Recaps

Yu Xiaogang discovered that Nuoding Academy was replacing his Ten Core Competencies of Soul Masters with books that refuted his theories, and he confronted Dean Li. The chapter ended with Yu Xiaogang realizing the academy was burning every copy of his book.

• Yu Xiaogang saw students unloading new textbooks titled Ten Laws of Martial Soul Evolution and Fundamentals of Martial Soul.
• Yu Xiaogang read Ten Laws of Martial Soul Evolution and found it directly attacking his theories and accusing him of deceiving the world for fame.
• Yu Xiaogang demanded to know where the books came from and learned that Dean Li was at the Back Mountain.
• Yu Xiaogang confronted Dean Li, who explained that the Heaven Dou Empire's higher authorities had arranged the textbook change.
• Dean Li showed Yu Xiaogang that the books burning in the pit were copies of Ten Core Competencies of Soul Masters.

Yu Xiaogang blamed Bibi Dong for Spirit City’s rebuttal books, tore up his copies, and set out for Spirit City to confront her. Meanwhile, Spirit Hall distributed hundreds of thousands of cheap copies across the continent, alarming the nobles and leaving Xue Ye’s court searching for a response.

• Dean Li told Yu Xiaogang that the books were well argued and came from Spirit City, prompting Yu Xiaogang to suspect Bibi Dong had arranged the campaign against him.
• Yu Xiaogang tore the books to shreds, packed his belongings into the Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges, and left to confront Bibi Dong in Spirit City.
• Spirit City completed hundreds of thousands of copies of the two books and distributed them across the continent for one Copper Soul Coin per set.
• The nobles feared the books would give Commoner Soul Masters the knowledge to grow stronger and raise Spirit Hall’s influence among them.
• Xue Ye called a meeting in the imperial palace’s Council Hall and asked the Heaven Dou Empire’s leaders what countermeasures they had.

The two empires and major soul master factions reacted to Spirit Hall’s release of martial soul books, while Qian Renchuan’s reputation grew across the continent. Nearly half a year after her mother’s death, Dugu Yan saw a huge queue outside a bookshop and asked what people were buying.

• Xue Ye ordered the Heaven Dou Empire to grant subsidies and free academy tuition to commoner soul masters, and the Star Luo Empire issued similar benefits.
• Ning Fengzhi told Chen Xin and Gu Rong that Spirit Hall’s books threatened the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and Chen Xin’s suggestion to destroy the books was rejected.
• Great soul master factions began regarding Qian Renchuan as a major threat, while commoner soul masters increasingly saw him as a guiding light.
• Nearly half a year after Madam Dugu’s death, Dugu Yan walked through Heaven Dou City with Chunhua and noticed a long line outside a bookshop.
• Chunhua told Dugu Yan that the shop was selling books, and Dugu Yan asked what had drawn so many buyers.

Dugu Yan learned that Qian Renchuan had written two popular, inexpensive martial-soul books and recognized his name from her mother's letter. At Blue Tyrant Academy, Liu Erlong heard that the books were transforming soul-master education and faced pressure to consider adopting them too.

• Chunhua told Dugu Yan that two books from Spirit City were selling across Heaven Dou City for one Copper Soul Coin, and Dugu Yan asked her to buy them.
• Chunhua read the books' titles and identified Qian Renchuan as their author, prompting Dugu Yan to recall her mother's letter and the Jade Pendant linking him to her family's past.
• Liu Erlong returned to Blue Tyrant Academy after the group's successful soul hunt and received the two books from the dean of studies.
• The dean of studies told Liu Erlong that the books were spreading across the continent, selling cheaply, and prompting the two empires to give money to commoner soul masters.
• The dean of studies reported that academies in Heaven Dou City had replaced their theory textbooks with the books, leaving Liu Erlong surprised by their influence.

