Chapter Summaries

Cheng Xiao publicly challenged Yu Xiaogang’s credentials and condemned Shrek’s student selection and training practices. He ended by arguing that Yu’s Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul merely restated knowledge the major sects already possessed.

• Cheng Xiao mocked Yu Xiaogang and challenged him to explain how Spirit Hall had helped him gather the data for his Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul.
• Yu Xiaogang angrily dismissed Cheng Xiao’s claims and demanded that they debate theories instead.
• Cheng Xiao criticized Shrek for rejecting talented students while taking their money, then pointed out that only fourteen of its sixty-two gifted students had graduated and the other forty-eight had died.
• Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing recognized that their families would have protected and cultivated students with such talent rather than exposing them to deadly danger.
• Cheng Xiao attacked Yu Xiaogang’s reputation and argued that his theories lacked originality because major sects already passed down the same knowledge.

Cheng Xiao exposed why the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had expelled Yu Xiaogang, then mocked his teaching and cast doubt on Tang San’s martial soul. He left Shrek Academy with Zhu Zhuqing, who withdrew and chose to follow him.

• Cheng Xiao told Yu Xiaogang that the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had rejected him because he had betrayed its interests by publishing the sects’ soul-ring knowledge as his own.
• Yu Xiaogang fell silent, and Tang San defended his teacher when Cheng Xiao criticized his guidance.
• Cheng Xiao warned Tang San that Blue Silver Grass could not be cultivated, then left Shrek Academy.
• Cheng Xiao called Zhu Zhuqing to join him, and she withdrew from Shrek Academy and followed him out.
• Flender and the others let Cheng Xiao and Zhu Zhuqing leave, and the confrontation ended in disarray.

Cheng Xiao and Zhu Zhuqing left Shrek for Heaven Dou City, but Tang Hao intercepted Cheng Xiao on the road. Tang Hao prepared to kill Spirit Hall’s Saint Son and demanded to know why he had approached Xiao Wu.

• Cheng Xiao told Zhu Zhuqing to take a Six-Horned Ant and flee if danger arose as they headed toward Heaven Dou City.
• Tang Hao blocked their path, and Cheng Xiao ordered Zhu Zhuqing to escape while he faced him alone.
• Tang Hao revealed that he had come to avenge his wife Ah Yin and his son Tang San after learning Cheng Xiao was Spirit Hall’s Saint Son.
• Cheng Xiao tried to stall Tang Hao, who summoned his martial soul and nine soul rings, including a hundred-thousand-year ring.
• Tang Hao asked why Cheng Xiao had deliberately approached Xiao Wu and whether Spirit Hall knew her identity.

Tang Hao attacked Cheng Xiao, but Cheng Xiao trapped him in Time-Space Reversal, which de-aged and weakened him until his old injuries erupted. Tang Hao fought through Cheng Xiao’s resurrecting Shadow Soldiers, and Cheng Xiao realized the Clear Sky Hammer’s relentless strikes could overwhelm them if the battle continued.

• Tang Hao decided Cheng Xiao had to die and swung his Clear Sky Hammer at him.
• Cheng Xiao used Time-Space Reversal, turning Tang Hao into a child and weakening him enough for his internal injuries to flare up.
• Cheng Xiao summoned the Shadow Legion, and Yegrit charged Tang Hao on the Monarch’s orders.
• Tang Hao struck Yegrit aside, then saw Yegrit and the fallen Shadow Soldiers recover from their injuries.
• Tang Hao unleashed the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer and rapidly destroyed the Shadow Soldiers, worrying Cheng Xiao with how quickly he was clearing them.

Cheng Xiao interrupted Tang Hao’s hammer technique and evaded his attacks until Tang Hao’s Clear Sky Nine Absolutes left him trapped. To survive, Cheng Xiao swallowed the Evil God Orb and unleashed its power, leaving his Soul Rings beginning to transform.

