Chapter Summaries

Ye Luochen agreed to share information with Jing Hongchen and then went to Xuan Ziwen’s laboratory to help troubleshoot their Soul Tool assembly line. He explained that its excessive modularization created too many weak joints, and Xuan Ziwen realized he had taken the design too far.

• Ye Luochen decided he had no obligation to protect Shrek and agreed to report to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy with Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen in three days.
• Ye Luochen visited Xuan Ziwen’s laboratory, where Xuan Ziwen explained that their assembled Class 3 Soul Tools failed under the energy released by their core formations.
• Ye Luochen disassembled a Soul Guidance Cannon and learned that the production method used twenty stages, compared with two in traditional production.
• Ye Luochen explained that too many components meant too many vulnerable joints, increasing the Soul Tool’s failure rate.
• Xuan Ziwen acknowledged his mistake and admitted he had pursued extreme modularization too far.

Ye Luochen and Xuan Ziwen improved the Soul Tool production line, but Ye Luochen’s Dark Iron Blade devoured all eight machine tools and evolved again. They suspected the blade’s evolution was linked to innovation in Soul Tool technology, and Xuan Ziwen urged Ye Luochen to test the theory with another breakthrough.

• Ye Luochen proposed combining large die casting with separately made, replaceable components, and Xuan Ziwen adapted the machine tools into a production line of eight machines.
• Xuan Ziwen praised the improved line, but Ye Luochen’s Dark Iron Blade began glowing and pulling the machines toward it.
• The Dark Iron Blade devoured all eight machine tools, and Ye Luochen discovered his Innate Soul Power had risen from rank six to rank seven.
• Ye Luochen connected the blade’s two evolutions to novel Soul Tool designs, and Xuan Ziwen agreed the pattern might point to innovation as the cause.
• Xuan Ziwen urged Ye Luochen to devise another Soul Tool innovation and test the theory, but Ye Luochen said it would not be easy.

Ye Luochen learned that his Martial Soul's evolution had raised his Innate Soul Power to rank six, and Jing Hongchen proposed that a god's trial might explain the change. The possibility left Ye Luochen astonished and doubtful.

• Xuan Ziwen congratulated Ye Luochen on his Martial Soul evolution and complained that it kept swallowing first-generation prototype machines.
• Ye Luochen reflected that his earlier cultivation breakthrough from level thirty-eight to level forty had likely been triggered by the increase in Innate Soul Power.
• Ye Luochen and Xuan Ziwen reported the evolution to Jing Hongchen, who said acquired Martial Soul evolution could come from heavenly treasures or secret techniques.
• Jing Hongchen revealed that records also described gods granting evolution and other rewards through divine trials.
• Jing Hongchen suggested Ye Luochen might be undergoing a trial related to forging or Soul Tools, but stressed that it was only a conjecture.

Ye Luochen set aside Jing Hongchen’s speculation about gods and focused on cultivation, then went to join the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy’s reserve team. There he reunited with the Hongchen siblings and learned that Lin Yuan would lead the team.

• Jing Hongchen told Ye Luochen not to fixate on the possibility that his Martial Soul evolutions were related to divine trials, and Ye Luochen resolved to concentrate on cultivation.
• Ye Luochen spent three days cultivating, reaching Innate Soul Power rank six and nearing a breakthrough to rank forty-one.
• Ye Luochen arrived to join the reserve team and greeted Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen, who had recovered from their injuries.
• Meng Hongchen slapped Xiao Hongchen for acting superior and claimed he considered only Ye Luochen worthy of joining the reserve team.
• Lin Yuan, the academy admissions office director who had overseen Ye Luochen’s entrance examination, arrived and revealed that he would lead the reserve team.

Lin Yuan explained that he would lead the reserve team to the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Tournament and asked the students to introduce their abilities. Ye Luochen’s introduction revealed that he had obtained his Fourth Soul Ring, prompting Meng Hongchen to ask him to show it.

• Lin Yuan thanked Ye Luochen for helping him earn a promotion and the assignment to lead the reserve team.
• Lin Yuan told the seven students they would travel with the main team and might need to compete if something happened to it.
• Mu Yan, Lu Chen, Jiang Yue, and Zhou Xiaowan introduced themselves as nineteen-year-old Soul Kings and fifth-class Soul Engineers.
• Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen introduced themselves as fifteen-year-old Soul Kings and fifth-class Soul Engineers, leading Ye Luochen to reconsider the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy’s strength.
• Ye Luochen introduced himself as a fifteen-year-old Soul Ancestor and third-class Soul Engineer, surprising the other students.
• Meng Hongchen asked Ye Luochen to show her his Fourth Soul Ring.