Liu Erlong discovered that Qian Renchuan had written Fundamentals of Martial Soul and approved replacing Blue Tyrant Academy’s textbooks despite the conflict with Yu Xiaogang’s work. As Qian Renchuan and Huo Yuhao parted in Blackstone Town, Huo Yuhao gave him notes on Martial Soul Second Awakening and resolved to return to Spirit City and protect his brother.

• Liu Erlong opened Fundamentals of Martial Soul, recognized Qian Renchuan as its author, and found the book more comprehensive than Yu Xiaogang’s work.
• Liu Erlong ordered Blue Tyrant Academy to replace its textbooks with the two new books, then praised Qian Renchuan as a true genius.
• At a junction in Blackstone Town, Huo Yuhao gave Qian Renchuan his detailed notes on Martial Soul Second Awakening.
• Qian Renchuan ruffled Huo Yuhao’s hair and told him to return to Spirit City if he needed help.
• Huo Yuhao resolved to find Qiu'er, return to Spirit City, and protect Qian Renchuan, believing his brother might fall before reaching his full potential.

Qian Renchuan returned to Spirit City and went straight to Spirit Academy, while Qian Xunji launched a furious crackdown after learning that a Spirit Hall archbishop had tried to kill him. Qian Xunji abruptly halted the investigation, and that night he and Bibi Dong erupted into a fierce argument inside the Pope's Palace.

• Qian Renchuan read Huo Yuhao's booklet on awakening a Body Martial Soul and planned to strengthen his Skin Martial Soul with the system's accumulated Soul Power.
• After reaching Spirit City ten days later, Qian Renchuan went straight to Spirit Academy instead of visiting Qian Xunji at the Pope's Palace.
• Qian Daoliu told Qian Xunji that a Red-Robed Archbishop had caused a Beast Tide to try to kill Qian Renchuan, and Qian Xunji ordered Spirit City sealed and searched.
• Spirit Hall's Punishment Knights uncovered and executed over a hundred spies, then sent their heads to the major powers, whose envoys hurried to Spirit City to deny involvement in the assassination attempt.
• Qian Xunji ordered Chrysanthemum Guan to keep searching for the mastermind, but three days later he suddenly ordered the Punishment Knights to stop investigating.
• That night, Qian Xunji and Bibi Dong argued amid terrifying surges of Soul Power inside the Pope's Palace.

After Bibi Dong was stripped of her Saintess title and confined for her role in the attempt on Qian Renchuan, Qian Renxue hurried to find her eldest brother, expecting him to be devastated. She found him in the Back Mountain, but the sight before her left her stunned.

• Qian Xunji issued a decree stripping Bibi Dong of her Saintess position and confining her, then announced a ceremony to choose a new Saint Son and Saintess.
• Qian Renxue learned that Bibi Dong had arranged the assassination attempt on Qian Renchuan and grew furious that she had targeted her eldest brother.
• Qian Renxue went to Qian Renchuan's dormitory to comfort him, but a student told her he had gone to the Back Mountain.
• Qian Renxue reached the Back Mountain expecting to find Qian Renchuan grieving alone, but froze at the scene she saw.

Qian Renxue found Qian Renchuan lounging in comfort while Hu Liena and Xie Yue endured his strenuous training. She came to discuss news from Spirit City, but Qian Renchuan claimed he knew nothing about it.

• Qian Renxue discovered Qian Renchuan relaxing in the Back Mountain while Hu Liena and Xie Yue carried pig iron through squats.
• Qian Renchuan ordered Hu Liena and Xie Yue to resume exercising when they stopped to greet Qian Renxue.
• Qian Renxue sent Li Yan and the girls away so she could speak privately with Qian Renchuan.
• Qian Renxue asked whether Qian Renchuan had heard the news from Spirit City, and he denied knowing anything about it.

Qian Renchuan treated Bibi Dong’s failed assassination attempt as repayment for giving birth to him, helping Qian Renxue let go of her lingering hopes for maternal affection. Yu Xiaogang learned why Bibi Dong had been confined and fled Spirit City, while news spread that Spirit Hall would choose a new Saint Son and Saintess in half a month.