• Cheng Xiao struck Tang Hao with Mental Storm, interrupting his hammer technique and allowing the Shadow Soldiers to overwhelm him again.
• Tang Hao used Clear Sky Nine Absolutes: Shock to destroy the Shadow Soldiers and expose Cheng Xiao, then attacked him with Instant.
• Cheng Xiao used Shadow Exchange to escape Tang Hao’s hammer, but Yegrit was crushed while protecting him.
• Tang Hao sealed Cheng Xiao’s movement and followed with Pierce, preventing another escape.
• Cheng Xiao released the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger from the Evil God Orb, then swallowed the orb to stop it from fleeing.
• Cheng Xiao wielded the orb’s Dark Demon Evil God Lightning to knock Tang Hao’s hammer away as evil energy began transforming his Soul Rings.

Cheng Xiao absorbed the Shadow Soldiers into his soul rings, gaining immense power and injuring Tang Hao before the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger attacked his Spiritual Sea. He escaped to Zhu Zhuqing, leaving Tang Hao behind as he tried to contain the threat within himself.

• Cheng Xiao used the Evil God Orb to transform his soul rings and absorbed the Shadow Soldiers, greatly strengthening them and himself.
• Gold of Life seals repaired Cheng Xiao after the soul-ring enhancement tore his body apart.
• Cheng Xiao pierced Tang Hao's shoulder with a spatial beam, but the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger then attacked his Spiritual Sea.
• Tang Hao used his Martial Soul Avatar to strike Cheng Xiao, who escaped through a black-hole vortex and returned to the outside world.
• Cheng Xiao used Shadow Exchange to appear beside Zhu Zhuqing, then entered his Spiritual Sea to deal with the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger.

Cheng Xiao faced the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger as its evil aura threatened to overwhelm his Spiritual Sea, but the Silver Dragon King refused to help until he provoked her with a shameless threat. She finally attacked the tiger, while warning Cheng Xiao not to repeat his lewd thoughts.

• Cheng Xiao saw the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger target the Gold of Life and his Spiritual Origin as its evil aura spread through the Spiritual Sea.
• Cheng Xiao asked the Silver Dragon King to deal with the tiger and offered to take her to the Dragon Tomb, but she ignored him.
• As the golden safe area shrank and Sky Dream Ice Silkworm panicked, Cheng Xiao recreated an alluring image of the Silver Dragon King and discovered that it angered her.
• Cheng Xiao threatened that killing him would cost her the Dragon Tomb Map, then negotiated for three years to find the Dragon Tomb.
• The Silver Dragon King warned Cheng Xiao not to entertain filthy thoughts about her again and sent golden chains toward the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger.

The Silver Dragon King destroyed the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger’s remnant soul, but its escaping evil energy returned to Cheng Xiao’s body and altered his soul rings. The resulting imbalance shattered the seal above the yin-yang fish and freed the Dragon Emperor.

• The Silver Dragon King bound the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger with golden chains and attacked it with a silver dragon claw.
• The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger exploded its remnant soul, damaging Cheng Xiao’s Spiritual Sea, then tried to escape as a faint black light.
• The Silver Dragon King intercepted and destroyed the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger’s escape, then repaired Cheng Xiao’s Spiritual Sea while suppressing the scattered evil energy.
• The evil energy flowed into Cheng Xiao’s body and caused demonic patterns to imprint themselves onto the Shadow King’s four soul rings.
• The altered soul rings threw the yin-yang balance into chaos, and the black sphere above it exploded, freeing the Dragon Emperor.

Cheng Xiao’s two martial soul powers ravaged his body after the kings’ phantoms vanished, forcing him to seek the Silver Dragon King’s help. She agreed to lend him Gold of Life after he traded information and promised to take her to the Water and Fire Dragon Kings’ resting place.