Ye Luochen revealed that his Fourth Soul Ring was a ten-thousand-year black ring, surprising the reserve team and provoking Xiao Hongchen. After Lin Yuan sent everyone to rest before their trip to the Star Luo Empire, Ye Luochen wondered whether Meng Hongchen’s own strength exceeded what he had seen.

• Meng Hongchen pressed Ye Luochen to reveal the age of his Fourth Soul Ring while teasing her brother Xiao Hongchen.
• Ye Luochen showed four soul rings—yellow, yellow, purple, and black—and Xiao Hongchen claimed that black soul rings were nothing special.
• Lin Yuan and the other team members reassessed Ye Luochen’s value after learning he had a ten-thousand-year Fourth Soul Ring.
• Lin Yuan dismissed the team to rest before their journey to the Star Luo Empire and explained that Ye Luochen’s knowledge of Shrek was especially valuable.
• After the others left, Meng Hongchen remarked that Xiao Hongchen would likely retreat to train, and Ye Luochen considered whether her own abilities surpassed his understanding.

Meng Hongchen explained to Ye Luochen that Xiao Hongchen acted arrogantly to draw others’ hostility away from her, after she had been excluded and maligned because of her status and talent. She kept provoking and hitting him because she did not want him to bear that burden alone.

• Ye Luochen asked Meng Hongchen why she often provoked Xiao Hongchen, and she first joked that it was fun to knock him down when he was showing off.
• Meng Hongchen told Ye Luochen that people had flattered her in public but spoken viciously about her behind her back, leaving her without a place among her academy peers.
• Meng Hongchen explained that Xiao Hongchen had deliberately acted arrogant so people would compare the siblings and view her more favorably.
• Ye Luochen realized Xiao Hongchen’s arrogance had been a clumsy way of protecting his sister.
• Meng Hongchen said she hit Xiao Hongchen whenever he played the villain because she did not want him to endure the malice she had experienced.

Ye Luochen and Meng Hongchen became friends after she explained that she and her brother appreciated how he treated them as equals. After seven days of cultivation, Ye Luochen joined the academy team preparing to travel to the tournament in the Star Luo Empire, where Meng Hongchen discovered he might not have a flying Soul Tool.

• Meng Hongchen told Ye Luochen that she and her brother enjoyed their unusual sibling rivalry and befriended him because he treated them normally rather than with reverence or flattery.
• Ye Luochen agreed to be friends with Meng Hongchen, valuing the siblings’ sincerity over relationships based on profit.
• After seven days of cultivation, Ye Luochen reached the team’s departure day with his condition at its peak and a breakthrough to level forty-three close at hand.
• Meng Hongchen introduced Ye Luochen to the academy’s main team, including its captain, sixth-year student Ma Rulong, and explained that her brother led the reserve team.
• When Ye Luochen asked how the team would travel to the Star Luo Empire, Meng Hongchen realized from his Soul Engineer badge that he might not own a flying Soul Tool.

Ye Luochen joined a journey out of Ming Capital with the academy group, using a flying Soul Tool and Milk Bottles from Meng Hongchen to keep pace. After he relaxed during the flight, the group encountered a spirit beast attack, and their Soul Engineers opened fire as Meng Hongchen reassured him they could handle it.

• Meng Hongchen gave Ye Luochen two Milk Bottles and explained that they stored Soul Power for rapid replenishment.
• Ye Luochen and the group left Ming Capital's jurisdiction and flew toward their destination using flying Soul Tools.
• Ye Luochen praised the technology of his third-rank flying Soul Tool and kept pace with the group using the Milk Bottles.
• A warning of a spirit beast attack came from the front of the group, and Meng Hongchen told Ye Luochen not to worry.
• Dozens of Soul Engineers at the front of the group fired beams of light toward the spirit beast.

Ye Luochen watched the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy’s formation annihilate a soul beast attack and reflected on the empire’s technological advantage. The group crossed into Star Luo Empire after paying a bribe at the border checkpoint, where Meng Hongchen asked Ye Luochen about places to visit before the tournament.

• The academy’s Soul Engineers destroyed dozens of attacking soul beasts with coordinated firepower and barriers, impressing Ye Luochen with their strength.
• The group found no soul bones or other valuable spoils and continued traveling without further attacks.
• The academy reached the Mingdou Mountain Range checkpoint and crossed from Sun Moon Empire territory into Star Luo Empire.
• Star Luo soldiers demanded to inspect the group’s belongings, and the lead teacher paid more than ten thousand Gold Soul Coins to secure passage.
• After the group traveled onward without obstruction, Meng Hongchen asked Ye Luochen whether he knew any fun places in Star Luo Empire.

