Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• Tang San awakens in his six-year-old body in Holy Soul Village, retaining memories of his previous life as a God King. He intends to correct past mistakes involving his father, his mother Ah Yin, Xiao Wu, the Clear Sky Sect, and Spirit Hall.
• Old Jack arrives to escort Tang San to Nuoding Academy, alongside Ye Lin, another village orphan with Innate Full Soul Power and a Body Martial Soul. Ye Lin is a transmigrator who knows the world’s story and hopes to benefit by staying close to Tang San.
• During their walk, Old Jack hears Tang San’s unspoken thoughts: Tang San privately complains about the lack of a carriage, Old Jack’s usefulness, and the inconvenience of traveling with him.
• After realizing he can hear Tang San’s thoughts, Old Jack becomes angry and disillusioned. When Tang San asks for some flatbread, Old Jack bluntly refuses: “Eat shit.”

Character developments and interactions

• Tang San is confident that his past-life knowledge makes him superior, but his private thoughts reveal a calculating, contemptuous side that clashes with the gentle reputation he had in his previous life. His hunger and need for Old Jack’s help expose a gap between his pride and his dependence on others.
• Old Jack shifts from warm, helpful village elder to offended and resentful after hearing Tang San’s thoughts. He had believed he was caring for a child he knew well, only to discover Tang San looked down on him.
• Ye Lin acts polite toward Old Jack and initially tries to smooth over the awkwardness. Privately, he is unsettled by how unlike the Tang San he expected this one seems.
• Old Jack’s exchanges with Tang San become increasingly tense as Tang San denies speaking and Old Jack confronts him about the thoughts he can hear.

Significant themes

• Appearance versus inner character: Tang San’s harsh inner monologue undermines his public image.
• Rebirth and altered fate: Tang San expects to control events with his memories, while Ye Lin’s unexplained presence suggests this life may not follow the original story.
• Pride and dependence: Tang San looks down on Old Jack while relying on him for the journey—and, ultimately, for food.

Plot points and events

• Old Jack abruptly slaps Tang San after the boy speaks rudely. Tang San hides his anger, privately vowing revenge.
• At Nuoding Academy’s gate, a gatekeeper insults the village and doubts the children’s certificates. He shoves Old Jack down. Tang San deliberately does nothing, while Ye Lin helps the old man up.
• Yu Xiaogang arrives, rebukes the gatekeeper, and escorts Tang San and Ye Lin inside.
• Seeing that both children have Innate Full Soul Power, Yu Xiaogang is puzzled by Tang San’s Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul and suspects he may have Twin Martial Souls.
• Yu Xiaogang begins hearing Tang San’s unspoken thoughts. He learns that Tang San remembers a previous life as a God King, despises him, and intends not to help him advance as he did before.
• Ye Lin also thinks privately that Yu Xiaogang will likely take Tang San as a disciple and decides to stay quiet.

Character developments and interactions

• Tang San reveals a spiteful, arrogant side beneath his polite appearance. He feels entitled to respect because of his past life and takes pleasure in Old Jack’s mistreatment.
• Old Jack is no longer fooled by Tang San’s outward manners. He recognizes the boy’s hostility and responds with a slap, then maintains his composure after being shoved.
• Ye Lin is surprised by events that differ from the story he knows. He shows concern for Old Jack but otherwise watches, wary of disrupting the expected plot.
• Yu Xiaogang demonstrates concern for the elderly and curiosity about the children’s abilities. Hearing Tang San’s thoughts shocks him and challenges his assumptions about the boy.

Significant themes

• Appearance versus reality: Tang San’s pleasant outward manner conceals contempt and revenge.
• Rebirth and altered fate: Tang San’s memories of his former life shape his choices, changing events from the familiar story.
• Knowledge and self-deception: Yu Xiaogang’s theories and reputation are mocked by Tang San, while the mind-reading revelation gives him unsettling insight into the boy.
• Power, pride, and humiliation: Tang San’s former status clashes with his present vulnerability, fueling resentment whenever others slight him.

