Chapter Summaries

Plot points

• Chen An is confronted by a Shrek boy who claims the Holy Spirit Cult abducted and cursed him as a child. He says he follows Chen because he is gay, admires Chen’s strength and blindfold, and regards him as a kind of salvation.
• Alarmed by the boy’s obsessive attention, Chen drops his soundproof barrier and flees through a crowded shopping street. The boy pursues him until Chen escapes by hiding in a narrow gap between shops.
• Ye Xinglan finds Chen there. Seeing his face and sky-blue eyes without the blindfold leaves her momentarily stunned.
• Chen mistakes her silence for an opportunity to leave, takes her wrist, and rushes with her to a quiet riverside path. He apologizes for grabbing her and offers her a cake.
• Ye Xinglan initially refuses out of pride, but reaches for it when Chen starts putting it away. Once she accepts it, she struggles to remember what she meant to ask him; Chen leans closer to hear, making her blush again.

Character developments

• Chen An is usually composed, but the boy’s obsessive behavior genuinely unnerves and disgusts him. He responds with caution, quick thinking, and flight.
• Ye Xinglan shows her familiar pride and guardedness, but her reaction to Chen’s uncovered appearance reveals new, flustered attraction. She also remains susceptible to his small gifts and attention.
• The Shrek boy presents himself as a cursed victim who resists becoming an Evil Soul Master, but his intense fixation on Chen makes him threatening and unsettling rather than sympathetic.

Themes

• The contrast between claims of innocence and disturbing behavior: the boy describes himself as seeking purity while objectifying and pursuing Chen.
• Vulnerability and concealment: Chen’s blindfold hides his striking eyes, while removing it exposes him to Ye Xinglan’s attention.
• Pride, affection, and playful power dynamics: Ye Xinglan resists Chen’s gestures, yet his familiarity with her habits lets him coax her into accepting the cake.

Character interactions

• The boy’s admiration and pursuit collide with Chen’s firm rejection, turning the shopping street into a comic chase.
• Chen’s hurried wrist-grab surprises Ye Xinglan, who scolds him even as she remains flustered by him.
• Their exchange over the cake reflects their teasing rapport: Chen anticipates her response, while Ye Xinglan’s curiosity and attraction make her lose her train of thought.

Plot and events

• Ye Xinglan confronts Chen An after he teases her, demanding to know who he is and how he can handle such an unusual Soul Ring configuration at only ten.
• Chen says he is an orphan with a likely mutated Martial Soul, and that Tang Wuling’s family later took him in. When she asks why he covers his eyes, he gives an exaggerated, only partly truthful explanation about a seal suppressing his power.
• As they shop for food, Chen shares snacks with Ye. She questions why he is relaxed despite having said someone was pursuing him, and presses him about how he defeated Sea-Land Academy. He refuses to reveal his fighting advantage, saying it is his trump card for the championship.
• Ye challenges him to a spar, convinced he has been holding back and eager to test herself against someone worthy. Chen refuses and starts to leave.
• Unable to let the opportunity slip away, Ye offers first money, then raises the wager: if she loses, she will agree to “anything at all.” Chen stops to consider the offer.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Xinglan shifts from suspicion and irritation to sympathy when she hears Chen is an orphan, then grows increasingly curious and competitive. Her confidence gives way to urgency as she tries to persuade him to fight.
• Chen An remains guarded and playful, deflecting personal questions with humor and misleading explanations. He is practical about his plans and protective of his secrets, but shows small kindnesses by giving Ye food.
• Their relationship is defined by teasing, curiosity, and rivalry: Ye keeps probing for answers, while Chen sidesteps her questions and refuses her challenge until the unusually open-ended wager catches his interest.

Significant themes

• Secrecy and misdirection: Chen conceals his abilities and personal truths, keeping others uncertain about him.
• Ambition and rivalry: Ye’s desire to test herself reflects her confidence and hunger for a worthy opponent.
• Trust and vulnerability: Chen’s brief disclosure about being an orphan softens Ye’s attitude, even as he continues to keep much of himself hidden.

Chen An accepted Ye Xinglan’s challenge for the Singles Tournament and later faced her in the quarterfinals, while Gu Yue questioned him about his recent activities. As their match began, Chen An watched the Roulette’s encounter probability rise.

• Chen An accepted Ye Xinglan’s offer, and she insisted the condition he chose had to be within her power.
• Ye Xinglan steeled herself for their match while Chen An delivered dinner to his companions and answered Gu Yue’s questions about an Evil Soul Master and his breakthrough to level 30.
• Chen An saw that Ye Xinglan had replaced his originally assigned opponent in the quarterfinals and entered the arena as the crowd focused on him.
• Wu Changkong questioned Shen Yi about Ye Xinglan’s challenge, and Shen Yi denied arranging it while admitting he wanted Chen An at Shrek.
• Ye Xinglan asked Chen An to remove his blindfold, and he revealed his eyes as the Roulette’s encounter probability increased.
• The referee started the match between Chen An and Ye Xinglan.