Ye Luochen told Meng Hongchen about his time at Shrek Academy, prompting her to tease him about the barrier between them. As the team considered a possible tournament match against Shrek, Ye Luochen weighed the risks of helping his new academy defeat his former one, and the team leader asked him to reveal Shrek’s lineup.

• Ye Luochen explained that he had grown up in the Star Luo Empire, studied at Shrek Academy, and later moved to the Sun Moon Empire for certain reasons.
• Meng Hongchen joked that Ye Luochen’s Shrek background created a thick barrier between them, and Ye Luochen called her “Barrier Sister.”
• Meng Hongchen asked whether Ye Luochen would fight Shrek in the tournament and whether the academy might consider him a traitor if they lost.
• Ye Luochen said Shrek was powerful and that it was too early to worry about the consequences of facing them.
• The team leader asked Ye Luochen to describe the lineup Shrek would use in the tournament.

Ye Luochen briefed the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy team on Shrek’s formidable lineup for the tournament and its Seven Devils. He left them with a possible advantage: Shrek’s members knew little about Soul Tools.

• Ye Luochen explained that Shrek’s reserve team was selected for potential, while its official team was expected to consist of this generation’s Shrek Seven Devils.
• Ye Luochen revealed that team leader Ma Xiaotao was a Soul Emperor with the ultimate-fire Evil Fire Phoenix martial soul.
• Ye Luochen identified Dai Yaoheng as a second Soul Emperor and described the other five Seven Devils as Soul Kings with a well-rounded lineup.
• The team leader and members grew concerned about Shrek’s strength, which rivaled their own powerful team.
• Ye Luochen said the Seven Devils rarely used Soul Tools and knew little about them, giving the Sun Moon team a chance to catch them off guard.

The Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy discussed how to counter Shrek, deciding to strengthen its defenses and rely on Soul Tools while Ma Rulong hinted he had a way to deal with Ma Xiaotao. After several days of preparation, Shrek arrived with an unexpectedly weak-looking roster, leaving Elder Ma questioning whether they were taking the tournament seriously.

• Ye Luochen warned the Sun Moon team about Shrek’s powerful Soul Emperors, prompting the accompanying teacher to seek Grade 7 trigger-activated Soul Guidance Barriers for the team.
• Ma Rulong said he had his own way to deal with Ma Xiaotao, and Ye Luochen suspected the academy had prepared a trump card for him.
• The Sun Moon team spent several days arranging lineups and tactics, while Ye Luochen trained diligently in case he was called to compete.
• Shrek arrived at the hotel, and its roster showed a Soul King teacher, several Soul Ancestors, and reserve members who were only Soul Elders.
• Elder Ma questioned why Shrek had brought such a roster, calling it a sign that they were not taking the other teams seriously.

Ye Luochen explained Shrek's reserve team and its hidden strengths to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy, arguing that Shrek's official team was absent because of serious trouble. His teammates recognized the value of his intelligence and began planning to exploit Shrek's weakness.

• Ye Luochen told Elder Ma that Shrek's reserve team had likely been sent because the official members were unable to participate.
• Ye Luochen revealed that Bei Bei was the Tang Sect's senior disciple and warned that his close-range physical techniques could threaten even a Soul King.
• Ye Luochen warned that Xu Sanshi could swap positions with a selected target, but said the rest of the team had little to fear from him, Jiang Nannan, Xiao Xiao, or He Caitou.
• Ye Luochen explained that Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong possessed multiple Martial Soul Fusion Skills, including sealing and offensive abilities.
• The team members changed their opinion of Ye Luochen and recognized how valuable his knowledge of Shrek was.

The Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy hoped to face Shrek before its main-team members arrived, but three powerful Shrek competitors appeared. When the tournament began, the draw paired Shrek with Tianling Advanced Soul Master Academy, and Shrek sent only its seven reserve-team members to compete.

• Elder Ma warned the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy that first-round opponents would be assigned by lot and told the teams to prepare while he monitored Shrek.
• Ye Luochen identified Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yaoheng, and Ling Luochen among three newly arrived Shrek competitors, undermining the academy’s hope that Shrek’s main team was unavailable.
• No further Shrek competitors arrived before the tournament, and the three main-team members stayed out of public view.
• The Star Luo emperor opened the tournament, and the draw matched Tianling Advanced Soul Master Academy against Shrek in the first match.
• Shrek sent seven reserve-team members onto the arena while Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yaoheng, and Ling Luochen remained on the sidelines, surprising the audience and the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy.