Plot points

• Yu Xiaogang hears Tang San’s thoughts and learns that Tang San remembers a previous life as a God King—and intends to kill Bibi Dong, Yu’s former love.
• Yu initially reacts with anger, then realizes that Tang San is currently only a powerless six-year-old. He decides not to let Tang San’s insults or supposed future intimidate him.
• Yu announces that he will take one of the boys as his disciple. Expecting the familiar script, Tang San arrogantly challenges Yu to prove his worth.
• Yu rejects Tang San, calling his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul useless and saying he does not deserve to be Yu’s disciple. He then offers to teach Ye Lin because Ye Lin has a rare Body Martial Soul.
• Ye Lin reluctantly accepts when Yu promises him free meals at the academy.
• Tang San privately looks down on both Yu and Ye Lin, and anticipates that Yu will take Ye Lin Spirit Ring hunting. His memories warn him that they may encounter a dangerous Mandala Snake.
• Yu hears Tang San’s warning through his thoughts and decides he will bring the academy headmaster, a stronger Soul Sect, along for protection.

Character developments

• Yu Xiaogang shifts from wounded anger to confidence and independence. He refuses to be manipulated by Tang San’s contempt and chooses his own disciple.
• Tang San remains arrogant and entitled, expecting Yu to follow the events of his previous life. Yu’s rejection unsettles him, though he masks it with contempt.
• Ye Lin wants to avoid attention, but accepts Yu’s offer when free food is promised.

Themes

• Destiny versus change: Yu’s choice disrupts the story Tang San expects to repeat.
• Knowledge and power: Tang San possesses memories of future events, but his present weakness limits what he can do; Yu’s ability to hear his thoughts gives him an advantage.
• Pride and self-interest: Tang San assumes his status entitles him to Yu’s loyalty, while Ye Lin’s acceptance is driven by practical needs.

Character interactions

• Yu confronts Tang San’s arrogance with a blunt rejection, reversing their expected teacher–disciple relationship.
• Yu offers Ye Lin guidance and practical support, while Ye Lin’s hesitation gives way to an enthusiastic acceptance.
• Tang San silently insults Yu and Ye Lin, but Yu overhears his thoughts and uses the warning about the Mandala Snake to plan a safer expedition.

Key plot points and events

• Yu Xiaogang registers Tang San and Ye Lin at the academy and directs them to the work-study dorms.
• Tang San defeats Wang Sheng in the dorm’s customary newcomer fight and becomes dorm head.
• Xiao Wu arrives. Tang San silently thinks of her as his wife and reveals plans tied to her identity as a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast: he intends to make her sacrifice herself, then revive her for their mutual benefit.
• Xiao Wu can hear Tang San’s thoughts. Horrified by his apparent scheme, she challenges him for the dorm-head position.
• Tang San wins by using Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon to throw her off balance. Ye Lin helps her up, sparking Tang San’s jealous thoughts.
• Xiao Wu deliberately sits close to Ye Lin and takes his hand to provoke Tang San. Tang San tries to invoke the idea that boys and girls should keep their distance, but Xiao Wu points out his hypocrisy when he wants to sit beside her.

Character developments

• Tang San appears courteous and protective, but his private thoughts reveal possessiveness, jealousy, and a calculated willingness to endanger Xiao Wu. He believes becoming dorm head will let him protect her, even as he plans to exploit her sacrifice.
• Xiao Wu shifts from friendly newcomer to wary, defiant opponent after hearing Tang San’s thoughts. She uses her new knowledge to challenge his intentions and deliberately provoke his jealousy.
• Ye Lin is kind enough to help Xiao Wu, but becomes anxious about Tang San’s resentment and fearful of the powerful figure Tang San may become.
• Wang Sheng briefly establishes the dorm’s fighting custom, then accepts Tang San as the new dorm head after losing.

Significant themes

• Appearance versus reality: Tang San’s calm, apologetic manner contrasts with his possessive and threatening inner monologue.
• Trust and hidden motives: Xiao Wu’s ability to hear thoughts exposes the gap between Tang San’s claims of protection and his plans for her.
• Jealousy and control: Tang San’s desire to protect Xiao Wu is entangled with possessiveness and resentment toward Ye Lin.
• Power and manipulation: The dorm’s fight-for-leadership rule sets up a broader contest over who can exert influence and control.

Character interactions

• Tang San and Wang Sheng settle the dorm-head position through a quick fight.
• Tang San and Xiao Wu spar, with Tang San winning; Xiao Wu interprets his actions through the thoughts she hears.
• Ye Lin helps Xiao Wu after her fall, prompting Tang San’s jealousy.
• Xiao Wu uses her closeness with Ye Lin to tease and challenge Tang San, while Ye Lin awkwardly tries to avoid becoming caught between them.