• Qian Renxue told Qian Renchuan that Bibi Dong had lost her position as Saintess and been confined for arranging his assassination.
• Qian Renchuan said he no longer considered Bibi Dong his mother and counted the failed attempt as repayment for his birth.
• Qian Renxue reconsidered her pursuit of Bibi Dong’s approval and felt the burden of her past had lifted.
• Yu Xiaogang heard Spirit City residents say Bibi Dong had arranged the assassination and been stripped of her position.
• Yu Xiaogang abandoned his plan to confront Bibi Dong and left Spirit City, fearing Qian Xunji would punish him.
• News spread that Spirit Hall would hold a ceremony in half a month to choose a new Saint Son and Saintess.

As Spirit Hall prepared to crown Qian Renchuan and Qian Renxue, Qian Renchuan made Hu Liena and Xie Yue pull a carriage while he read. He told Qian Renxue he did not want to become Saint Son because the role would burden him with Hall affairs, though he reconsidered when she offered to handle them.

• Great powers sent lavish gifts and high-ranking delegations to Spirit City ahead of Qian Renchuan and Qian Renxue's coronation.
• Qian Renchuan made Hu Liena and Xie Yue pull him and Qian Renxue in a carriage as part of their training.
• Qian Renxue urged Qian Renchuan to prepare for the ceremony and reminded him that becoming Saint Son would make him Spirit Hall's future successor.
• Qian Renchuan said he would rather avoid the duties of Saint Son, and Qian Renxue offered to manage those duties for him.
• Qian Renchuan brightened at Qian Renxue's offer, then worried it would interfere with her cultivation.

Qian Renchuan considered finding more bond objects to increase his Soul Power and began choosing a promising candidate. The chapter ended with him weighing potential candidates while Hu Liena and Xie Yue ate whale-rubber-laced meals.

• Qian Renchuan refused Qian Renxue's offer to handle his affairs because he wanted her to focus on cultivation, then teased her about carrying him to success until she left in frustration.
• Qian Renchuan reviewed Huo Yuhao's notes on body martial soul second awakenings and checked his System Panel, which showed his accumulated Soul Power had risen above 3,000.
• Qian Renchuan decided that he needed more bond objects, possibly talented newcomers attending the Saint Son Ceremony, to help increase his Soul Power faster.
• Qian Renchuan ended Hu Liena and Xie Yue's carriage-pulling session, gave them candy, and later mixed softened hundred-year whale rubber into their meals.
• Qian Renchuan gathered paper, a brush, and ink and began selecting a potential bond object based on talent, age, and the chance to awaken a martial soul soon.

Qian Renchuan considered potential Bond Objects, but found most of the promising geniuses too young to cultivate. He decided to visit the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well after Spirit Hall’s coronation ceremony to gather Immortal Herbs for Qian Renxue and Huo Yuhao, then ended the chapter laughing with Xie Yue at Hu Liena’s ink-covered face.

• Qian Renchuan wrote down Yan, Ning Rongrong, Feng Xiaotian, Oscar, and Shui Bing'er as potential Bond Objects, but rejected most of them because they were too young to cultivate.
• Hu Liena eagerly helped Qian Renchuan grind ink while he reconsidered how to increase Qian Renxue and Huo Yuhao’s cultivation.
• Qian Renchuan decided to gather Immortal Herbs from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well in Sunset Forest and give them to Qian Renxue and Huo Yuhao for tenfold cultivation returns.
• Qian Renchuan added Dugu Yan to his list, recalling his earlier meeting with Dugu Xin and his wife and the Jade Pendant he had given them.
• Qian Renchuan and Xie Yue laughed when they noticed Hu Liena’s face was covered in ink, and Hu Liena angrily demanded to know why Xie Yue had not warned her.

Dugu Xin brought his daughter Dugu Yan to Spirit City for Spirit Hall’s coronation ceremony, where she hoped to meet Qian Renchuan and ask him to bring her mother back to life. At the hotel, they met Ye Qingcheng and her daughter Ye Lingling, and the two girls quickly became friends.