Shrek’s reserve team stunned the tournament audience by defeating Tianling Academy in a single attack, while the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy saw through their display and concluded Shrek was hiding weakness. Confident that Shrek was vulnerable, the Sun Moon team concealed its own strength as it prepared for a future showdown.

• Huo Yuhao simulated six hundred-thousand-year soul rings and, with Wang Dong, used their Martial Soul Fusion Skill to disable all seven Tianling Academy competitors.
• The referee declared Shrek victorious, and Shrek’s team left without watching the remaining matches.
• Ye Luochen explained to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy that Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong were only three-ring Soul Masters and that Shrek had used simulation to disguise their strength.
• Elder Ma took Shrek’s tactics and early departure as evidence that the academy was in trouble, and his team grew confident about its chances.
• The Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy selected three main members and four reserves for its match, intending to conceal its strength until it faced Shrek.

As the round-robin tournament began, Elder Ma planned to keep the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy’s strongest members off the stage until they met Shrek. Shrek drew a one-versus-one match and sent Xu Sanshi out, whom Ye Luochen judged capable of defeating the entire opposing team.

• Elder Ma ordered Ma Rulong, Xiao Hongchen, and Meng Hongchen not to compete before facing Shrek, while leaving Ye Luochen to decide whether he would take the stage.
• Ye Luochen said he was willing to compete if doing so would not seriously burden the team.
• The round-robin tournament began with Shrek’s one-versus-one match, prompting the crowd to hope its Soul Emperor would defeat seven opponents alone.
• Xu Sanshi stepped out from Shrek’s resting area, and Ye Luochen identified him as a four-ring soul master with a Black Tortoise Shield martial soul.
• Elder Ma asked how long Xu Sanshi could last, and Ye Luochen replied that Xu Sanshi could likely defeat the opposing team by himself.

The Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy watched the tournament’s opening matches, where Xu Sanshi impressed Elder Ma with his formidable defense and combat ability. After a free day began, Meng Hongchen dragged Xiao Hongchen and Ye Luochen shopping, then pulled them into an auction house despite their exhaustion.

• Ye Luochen described Xu Sanshi’s exceptional defense and close-quarters fighting, and Elder Ma recognized him as a potential future threat to the Sun Moon Empire.
• Xu Sanshi defeated three opponents in Shrek’s opening match, while the Sun Moon team later won its two-versus-two match with two fifth-level Soul Engineers.
• The Sun Moon team watched other matches and saw that several academies had Soul King competitors, prompting Elder Ma to note that the tournament had grown more challenging.
• After the first round ended, Elder Ma gave the team a free day, and Meng Hongchen dragged Xiao Hongchen and Ye Luochen out to shop.
• At night, Meng Hongchen spotted an auction house and went inside, leaving the exhausted Xiao Hongchen and Ye Luochen to follow.

Lin Huaian entered the Red Sun Sect’s Spirit Gathering Array and, despite lacking innate spiritual apertures, opened four apertures after his system awakened and boosted his spiritual energy absorption. He left with Yang Ming’s support and learned that a new aptitude test would take place in ten days.

• Lin Huaian bribed the supervising deacon with Clear Heart Grass and learned that spiritual energy was denser in the array’s northwest area.
• Lin Huaian reached a secluded bamboo grove and struggled to draw in spiritual energy until he opened his first spiritual aperture.
• The system activated, awarded Lin Huaian the Immortal Dao Genius achievement, and increased his spiritual energy absorption speed by 200%, helping him open a second aperture.
• Lin Huaian cultivated through the array’s twelve-hour period and opened four spiritual apertures before returning to Yang Ming.
• Yang Ming gave Lin Huaian a Spirit Array Pavilion deacon’s jade token, offered to help him, and told him to prepare for an aptitude test in ten days.

Ye Luochen sensed that the Spirit-Devouring Carving Knife was connected to his martial soul and urged the Hongchen siblings to buy it. After Shrek bid on the dangerous knife, Xiao Hongchen entered the bidding, leaving the auction in a contest between the two groups.

• Ye Luochen struggled to suppress his Dark Iron Blade and insisted that Meng Hongchen and Xiao Hongchen purchase the carving knife.
• The auctioneer announced that the knife was the ninety-ninth-ranked carving knife, prompting excitement among the bidders.
• A nearby voice identified it as Spirit-Devouring, and the auctioneer explained that the knife had killed countless owners.
• The hall fell silent, and the Hongchen siblings hesitated to bid despite Ye Luochen's request.
• A young bidder from the group suspected to be Shrek offered one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins, and Xiao Hongchen countered with one hundred and fifty thousand.