Key plot points and events

• Mo Hen brings Yu Xiaogang’s bedding for Ye Lin, not Tang San. Tang San is upset because he remembers using that bedding with Xiao Wu in his previous life.
• Xiao Wu deliberately asks to share Ye Lin’s quilt. Ye Lin is uncomfortable, but she makes the bed and they lie down together until Tang San interrupts them by suggesting they go eat.
• Yu Xiaogang invites Ye Lin to dinner, then gives him a booklet of cultivation methods. He also says they will hunt for Ye Lin’s first Spirit Ring the next day, with Academy head Sigma accompanying them for protection.
• Yu Xiaogang asks Ye Lin to invite Tang San along so they can find him a Spirit Ring too. Tang San agrees, pleased by the chance to pursue the Mandala Snake he expects from his memories.
• Back in Dorm Seven, Ye Lin shares the bedding with Xiao Wu again. She falls asleep holding him closely, while Tang San watches from his bare bed and struggles to control his jealousy.

Character developments and interactions

• Tang San grows increasingly possessive and frustrated as events depart from his memories. The bedding’s new recipient—and especially Xiao Wu’s closeness with Ye Lin—makes him fear losing the future he expected.
• Xiao Wu knowingly teases Tang San by choosing to share Ye Lin’s bedding. She is at ease with Ye Lin, even cuddling him in her sleep.
• Ye Lin is awkward and flustered by Xiao Wu’s affection, but accepts the shared bedding. He is also nervous about the upcoming Spirit Ring hunt, though reassured by the headmaster’s presence.
• Yu Xiaogang takes responsibility for Ye Lin’s training and safety, while extending the opportunity to Tang San as well.

Significant themes

• A disrupted fate: Tang San’s memories of a previous life no longer guarantee that events will unfold as he expects.
• Jealousy and possessiveness: Tang San’s distress contrasts with Xiao Wu’s playful independence and Ye Lin’s discomfort.
• New bonds and shifting relationships: The shared bedding and upcoming joint expedition bring Ye Lin, Xiao Wu, and Tang San into closer—and more complicated—proximity.

Key plot points and events

• Tang San cannot cultivate properly after seeing Xiao Wu embrace Ye Lin, and he spends the night resentful and jealous.
• Before dawn, Yu Xiaogang overhears Tang San reciting the Mysterious Heaven Skill. Recognizing its value, he secretly writes down the technique for Ye Lin’s benefit.
• Yu Xiaogang takes Ye Lin and Tang San toward Soul Hunting Forest, accompanied by Sigma. Tang San is bewildered and angry that this trip differs from his memories of his previous life.
• In the carriage, Yu Xiaogang gives Ye Lin a rare Storage Soul Tool—Twenty-Four Bridges Bright Moon Night. Tang San recognizes it as the treasured belt he once owned and fumes at its transfer.
• Tang San mentally recalls how to make the Godly Zhuge Crossbow and other techniques. Yu Xiaogang quietly records the crossbow’s design and resolves to obtain more of Tang San’s knowledge.
• At the forest, Yu Xiaogang recommends a Strength-focused assault path for Ye Lin’s Body Martial Soul, and a control-focused path for Tang San’s Blue Silver Grass. Ye Lin accepts; Tang San rejects the advice, declaring that control-type cultivation has no future.

Character development and interactions

• Tang San grows increasingly jealous and unsettled as Ye Lin receives the attention and possessions Tang San remembers as his own. Though outwardly composed, his thoughts reveal anger, insecurity, and knowledge from a past life.
• Yu Xiaogang shifts from mentor to opportunist: he exploits Tang San’s unspoken thoughts to collect techniques and inventions for Ye Lin, while pretending nothing is amiss.
• Ye Lin remains trusting and receptive, accepting Yu Xiaogang’s guidance and the Storage Soul Tool.
• Sigma joins the group for the journey, adding to Tang San’s sense that events are diverging from his remembered past.
• Yu Xiaogang’s conversations with the boys are polite and instructional, but the contrast between his outward behavior and his secret note-taking creates an undercurrent of deception.

Significant themes

• Memory and altered fate: Tang San’s past-life memories collide with a present that no longer follows the same course.
• Jealousy and displacement: Tang San watches Ye Lin take his former place, possessions, and advantages.
• Exploitation of knowledge: Yu Xiaogang turns Tang San’s private recollections into resources for Ye Lin.
• Appearances versus reality: Tang San hides his turmoil behind a blank expression, while Yu Xiaogang conceals his schemes behind the role of a teacher.

