his Shadow Domain until darkness covered the battlefield.
• Mo Chen attacked Lu Heng with a Shadow Annihilation Spike, but Lu Heng dodged it and purified its corrosive energy with his Wood Attribute Dou Qi.
• Mo Chen launched twelve Shadow Annihilation Spikes from multiple directions, expecting them to overwhelm Lu Heng.
• Lu Heng unleashed late-stage Mortal Realm soul power, shattered the domain's concealment, and sensed Mo Chen hiding behind him.

Lu Heng defeated Mo Chen with his newly developed Five Elements Origin technique, earning fifth place on the Strong Ranking List. After the crowd recognized the scale of his strength, Lu Heng left the arena already considering how to improve the technique for his next match.

• Lu Heng used soul power to locate Mo Chen inside the Shadow Domain and blasted through his Shadow Barrier with a five-attribute attack.
• Mo Chen was severely injured and thrown from the arena, and the referee declared Lu Heng the winner and moved him to fifth place while Mo Chen fell to tenth.
• Lin Xiuya, Yan Hao, and Han Yue identified the attack's soul-power targeting and devastating five-element fusion, while Su Qian and Elder Huo reacted with disbelief.
• Lu Heng calculated that the Five Elements Detonation had consumed nearly forty percent of his Dou Qi and considered how to make its fusion more efficient.
• Liu Qing silently acknowledged Lu Heng's strength, and Lin Xiuya, Lin Yan, and Yan Hao agreed that they would likely fare no better against him.

Lu Heng rested after defeating Mo Chen, while Han Yue and Zi Yan leaned against him and Zi Yan sensed the natural aura of his Five Elements Cycle. As the second round continued, Mo Chen defeated Gu Yue while Zhao Lie and Lin Feng won or conceded without changing their rankings.

• Han Yue gave Lu Heng water and let him rest against her while he recovered from using Five Elements Detonation.
• Zi Yan squeezed in beside Lu Heng, said he smelled better since becoming a Dou Ling, and explained that she could sense his Five Elements affinity with nature.
• Lin Yan complained about Lu Heng having Han Yue and Zi Yan close to him, while Yan Hao and Liu Qing dismissed his grumbling.
• Mo Chen, still injured, defeated Gu Yue after thirty-two exchanges and rose to sixth place as Gu Yue fell to seventh.
• Zhao Lie defeated Lin Xiaowan through close-quarters fighting, but their rankings stayed the same.
• Lin Feng challenged Zhao Lie, ran out of endurance before his vines could restrain him, and conceded without changing the rankings.

Cao Yue defeated Xiao Zhanting, and the top ten rankings were finalized before the top-five challenges began. Chu Yuan challenged Zi Yan, but she overwhelmed him and kept her first-place rank, leaving the other rankings unchanged.

• Cao Yue used Explosive Pills to defeat Xiao Zhanting, and the referee finalized the top ten rankings with Lu Heng in fifth place.
• Lu Heng prepared to choose an opponent, but Chu Yuan interrupted and challenged Zi Yan for the first rank.
• Zi Yan met Chu Yuan’s attacks without flinching and slapped apart his Thunder Dragon Burning Heaven Break.
• Chu Yuan continued fighting, but Zi Yan broke through his defenses and struck him repeatedly while holding back her final punch.
• Chu Yuan conceded, and the referee declared Zi Yan the winner as she returned to Lu Heng and said she had not used her full strength.

Lu Heng challenged Cao Yue to study her Pill Fire Meteor Array and used his soul force to identify and break one of its array connections. The match remained underway as Cao Yue restored the array and questioned Lu Heng’s intentions.