• Dugu Xin and Dugu Yan entered Spirit City, and Dugu Yan asked when she could meet Qian Renchuan.
• Dugu Yan secretly held the Jade Pendant her mother had left her and hoped Qian Renchuan could bring her mother back to life.
• Dugu Xin warned Dugu Yan to be careful in Spirit City before taking her to the hotel for invited guests.
• Dugu Xin and Dugu Yan met Ye Qingcheng and Ye Lingling at the hotel.
• Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling began whispering together while Dugu Xin and Ye Qingcheng sat nearby and chatted.

Dugu Xin learned that the Clear Sky Sect and Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect masters had come to Spirit City to apologize to Spirit Hall after the assassination attempt on Qian Renchuan. After Tang Zhen privately returned to Qian Xunji, he revealed that the Clear Sky Sect had a clue to the Hundred-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Emperor’s whereabouts.

• Dugu Xin learned from Ye Qingcheng that Tang Zhen and Ning Fengzhi had arrived in Spirit City, likely to apologize to Spirit Hall.
• Tang Zhen and Ning Fengzhi apologized to Qian Xunji, disavowed the executed spies, and presented gifts.
• After leaving the Pope’s Palace with Ning Fengzhi, Tang Zhen claimed he had forgotten something and returned alone to speak with Qian Xunji.
• Tang Zhen told Qian Xunji that the Clear Sky Sect had obtained a clue to the Hundred-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Emperor’s whereabouts.
• Qian Xunji sprang to his feet and demanded to know where the Blue Silver Emperor was.

Qian Xunji told Bibi Dong that the Clear Sky Sect had revealed the Blue Silver Emperor's location and offered her its Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring. Bibi Dong agreed to attend the coronation ceremony, but Qian Xunji then asked to publicly name her as his children's mother and take her as the Pope's consort.

• Tang Zhen told Qian Xunji where the Hundred-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Emperor was, while the Clear Sky Sect planned to use Spirit Hall to eliminate Ah Yin and later rescue Tang Hao.
• Qian Xunji visited the confined Bibi Dong and asked her to attend the Saint Son and Saintess coronation ceremony.
• Qian Xunji offered to kill a Hundred-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Emperor for Bibi Dong's future ninth Soul Ring.
• Bibi Dong accepted the offer and agreed to attend the ceremony, hoping the Soul Ring would help her gain strength and escape Qian Xunji's control.
• Qian Xunji asked to announce that Bibi Dong was the mother of his three children and formally take her as the Pope's consort.

Qian Xunji offered Bibi Dong the title of Pope’s Consort and real power in Spirit Hall in exchange for becoming a good mother to their children. She agreed, but secretly vowed to use her new influence and a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring to take revenge on the Qian Family.

• Qian Xunji offered Bibi Dong the Pope’s Consort title, authority over Spirit Hall’s elders, and the chance to build her own faction if she agreed to care for their children.
• Bibi Dong accused Qian Xunji of humiliating her, but he threatened to keep her confined if she refused.
• Bibi Dong agreed to become a good mother, and Qian Xunji warned her that his father had wanted her cultivation crippled and her imprisoned.
• After Qian Xunji left, Bibi Dong secretly vowed to absorb the Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring and make the Qian Family pay.
• Qian Daoliu warned Qian Xunji that Bibi Dong would never forgive him, while Qian Xunji said he could not be cruel to her because she was his student and the mother of his children.

Qian Daoliu accepted that he would not interfere further in Qian Xunji and Bibi Dong's affairs, then went to speak with her as preparations for the Saint Son and Saintess's coronation continued. Meanwhile, Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling reached Spirit Mountain, where Dugu Yan used Qian Renchuan's jade pendant to gain the guards' permission to enter.