Key plot points and events

• Tang San’s private thoughts reveal his plan to abandon the control-focused path he followed in his previous life. He wants to build his Blue Silver Emperor around vitality, healing, and support, while relying on his second Martial Soul for offense.
• He also recalls a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone hidden in a cave behind a waterfall near Holy Soul Village. Yu Xiaogang overhears this and becomes fixated on finding it.
• In Soul Hunting Forest, Yu Xiaogang suggests a ten-year Blue Silver Grass as a safe first Spirit Ring for Tang San. Tang San rejects it, insisting he wants a ring at least four hundred years old. Yu Xiaogang and Sigma find his demands amusing and remind him he is only accompanying them: Ye Lin is the one they came to help.
• That night, Sigma easily drives off a group of ten-year Netherworld Wolves and kills a four-hundred-year Mandala Snake. Tang San recognizes the creature from his past life but decides not to pursue the same early strength he once gained from its Spirit Ring.
• The next morning, Sigma kills a roughly four-hundred-year Mighty Ape. Yu Xiaogang judges it a good match for Ye Lin’s Body Martial Soul, and Ye Lin begins absorbing its Spirit Ring. Tang San watches jealously, consoling himself that his long-term strength will matter more.

Character developments and interactions

• Tang San is determined to reshape his future, but his confidence and sense of superiority clash with his new, comparatively low status in the group. He resents being treated as an extra and envies Ye Lin’s opportunity, while privately imagining Xiao Wu’s future sacrifice as a route to a powerful Spirit Ring.
• Yu Xiaogang accepts that Tang San is not his student and says he will not direct Tang San’s choices. Nevertheless, he secretly hopes to undermine Tang San’s ambitions and is tempted by the rumored Soul Bone.
• Ye Lin receives Yu Xiaogang’s attention and begins absorbing a Spirit Ring selected for its compatibility with his Martial Soul.
• Sigma handles the forest’s threats with ease, demonstrating his strength and leaving the others to focus on choosing and absorbing Spirit Rings.
• The interactions are marked by a contrast between Tang San’s grand expectations and the group’s practical treatment of him as a tagalong, while Yu Xiaogang’s outward detachment masks private interest and spite.

Significant themes

• Reinvention versus past experience: Tang San tries to use knowledge from his previous life to choose a better path.
• Ambition and status: His memories of former greatness make his reduced standing especially humiliating.
• Short-term power versus long-term potential: Tang San rejects an easy, low-level Spirit Ring in favor of a strategy he believes will pay off later.
• Hidden motives: Tang San’s plans, Yu Xiaogang’s resentment, and his interest in the Soul Bone all remain concealed beneath outward conversation.

Key plot points and events

• After absorbing a roughly four-hundred-year Spirit Ring, Ye Lin wakes stronger and tougher, with faster reactions. His first skill, Great Strength, passively boosts attack by 20%; when activated, it adds 50% to both attack and defense.
• Tang San privately envies Ye Lin’s powerful skill, while Yu Xiaogang is pleased with the choice.
• When offered a choice of Spirit Ring, Tang San rejects finding a stronger beast and returns for a Ten-Year Blue Silver Grass. He absorbs it and gains Blue Silver Healing, which repairs minor injuries and restores a little stamina at low Soul Power cost.
• Ye Lin and Tang San register at the Nuoding City Spirit Hall, receive Soul Master badges and one Gold Soul Coin each, and are confirmed as level eleven.
• Ye Lin apologizes to Tang San for becoming Yu Xiaogang’s disciple and for sharing a blanket with Xiao Wu. Tang San dismisses the apology and warns Ye Lin to keep his distance from Xiao Wu.
• Yu Xiaogang gives Ye Lin a newly written cultivation booklet, instructing him to keep it secret. He then tests the Mysterious Heaven Skill himself and feels his long-standing level-twenty-nine bottleneck begin to loosen.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Lin is thrilled by his new strength and skill, remains grateful and obedient toward Yu Xiaogang, and tries to ease the tension with Tang San by apologizing.
• Tang San hides intense envy and resentment behind a calm exterior. He chooses a weak ring deliberately because he believes he can replace it later, and inwardly remains possessive of Xiao Wu despite claiming not to know her.
• Yu Xiaogang continues investing in Ye Lin’s training, then discovers that the Mysterious Heaven Skill may help him overcome his own cultivation limit.
• Ye Lin and Tang San travel and register together, but their exchange exposes the contrast between Ye Lin’s earnestness and Tang San’s concealed hostility.