• The Tai Chi Yin-Yang Plate collapsed, and the Power of Destruction and Power of Shadow returned to the Dragon Emperor and Shadow King, then surged unchecked through Cheng Xiao.
• The Silver Dragon King’s six Gold of Life seals restored Cheng Xiao’s damaged meridians, but they weakened as Sky Dream Ice Silkworm’s Soul Power began leaking out.
• Cheng Xiao asked the Silver Dragon King for more Gold of Life and promised to reach the Dragon Tomb within two years, but she refused to help at first.
• Cheng Xiao offered to reveal a way to reduce humanity’s slaughter of soul beasts, then instead told her where the Asura and Sea God inheritances were and offered to take her to the Water and Fire Dragon Kings’ resting place.
• The Silver Dragon King questioned how Cheng Xiao knew about the inheritances, then agreed to help him.

Cheng Xiao used the Gold of Life to balance the Destruction King and Shadow King, but the Evil God Orb disrupted his Tai Chi formation. The Silver Dragon King added her Elemental Power, stabilizing the five forces and leaving Cheng Xiao with new powers and a surge in Soul Power.

• The Silver Dragon King agreed to give Cheng Xiao a head-sized piece of Gold of Life and instructed him to melt it with Spiritual Power.
• Cheng Xiao guided the Gold of Life between the Destruction King and Shadow King, then used Tai Chi to cycle and balance their powers.
• The Evil God Orb entered the Yin-Yang Plate and took the Lesser Yin position, making the formation unstable.
• The Silver Dragon King sent a droplet of Elemental Power into the Lesser Yang position before falling asleep and warning Cheng Xiao to find the two dragon souls.
• The five forces settled into balance, granting Cheng Xiao greater control, two new skills, access to Elemental Power and the Evil God Orb's power, and Soul Power at level forty-eight.

After waking in a carriage with Zhu Zhuqing, Cheng Xiao explained Tang Hao and Tang San’s origins and discovered a way to send Shadow Soldiers through other people’s shadows. He then bound the skill to a special soul ring, gaining a temporary surge of Soul Power at the cost of being unable to use soul skills for a month.

• Cheng Xiao woke with his head on Zhu Zhuqing’s legs, and the two awkwardly changed the subject as they traveled toward Heaven Dou City.
• Cheng Xiao told Zhu Zhuqing that Tang Hao had stopped him and explained that Tang San was born from the Blue Silver Emperor, leaving Zhu Zhuqing shocked.
• Cheng Xiao summoned a Shadow Soldier and sent it into Zhu Zhuqing’s shadow, realizing he could use the skill to track Tang Hao and Tang San.
• During a rest stop, Cheng Xiao released his demonic-patterned soul ring and used the Aromatic Silk Beauty domain to contain its harmful effects.
• Cheng Xiao merged the Shadow Soldier skill into the soul ring, gaining a temporary Soul Power surge while losing access to his soul skills for a month.

Cheng Xiao discovered that the Evil God Orb let his Shadow Blade wield the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger’s skills, though using his enhanced power came with a severe backlash. In Heaven Dou City, he reunited with Ye Lingling, who tearfully ran into his embrace.

• Cheng Xiao formed Shadow Armor and a Shadow Blade, then used Light Blades to cut down a distant tree and realized he could wield the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger’s other skills.
• Cheng Xiao considered whether Inner Cores could replace soul rings, then dismissed the idea because the world required soul rings and the method had no precedent.
• Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling walked through Heaven Dou City while Yu Tianheng and the others followed, despite Dugu Yan telling them they did not need an escort.
• Ye Lingling worried that Cheng Xiao might be in danger, and Dugu Yan reassured her that he was crafty and could handle himself.
• Ye Lingling spotted Cheng Xiao, burst into tears, and threw herself into his embrace.

Cheng Xiao returned with Zhu Zhuqing, prompting Ye Lingling to claim him as her boyfriend while the women sized one another up. Dugu Yan’s jealousy boiled over, and she told Yu Tianheng she would never like him.