• Qian Daoliu asked Qian Xunji about the coronation preparations and agreed not to interfere in his affairs with Bibi Dong.
• Qian Xunji pleaded with Qian Daoliu not to hurt Bibi Dong, saying she had promised to change and become a good mother.
• Qian Daoliu reflected that both he and Qian Xunji were too devoted to their loved ones to deliver a killing blow.
• Dugu Xin and Ye Qingcheng's daughters, Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling, explored Spirit City while their parents attended social gatherings.
• Dugu Yan persuaded Ye Lingling to approach Spirit Mountain, then showed the Hall Guard Knights Qian Renchuan's jade pendant.
• The Hall Guard Knights recognized the pendant, withdrew their spears, and respectfully let Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling pass.

Dugu Yan used her Jade Pendant to get past the Spirit Hall Guard Knights and brought Ye Lingling up Spirit Mountain to find the person who had given it to her mother. After the exhausted girls got lost, they found a boy resting in a hammock in Spirit Academy’s Back Mountain, but two figures stopped them before they could reach him.

• Dugu Yan showed the Jade Pendant, and the Spirit Hall Guard Knights respectfully let her and Ye Lingling pass.
• Dugu Yan told Ye Lingling that her mother had received the Jade Pendant from someone who would help her if she came to Spirit Hall.
• The two girls climbed until they were exhausted and hungry, then continued uphill hoping to find someone who could help them.
• Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling realized they had lost their way in a wooded area and followed the sound of people talking.
• The girls found a boy lying in a hammock in a clearing, but two figures appeared and ordered them to stop.

Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling reached the Spirit Academy after using a jade pendant to pass the guards, and Qian Renchuan recognized them as bond targets. He hid his identity while offering to help them find the Eldest Young Master, leaving Dugu Yan eager to ask him for help seeing her mother again.

• Xie Yue and Hu Liena intercepted the lost, hungry Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling, whose sobbing woke Qian Renchuan.
• Qian Renchuan recognized Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling when his system identified them as new Bond Objects.
• Dugu Yan showed Qian Renchuan the jade pendant he had given her parents, explaining that it let them pass the mountain guards.
• Qian Renchuan hid that he was the Eldest Young Master while telling the girls he could take them to find him.
• Dugu Yan became hopeful because she wanted to ask the Eldest Young Master to help her see her mother again.

Qian Renchuan sent Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling back down the mountain and realized they had become new Bond Objects, then was summoned to the Pope's Palace. Qian Renxue was also summoned there after learning that Bibi Dong was present, and she feared her father was repeating the mistakes of his previous life.

• Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling gave up climbing to the summit, ate Qian Renchuan's food, and were escorted down the mountain by Xie Yue and Hu Liena.
• Qian Renchuan checked the System Panel and saw Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling listed as Bond Objects, then guessed that talented figures from the original story could all qualify.
• A Hall Guard Knight told Qian Renchuan that the Pope wanted to see him at the Pope's Palace, and Qian Renchuan went with him.
• A female Hall Guard Knight summoned Qian Renxue and told her that Bibi Dong was also at the Pope's Palace.
• Qian Renxue left the dormitory, wondering why her father had released Bibi Dong and fearing he would repeat his past-life path.

Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling returned safely after sneaking onto Spirit Mountain with Qian Renchuan’s Jade Pendant, then told their parents about meeting a handsome boy who helped them. Meanwhile, Qian Renchuan arrived at the square outside the Pope’s Palace and saw Qian Renxue approaching.

• Dugu Xin and Ye Qingcheng searched Spirit City in panic after Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling disappeared.
• Dugu Xin and Ye Qingcheng reunited with the girls, who cried and explained that they had climbed Spirit Mountain using Dugu Yan’s Jade Pendant.
• Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling told their parents that a boy had given them food and sent two children to escort them down the mountain.
• Dugu Xin scolded Dugu Yan for taking the Jade Pendant onto Spirit Mountain, and Ye Qingcheng lectured Ye Lingling.
• Qian Renchuan arrived at the square outside the Pope’s Palace and noticed Qian Renxue approaching.