Significant themes

• Skill quality versus Spirit Ring age: Tang San’s choice reflects his belief that a useful ability matters more than a ring’s power.
• Hidden resentment and jealousy: Tang San outwardly acts indifferent while privately resenting Ye Lin’s advantages and closeness to Xiao Wu.
• Mentorship and secret knowledge: Yu Xiaogang’s guidance benefits both Ye Lin and, indirectly, himself through the cultivation method.
• Unexpected opportunity: A skill passed to Ye Lin may help Yu Xiaogang break a decades-long bottleneck.

Plot points and events

• After returning to Dorm Seven with his first Spirit Ring, Ye Lin is enthusiastically hugged by Xiao Wu. Tang San, who thinks of Xiao Wu as his wife, resents their closeness; Xiao Wu hears his thoughts and deliberately clings to Ye Lin more.
• Ye Lin begins using a cultivation manual from Yu Xiaogang. Its method feels remarkably suited to his Body Martial Soul—and exactly like Tang San’s Mysterious Heaven Skill. Yu Xiaogang later gives Ye Lin four more manuals that match Tang San’s secret techniques: Purple Demon Eyes, Mysterious Jade Hands, Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon, and Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track. Ye Lin is baffled but keeps them.
• Over the next six years, Xiao Wu and Ye Lin grow increasingly close, while Tang San becomes suspicious of Ye Lin’s aura and jealous of the pair. Xiao Wu repeatedly excludes Tang San from their outings and training.
• At graduation, Yu Xiaogang recommends Shrek Academy in Suotuo City. Tang San agrees to go, hoping to reconnect with old allies from his previous life, while claiming he wants to stay with Ye Lin and Xiao Wu.
• At the Rose Hotel, the group discovers only one room is available. Tang San welcomes the chance to share it, but Ye Lin objects to Xiao Wu sharing a room with the men. Dai Mubai then arrives, claims the room, and offers to pay for another.
• Tang San recognizes Dai Mubai from his past life and privately insults him through the mysterious thought-hearing phenomenon. Dai Mubai appears to hear those thoughts, setting up a potential confrontation.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Lin is now a Soul Master and has acquired an astonishing collection of techniques associated with Tang San’s previous life. He is cautious about the mystery but prioritizes the manuals’ usefulness. His protectiveness toward Xiao Wu is increasingly apparent.
• Xiao Wu openly favors Ye Lin and enjoys provoking Tang San, whose jealous thoughts she can hear. She rejects his claim over her and treats Ye Lin as her preferred companion.
• Tang San is increasingly unsettled by Ye Lin’s familiar cultivation aura and bitter about Xiao Wu’s closeness to him. Despite his jealousy, he travels with them to pursue his own strategic goals at Shrek.
• Dai Mubai’s arrival brings Tang San face-to-face with a figure from his former life. Tang San’s internal contempt suggests old grievances remain.

Significant themes

• A world diverging from expectations: Familiar people and events remain, but relationships and roles have changed.
• Secrets and uncanny knowledge: Yu Xiaogang’s manuals mirror Tang San’s private techniques, while thoughts seem to reach other characters.
• Jealousy, possessiveness, and choice: Tang San assumes a claim over Xiao Wu, but she asserts her independence and chooses closeness with Ye Lin.
• Past lives and old rivalries: Tang San’s memories shape his plans and judgments, even as his current circumstances differ.

Plot points

• Dai Mubai hears a disembodied voice teasing him about being cowed by his older brother. He realizes the voice seems to come from Tang San, though Tang’s lips never move.
• Xiao Wu and Tang San refuse to give up their room, arguing that they arrived first. Tang San privately welcomes the idea of sharing a bed with Xiao Wu and Ye Lin.
• Dai Mubai challenges Tang San to a hand-to-hand fight: if Tang wins, Dai will give up the room. Tang accepts despite knowing his current support-type abilities are far weaker than those he had in his previous life.
• Tang tries to restrain Dai with Blue Silver Grass and sweep his legs with a slide tackle. Dai barely shifts; Tang’s leg hits him like an iron pillar, and the recoil sends Tang crashing to his knees in front of everyone.