• Ye Lingling tearfully clung to Cheng Xiao when he returned, and Dugu Yan welcomed him while Zhu Zhuqing watched with restrained sadness.
• Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling questioned Cheng Xiao about Zhu Zhuqing, and Zhu Zhuqing explained that she had helped him before and he had brought her to Heaven Dou City to repay her.
• Ye Lingling introduced herself as Cheng Xiao’s girlfriend and held his arm, while Zhu Zhuqing concealed her reaction and the two soon chatted together.
• Dugu Yan grew frustrated at the women’s friendly conversation, then told Yu Tianheng she would never like him when he caught up with her.

Cheng Xiao returned and found Dugu Yan arguing with Yu Tianheng and the Huangdou Team, who demanded to know why she had rejected their leader. When they blocked Cheng Xiao and Dugu Yan, he stepped in and revealed that he had become a Soul Ancestor.

• Yu Tianheng recognized Cheng Xiao and realized Dugu Yan's sudden anger had begun when Cheng Xiao returned.
• Dugu Yan rejected Yu Tianheng, but Osler, Yu Feng, and the others confronted her and demanded an explanation for her changed attitude.
• Cheng Xiao arrived, and Dugu Yan grabbed him and tried to leave with him before Yu Feng and Osler blocked their way.
• Cheng Xiao pulled Dugu Yan behind him and challenged the group when they directed their hostility toward him.
• Cheng Xiao's four soul rings sent Osler and Yu Feng flying and shocked Yu Tianheng and the others with his Soul Ancestor cultivation.

Cheng Xiao returned to Dugu Bo’s residence after revealing his Soul Ancestor rank and unusual soul rings, then presented Dugu Bo with an External Soul Bone called the Eight Spider Lances. Dugu Bo and Ye Renxin had been struggling to form a Soul Core, and Cheng Xiao said he had obtained the bone to help Dugu Bo contain his poison.

• Yu Tianheng lost heart after seeing that Cheng Xiao had become a Soul Ancestor with two ten-thousand-year soul rings, while Osler and Yu Feng stood stunned.
• At Dugu Yan’s request, Cheng Xiao spared Osler and Yu Feng, then left with Dugu Yan, Ye Lingling, and Zhu Zhuqing.
• Dugu Bo and Ye Renxin continued their unsuccessful attempts to condense a Soul Core, with Ye Renxin nearing the end of his life.
• Dugu Bo rushed to greet Cheng Xiao when Dugu Yan announced his return, then scolded him for worrying the girls.
• Cheng Xiao revealed the Eight Spider Lances as an External Soul Bone and gave it to Dugu Bo to help contain the poison in his body.

Cheng Xiao gave Dugu Yan the Eight Spider Lances after Dugu Bo refused to accept the External Soul Bone. He then revealed that Dugu Bo possessed another treasure, but when Cheng Xiao went to the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, the Gold of Life emerged from his Spiritual Sea and stirred a powerful reaction.

• Dugu Bo refused the Eight Spider Lances, so Cheng Xiao gave them to Dugu Yan instead, explaining that the External Soul Bone could strengthen her poison arts.
• Dugu Yan happily accepted the Eight Spider Lances, while Cheng Xiao reassured Ye Lingling that he had one for her too.
• Cheng Xiao said Dugu Bo had been sitting on a treasure and left the cave to gather several mature immortal herbs from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
• The Gold of Life burst from Cheng Xiao's Spiritual Sea, filling the valley with life energy and causing a dragon's roar to echo through it.
• Two dragon souls erupted from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well as Dragon's Might spread and dark clouds gathered over the valley.

The Silver Dragon King awakened inside the Gold of Life, and the dragon souls began using their remaining strength to heal her. The Gold of Life transformed the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and accelerated the immortal herbs’ growth, while Cheng Xiao returned to the others and revealed Lovesick Heartbreak Red.