Chen An fought Ye Xinglan in the arena, countering her Stargod Sword with his scales while the Fate Wheel offered him a chance to gain a Sword Intent growth path. The match remained unresolved as Chen An watched two suspicious figures in the stands and waited for the Encounter Section’s success chance to rise.

• Tang Wuling and Xie Xie recognized Ye Xinglan as a Shrek student and wondered why she had entered the Skysea Alliance competition to face Chen An.
• Ye Xinglan attacked Chen An with her Stargod Sword, but he trapped it with a whip of scales and endured the corrosive Stargod Power.
• The Fate Wheel offered Chen An a Sword Intent growth path, and he waited for the Encounter Section’s success chance to increase.
• Ye Xinglan used Stargod Power to turn Chen An’s scales against him, but Chen An used Ripple to make them fall harmlessly.
• Chen An noticed a familiar Evil Soul Master and an unfamiliar gloomy man in the stands, drawing Ye Xinglan’s anger when he looked away from their match.
• Chen An apologized and asked whether Ye Xinglan would honor their agreement if she lost; she insisted she would, as the Encounter Section’s success chance reached 79%.

Chen An defeated Ye Xinglan by using his speed and Ripple to disrupt her soul power, then caught her as she fell. After earning a sword-intent growth path and a bonus draw, he left the arena, while Tang Wuling watched him with jealousy.

• Chen An used the fate wheel, surged forward, and touched Ye Xinglan's forehead with Ripple, disrupting her soul power and making her lose the match.
• Chen An caught Ye Xinglan as she fell, and the referee announced Chen An's victory.
• Chen An drew the sword-intent growth path and received a soul power increase and an additional draw through Luck.
• Xie Xie cheered for Chen An while Xu Xiaoyan watched, and Tang Wuling's jealousy showed as she tightened her grip on the armrest.
• Ye Xinglan recovered and confronted Chen An as he left, and Chen An reminded her that she owed him one.

After defeating Ye Xinglan, Chen An left the arena with Class Zero and sensed that Evil Soul Masters had taken an interest in him. An undercover Shrek student warned him to stay in Skysea City after the tournament, hinting that danger awaited him if he left.

• Chen An praised his victory, then left the competition area with Tang Wuling and the rest of Class Zero.
• A black-clad Holy Spirit Cult elder discovered Chen An's two Millennium Soul Rings and ordered the undercover youth to watch him and arrange an attack aboard the return Soul Guidance Train.
• Chen An sensed the Evil Soul Masters watching him as the referee announced his victory over Ye Xinglan.
• The undercover student approached Class Zero outside the stadium and advised Chen An to remain in Skysea City after winning the championship.

After Class Zero swept the Skysea Grand Tournament, Chen An stayed alert to the Holy Spirit Cult’s threat and took his companions out to celebrate. In his mental world, a conversation with the humanoid guide ended with Chen An questioning what the guide really knew about him.

• Chen An realized the Holy Spirit Cult was likely planning to attack the group on their journey home, and he kept watch over the tournament crowds.
• Class Zero won the Singles Tournament, Three-Person Tournament, and Five-Person Team Battle, while Chen An memorized the undercover boy and a suspicious black-clad man.
• After the closing ceremony, Gu Yue suggested the group revisit a hot pot buffet, where Chen An and Tang Wuling nearly exhausted the restaurant’s ingredients.
• The five went to Seaside Plaza to relax, and Chen An reflected on the Roulette’s limited rewards and his difficulty advancing after reaching level 40.
• The humanoid guide told Chen An that he seemed unusually detached, and Chen An challenged the guide’s claim that this was the first time it had met someone like him.

Chen An reflected on his lack of ambitions after speaking with a mysterious figure in his mental space, then watched Xu Xiaoyan from afar during a sleepless night. The next morning, as he prepared to leave, Ye Xinglan came to see him off and vowed to surpass him within three years.

• A mysterious figure told Chen An that a life without goals would feel hollow, but Chen An said he only wanted to live peacefully and avoid trouble.
• Unable to sleep, Chen An went onto the balcony and noticed Xu Xiaoyan standing alone; he decided to ask about her worries after they returned to the academy.
• Chen An joined his Class Zero companions as the academy teams prepared to leave, but Ye Xinglan blocked his path and pretended she had only happened to pass by.
• Ye Xinglan hurried after Chen An when he tried to leave, then vowed to surpass him within three years and enter Shrek Inner Academy.
• Chen An teased Ye Xinglan about coming to see him off, said goodbye, and left with his companions while she watched him go.

Chen An discovered Evil Soul Masters aboard the return train and captured one in the restroom, learning that the group planned to attack him and Tang Wuling. After destroying the explosives and killing his captive, he turned his attention to the six remaining enemies.

• Chen An detected several Evil Soul Masters aboard the train and noticed Wu Changkong quietly observing him.
• Chen An followed one Evil Soul Master into a restroom, sealed it with a sound-blocking barrier, and subdued him.
• Chen An forced the captive to reveal that seven Evil Soul Masters were involved, that explosives were hidden in the Communication Soul Tools, and that he and Tang Wuling were the targets.
• Chen An destroyed the explosives and killed the captive, then counted six enemies still aboard or waiting along the route.