Character developments

• Dai Mubai becomes unsettled and angry when Tang’s inner voice appears to reveal intimate details about his past and claim they fought in a previous life. He challenges Tang partly to test the apparent boast.
• Tang San is confident and playful in his thoughts, but his present incarnation’s support-focused abilities leave him outmatched. His carefully imagined victory turns into an embarrassing fall.
• Xiao Wu remains openly defiant toward Dai and protective of Tang, hugging Ye Lin’s arm while refusing to yield the room.
• Ye Lin watches with knowledge of how the encounter differs from the original events and recognizes that Tang is badly mismatched against Dai.

Themes

• Reincarnation and memory: Tang’s past-life identity and history intrude on the present, while Dai struggles to make sense of what he hears.
• Confidence versus capability: Tang’s memories and bravado cannot compensate for his weaker current build.
• Comedy through reversal: Tang expects to make Dai fall, but his own slide tackle leaves him kneeling.
• Power and status: The room dispute quickly becomes a contest of strength, with Dai using his confidence and physical advantage to assert himself.

Character interactions

• Xiao Wu and Tang jointly challenge Dai’s demand for the room, while Tang’s private thoughts reveal his attraction to the idea of sharing with Xiao Wu.
• Dai confronts Tang directly after suspecting he is the source of the voice and demands a fight.
• Tang’s failed attack, witnessed by Xiao Wu, Ye Lin, Dai, and the receptionist, turns his boast into a public humiliation.

Key plot points and events

• Dai Mubai mocks Tang San after Tang loses their first fight, then offers to face Tang, Xiao Wu, and Ye Lin together for the hotel room and a night’s lodging.
• Xiao Wu accepts before Ye Lin can object. The three reveal their Martial Souls and Spirit Rings; Dai’s three rings and level-37 rank give him a clear advantage.
• Dai fires his White Tiger Light Wave at Tang San, blasting him into a wall and tearing a smoking hole through the crotch of his pants. Tang heals his injury but cannot repair his clothing.
• Dai openly laughs at Tang’s exposed crotch, provoking Xiao Wu. She attacks with Waist Bow and briefly launches Dai into the air; as Dai regains his footing, Ye Lin punches him in the face.

Character developments

• Tang San tries to preserve his dignity by accepting the defeat and injury calmly, but his furious inner thoughts reveal his deep resentment and desire for revenge.
• Dai Mubai appears amused and confident, but he can hear Tang’s thoughts. This knowledge turns Tang’s private threats into a source of amusement—and fuels Dai’s deliberate humiliation of him.
• Xiao Wu stays loyal to Tang and responds to his mistreatment with immediate anger, choosing to fight rather than let Dai’s insult pass.
• Ye Lin is initially amused by Tang’s embarrassment, then joins the group fight and attacks Dai once Xiao Wu creates an opening.

Significant themes

• Appearance versus inner reality: Tang’s polite, composed behavior contrasts sharply with his spiteful internal monologue.
• Humiliation and pride: Tang’s defeat and damaged clothing make his loss public, intensifying his need to save face and seek revenge.
• Power imbalance: Dai’s higher rank and stronger abilities dominate the encounter, though teamwork gives Tang’s group a chance to retaliate.

Character interactions

• Dai taunts Tang after the first loss, then challenges all three opponents and targets Tang with a humiliating attack.
• Tang hides his rage behind gracious words, unaware that Dai can hear his thoughts.
• Xiao Wu confronts Dai verbally and physically to defend Tang.
• Ye Lin moves from onlooker to active participant, striking Dai while Xiao Wu has him off balance.

Key plot points and events

• Ye Lin and Dai Mubai clash over the hotel room. Their first punch is nearly even, surprising Dai, who is a much higher-level Soul Master.
• Dai activates his third Spirit Skill, White Tiger Vajra Transformation. Ye Lin responds with both Spirit Skills: Great Strength and Soul Power into Strength, converting some of his Soul Power into greater physical power.
• Their second punch creates a major shock wave. Dai is driven back three steps, while Ye Lin retreats four and suffers a small injury. Ye Lin realizes he could boost his strength further, but limits the conversion to protect his body.
• Impressed, Dai concedes the room to Ye Lin and invites him to meet again at Shrek Academy. He also recognizes Tang San and says he will remember him.
• After Dai leaves, Xiao Wu rejects Tang San as a roommate and heads upstairs with Ye Lin. Tang San leaves angry and privately plots revenge.