• Chu Yuan withdrew from the remaining matches due to injury, leaving Zi Yan provisionally first, Cao Yue second, and Lu Heng fifth.
• Lu Heng chose to challenge Cao Yue rather than Xiao Zhanting, hoping to study her Pill Fire Meteor Array.
• Cao Yue opened the match by forming a rotating array of Pill Flame fireballs, then unleashed over a hundred compressed meteors at Lu Heng.
• Lu Heng defended with an Earth Origin Shield and sensed the soul-force array eyes hidden among the fireballs.
• Lu Heng identified an array connection, cut through it with a Golden Light Slash, and watched Cao Yue reorganize her disrupted array.

Lu Heng defeated Cao Yue by dismantling her Pill Fire Array and experimenting with a Five Elements Light Wheel, earning second place in the Strong Ranking Tournament. After Cao Yue advised him to use earth to mediate the conflict between water and fire, Lu Heng immediately began refining his Five Elements Array.

• Lu Heng admitted he had been studying Cao Yue’s array during their fight, so Cao Yue formed the Pill Fire: Purgatory Wall to test him.
• Lu Heng constructed a Five Elements Light Wheel with his five attributes and soul power, then used it to shatter Cao Yue’s fiery wall.
• Lu Heng asked Cao Yue to rebuild her Pill Fire Meteor Array and repeatedly found and struck its hidden core until Cao Yue conceded.
• The referee declared Lu Heng the winner and raised him to second place on the Strong Ranking List, while Cao Yue fell to third.
• Cao Yue advised Lu Heng to use earth as a buffer between water and fire, and Lu Heng began deducing the Five Elements Array after the match.

Lu Heng refined his ideas for balancing the Five Elements Cycle while the Strong Ranking Tournament concluded, leaving him second behind Zi Yan. Su Qian announced that the top ten would receive rewards and undergo Heart Fire Origin Body Tempering in the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower.

• Lu Heng tested using earth Dou Qi to balance water and fire, but found that the Five Elements Cycle still had problems where metal and wood connected.
• Xiao Zhanting defeated Lin Xiaowan, and Su Qian announced the final rankings, with Zi Yan first, Lu Heng second, and Chu Yuan tenth.
• Su Qian announced that the top ten could collect their rewards in three days and that the top three would receive extra rewards.
• Su Qian said the top ten would enter the lowest level of the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower in seven days to undergo Heart Fire Origin Body Tempering.

After the Strong Ranking List competition, Cao Yue gave Lu Heng a jade slip on the Pill Fire Meteor Array and warned him about the dangers of absorbing Heart Fire during body tempering. Han Yue teased Lu Heng about Cao Yue’s attention, then walked out with him hand in hand as Zi Yan called for food.

• Lu Heng agreed to study Cao Yue’s Pill Fire Meteor Array principles after Heart Fire Origin Body Tempering, and she handed him a jade slip.
• Cao Yue warned Lu Heng to control his absorption rate during Heart Fire Body Tempering because his constitution resembled her pill fire.
• Han Yue teased Lu Heng about Cao Yue’s interest, and Lu Heng held her hand and reassured her.
• Lin Yan watched the pair walk away together while the others left him behind.
• Zi Yan called out to Lu Heng that she was hungry.

Lu Heng cooked dinner for Zi Yan, Han Yue, and their friends before continuing to develop the Five Elements Array. With Han Yue’s suggestion to activate and lock the nodes one at a time, he successfully formed a stable five-color array.

• Zi Yan took Lu Heng’s left hand while he held Han Yue’s right, and the three left the plaza together as Inner Academy students gawked.
• Lu Heng prepared sweet-and-sour spirit fish, grilled magical beast meat, and soup for Zi Yan, Han Yue, Lin Yan, Liu Qing, Yan Hao, and Lin Xiuya.
• After dinner, Zi Yan fell asleep, Han Yue covered her with a robe, and Lu Heng tested the Five Elements Array in the courtyard.
• Lu Heng’s simultaneous activation caused Water and Fire to clash, so he struggled to stabilize the five attributes with his soul force.
• Han Yue suggested activating the nodes in sequence and locking each one into place, giving Lu Heng a new approach.
• Lu Heng activated the nodes in the order of Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water, and the completed five-colored wheel rotated stably.