• The Silver Dragon King awakened and asked the two dragon souls to help heal her, and they poured their fragmented souls into her as she rested in the Gold of Life.
• The Silver Dragon King sank the Gold of Life into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, unleashing life energy that nourished the valley and rapidly grew its immortal herbs.
• Cheng Xiao spotted Dark Jade Divine Bamboo, Star Luo Spirit Pearl, and Chaos Immortal Herb, then harvested a bamboo shoot and left after the Silver Dragon King barred entry for a month.
• Cheng Xiao returned to the worried Dugu Bo, Ye Renxin, and the others, then offered them immortal herbs as gifts.
• Cheng Xiao described Lovesick Heartbreak Red’s miraculous benefits, leaving everyone stunned by the flower’s promise of a ten-rank Soul Power increase and a transformed body.

Cheng Xiao gave Ye Lingling the Lovesick Heartbreak Red, which she successfully plucked and began refining, and gave Dugu Yan the Snow-Colored Swan Kiss to strengthen her poison. The chapter ended with Dugu Bo trying to match Dugu Yan with Cheng Xiao, leaving Cheng Xiao caught between the two elders' expectations and his existing ties to Ye Lingling and Zhu Zhuqing.

• Cheng Xiao gave Ye Lingling the Lovesick Heartbreak Red, and she plucked it by offering her heart's blood.
• Ye Lingling blushed as the others teased her, then sat down to consume the immortal herb.
• Cheng Xiao gave Dugu Yan the Snow-Colored Swan Kiss and warned her to absorb the Eight Spider Lances and channel her toxins into them before consuming it.
• Dugu Bo asked Cheng Xiao what he thought of Dugu Yan, revealing that he wanted to match them.
• Ye Renxin glared at Dugu Bo, while Cheng Xiao grew anxious about the elders' intentions and his complicated relationships.

Dugu Bo’s attempt to match Dugu Yan with Cheng Xiao upset her, and she stormed out after refusing to marry him. Cheng Xiao then gave Zhu Zhuqing an immortal herb and revealed plans to give Dugu Bo and Ye Renxin herbs that could help them condense Soul Cores.

• Dugu Yan angrily returned the Eight Spider Lances and Snow-Colored Swan Kiss to Cheng Xiao, then swore she would never marry him and ran from the cave.
• Dugu Bo apologized to Ye Renxin for trying to arrange the match, while Ye Renxin teased him about Cheng Xiao and Ye Lingling.
• Cheng Xiao gave the Eight Spider Lances and Snow-Colored Swan Kiss back to Dugu Bo to hold until Dugu Yan calmed down, then offered Zhu Zhuqing a Narcissus Jade Bone.
• Cheng Xiao told Dugu Bo and Ye Renxin that he had prepared two immortal herbs capable of condensing Soul Cores.
• Cheng Xiao explained that the Chaos Immortal Herb could help Dugu Bo balance his poison and Soul Power, while the Star Luo Spirit Pearl could help Ye Renxin break through Rank Ninety and possibly evolve the Nine Heart Begonia.

Ye Renxin learned that the Star Luo Spirit Pearl could help him reach Rank 90 and evolve the Nine Heart Begonia, but chose to reserve it for Ye Lingling. After Ye Lingling and Zhu Zhuqing absorbed their immortal herbs and left to obtain soul rings, Cheng Xiao prepared to use Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew and considered giving it to Tian Meng to repair his Spiritual Origin.

• Cheng Xiao explained that the Star Luo Spirit Pearl could help Ye Renxin break through Rank 90 and evolve the Nine Heart Begonia, but Ye Renxin urged him to save it for Ye Lingling.
• Cheng Xiao reassured Ye Renxin that Lovesick Heartbreak Red was a suitable alternative, and Ye Renxin agreed to wait for the immortal herbs to mature.
• Ye Lingling told Cheng Xiao she had reached Rank 40 after absorbing her herb, while Zhu Zhuqing had broken through Rank 30 after taking Narcissus Jade Bone.
• Dugu Bo and Ye Renxin took Ye Lingling and Zhu Zhuqing to obtain soul rings while Cheng Xiao stayed behind to absorb his immortal herb.
• Cheng Xiao took out Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew and weighed using it to strengthen his Spiritual Power against giving it to Tian Meng to repair the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's Spiritual Origin.