Character developments

• Ye Lin demonstrates unusual strength for his level and good judgment: he pushes himself hard but understands that excessive Soul Power conversion could damage his body.
• Dai Mubai shifts from anger and confidence to respect after discovering Ye Lin can match him physically. He accepts defeat without further fighting.
• Xiao Wu becomes openly protective of her closeness with Ye Lin and firmly sets boundaries with Tang San.
• Tang San responds to humiliation with resentment and disturbing possessiveness, privately imagining Xiao Wu’s future sacrifice and restoration as a way to claim her anew.

Significant themes

• Power and physical limits: Greater power requires a body strong enough to withstand it; Ye Lin’s restraint matters as much as his strength.
• Respect earned through action: Dai’s view of Ye Lin changes after the fight.
• Boundaries and trust: Xiao Wu insists that Tang San respect her established relationship and personal space.
• Resentment and possessiveness: Tang San’s inner thoughts sharply contrast with Xiao Wu’s autonomy and reveal his vindictive outlook.

Character interactions

• Ye Lin and Dai Mubai engage in a test of strength that ends in mutual recognition, with Dai yielding the room.
• Dai’s earlier conflict with Tang San remains unresolved; he singles Tang San out as someone he will remember.
• Xiao Wu confronts Tang San over his assumption that he can share a room with her and Ye Lin, then leaves with Ye Lin.
• Tang San’s warning that Ye Lin might take advantage of Xiao Wu is rejected as hypocritical and insulting.

Key plot points and events

• Tang San arrives in Suotuo City, changes his torn trousers in an alley, and heads to Flender’s shop to buy Slab Crystal for making Dragon Whisker Needles before Shrek Academy’s entrance exam.
• Flender mysteriously hears Tang San’s unspoken thoughts. He learns that Tang San recognizes him, knows about his feelings for Liu Erlong, and seems to remember a previous life.
• Tang San tries to disguise how much he wants the crystal by asking about a cheap piece of copper and bargaining for the crystal as an add-on. Flender sees through the ruse—and, after hearing that Tang San has only 300 Gold Soul Coins, raises the price to 800, offering credit with interest.
• Though furious, Tang San accepts because the crystal is essential. He leaves with the crystal, little money, and a debt to Flender, while still needing to reserve money for tuition.

Character developments

• Tang San is resourceful and guarded, but his private thoughts reveal resentment toward Flender and a determination to interfere with the relationships he remembers from his previous life.
• Flender shifts from a sleepy shopkeeper to an alert, calculating opponent. Hearing Tang San’s thoughts gives him unexpected knowledge of the future and fuels both his greed and his anger.
• Tang San’s thoughts also expose his hostility toward Yu Xiaogang and his willingness to see Liu Erlong paired with Ye Lin rather than with either Yu Xiaogang or Flender.

Significant themes

• Greed and manipulation: Tang San and Flender try to outwit each other over the crystal, but Flender gains the upper hand and exploits Tang San’s limited funds.
• Memory and foreknowledge: Tang San’s apparent recollections of another life shape his choices, while Flender’s newfound access to those memories may change what happens next.
• Private thoughts versus spoken words: The gap between Tang San’s polite bargaining and his insults creates much of the chapter’s humor and tension.
• Romance and interference: Tang San’s plans to obstruct Yu Xiaogang and reshape Liu Erlong’s romantic future foreshadow conflict.

Character interactions

• Tang San and Flender engage in a tense, comic battle of bargaining: Tang San conceals his real goal, while Flender silently uses what he learns from Tang San’s thoughts to drive up the price.
• Though Tang San never says his insults or schemes aloud, Flender hears them all, making their outwardly ordinary transaction a concealed clash of knowledge, pride, and resentment.

Key plot points and events

• Ye Lin, Xiao Wu, and Tang San arrive at the shabby Shrek Academy and join the registration line.
• All three pass the first screening: their Spirit Rings, Soul Power, and ages meet the requirements.
• Dai Mubai escorts them to the second test. He recognizes Tang San, who responds calmly, though Dai’s look makes him uneasy.
• They join the line beneath a makeshift shelter, where Ning Rongrong is waiting.
• Tang San’s thoughts—unheard by the others—criticize Ning Rongrong’s temperament and reveal plans involving her sect’s wealth, its future destruction, and the possibility of resurrection. Ning Rongrong somehow hears these thoughts and is horrified, trying to identify their source.