Qian Renchuan learned that Bibi Dong had been released from confinement and suspected she was the reason Qian Xunji summoned him and Qian Renxue. At the Pope's Palace, Bibi Dong agreed to keep a promise while reminding Qian Xunji of his betrayal, and the siblings stopped in the hall instead of approaching him.

• Qian Renxue told Qian Renchuan that Bibi Dong was out of confinement and might be connected to Qian Xunji's summons.
• Qian Renchuan reflected that Qian Xunji had released Bibi Dong despite previously confining her, and doubted he could escape his tragic fate.
• Qian Renchuan and Qian Renxue entered the Pope's Palace and saw Qian Xunji seated beside Bibi Dong, who wore a pale gold gown.
• Qian Xunji urged Bibi Dong not to disappoint him, and she promised to do what she had agreed while reproaching him for locking her in the Secret Chamber.
• Qian Xunji beckoned Qian Renchuan and Qian Renxue forward, but they stopped in the center of the hall.

Qian Renchuan and Qian Renxue met with Qian Xunji and Bibi Dong at the Pope’s Palace, where Qian Renxue challenged Bibi Dong’s sudden attempt to act like their mother. The meeting ended in open hostility as Qian Renxue asked Qian Xunji to explain why he had summoned them.

• Qian Renxue sensed a faint presence of the Rakshasa God around Bibi Dong, and Qian Renchuan wondered whether the god had begun influencing her.
• Bibi Dong beckoned Qian Renchuan over, but he stayed beside Qian Renxue and asked Qian Xunji why they had been summoned.
• Qian Xunji called Bibi Dong their mother, and Bibi Dong also invited the siblings to come closer as their mother.
• Qian Renxue asked Bibi Dong when they had gotten a mother and said she had thought they and Yuhao had come from rocks.
• Bibi Dong mocked Qian Renxue, who retorted that she had spared Bibi Dong the hardship of carrying her for ten months.
• Qian Renxue turned to Qian Xunji and asked him to state the reason for the summons so she and Qian Renchuan could return to cultivation.

Qian Xunji announced that he would reveal Bibi Dong as Qian Renchuan and Qian Renxue’s mother and formally make her the Pope’s Consort at the coronation. Qian Renchuan suspected Bibi Dong had accepted in exchange for power or a lead on the Blue Silver Emperor, then asked what financial and material benefits he and Qian Renxue would receive.

• Qian Renchuan asked Qian Xunji for practical details about the coronation, while Qian Renxue shared his dismissive attitude.
• Qian Xunji told Qian Renchuan and Qian Renxue that he would publicly reveal Bibi Dong’s identity as their mother and make her the Pope’s Consort.
• Qian Renchuan wondered whether Qian Xunji had offered Bibi Dong a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring or authority, and worried that Qian Xunji would be killed if events followed their previous life.
• Qian Xunji told the children he wanted their family to stand together openly and promised to keep searching for their younger brother Yuhao.
• Qian Renchuan asked whether the ceremony’s gifts and resources would belong to him and Qian Renxue or the Pope’s Palace, then requested a Soul Bone as a name-changing gift for calling Bibi Dong Mom.

Qian Renchuan negotiated permission to leave Spirit City with Qian Renxue after the coronation, while Qian Xunji and Bibi Dong clashed over the children and the ceremony. Back at Spirit Academy, Zhang Meng told Qian Renchuan he had found the children he was searching for at his family’s orphanage.

• Qian Renxue distanced herself from Qian Xunji’s plans for the coronation, and Qian Renchuan demanded an appearance fee for playing along.
• Qian Xunji agreed to send two Titled Douluo to protect Qian Renchuan and Qian Renxue on an outing after the ceremony.
• After the siblings left, Bibi Dong mocked Qian Xunji’s attempt at a family reunion, and he promised to secure the Hundred-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Emperor for her ninth Soul Ring.
• Qian Renchuan and Qian Renxue returned to Spirit Academy, where Zhang Meng hurried to report that he had found the children at his family’s orphanage.
• Zhang Meng said the children were nearly three years old and had been living at the orphanage.