Character developments

• Ye Lin is intrigued by Shrek’s extreme shabbiness rather than put off by it.
• Tang San remains composed around Dai Mubai but reveals a calculating, resentful view of Ning Rongrong and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. His thoughts also suggest he has lived through a previous life.
• Ning Rongrong shifts from quiet patience to anger and alarm as she overhears increasingly disturbing thoughts. She suspects the thinker may be reborn and that she once helped him.

Character interactions

• Xiao Wu shares her disbelief at the academy’s condition with Ye Lin, who agrees but wants to investigate.
• Dai Mubai leads the trio inside and exchanges a brief, guarded greeting with Tang San.
• Ning Rongrong has no direct conversation with Tang San, Ye Lin, or Xiao Wu; instead, the chapter’s tension comes from her apparently overhearing Tang San’s private thoughts.

Significant themes

• Appearance versus reality: Shrek’s dilapidated exterior contrasts with its strict standards and powerful staff.
• Hidden motives and suspicion: Tang San’s private plans sharply contradict the friendly relationship Ning Rongrong believes may once have existed.
• The weight of the past: References to a previous life, future catastrophe, and resurrection introduce fate and unresolved history as sources of conflict.

Key plot points and events

• Ning Rongrong recognizes Tang San’s voice as the one behind the insulting thoughts she heard earlier. Though they exchange polite smiles, she privately vows to make his life miserable if he joins Shrek Academy.
• Tang San’s unspoken thoughts reveal his lustful interest in Zhu Zhuqing and fantasies about their past-life intimacy. Zhu Zhuqing hears the voice and is disgusted, but cannot identify its source. Dai Mubai hears it too and becomes furious because Zhu Zhuqing is his fiancée.
• Dai Mubai announces that all five newcomers—Tang San, Ye Lin, Xiao Wu, Ning Rongrong, and Zhu Zhuqing—have enough soul power to skip the third test and proceed directly to the fourth.
• On the way, Dai Mubai explains that Shrek has only three current students. Ye Lin praises the academy’s small classes and selective standards, winning Dai Mubai’s approval.
• The group reaches the fourth-test grounds, where Zhao Wuji is resting. Tang San’s inner voice then disparages the academy and insults its staff and students, setting up further conflict.

Character developments and interactions

• Ning Rongrong shifts from curiosity about Tang San’s thoughts to hostility after realizing he is their source.
• Zhu Zhuqing is unsettled and angered by Tang San’s private comments, while Dai Mubai feels possessive and threatened by them. Neither can openly confront Tang San, who maintains a courteous façade.
• Tang San continues to conceal his arrogant, calculating, and lecherous inner monologue behind polite behavior.
• Ye Lin tries to explain Shrek’s tiny student body as a sign of elite, personalized training, earning Dai Mubai’s respect.
• Dai Mubai is uncomfortable with Tang San’s friendly “Boss Dai,” suspecting it masks resentment, but warms to Ye Lin after the latter praises the academy.

Significant themes

• Appearance versus reality: Tang San’s pleasant exterior sharply contrasts with his offensive private thoughts.
• Hidden thoughts and unintended consequences: The inner voice exposes feelings that characters would otherwise keep concealed, fueling distrust and jealousy.
• Rivalry and possessiveness: Dai Mubai’s engagement to Zhu Zhuqing intensifies his anger at Tang San.
• Status and standards: The characters debate whether Shrek’s scarcity of students signals excellence or inadequacy.

• After hearing accusations about Ma Hongjun’s brothel visits, Dai Mubai’s mistresses, and Oscar’s suggestive sausage jokes, Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong conclude that Shrek’s male students are disreputable. Xiao Wu moves closer to Ye Lin, deciding to avoid the other boys; Ning Rongrong also hopes Ye Lin is trustworthy. Zhu Zhuqing is especially furious at the reports about Dai Mubai, whom she crossed great distances and risked her life to find.
• Zhao Wuji bristles when Ye Lin insults the academy and mentions a wanted criminal. Though he keeps his anger hidden, he privately worries that Ye Lin knows too much. Ye Lin stays quiet, preferring not to draw attention.
• Tang San breaks the tense silence by asking to begin the fourth-rank evaluation. Dai Mubai volunteers to test him, while Zhao Wuji urges Dai to “temper” Tang San—secretly hoping he will punish him.
• Tang San is confused because he remembers a different test from his past life, when he and the others faced Zhao Wuji together. Zhao Wuji instead assigns Ye Lin, Xiao Wu, Ning Rongrong, and Zhu Zhuqing to endure his attacks for an incense stick, promising to use only his first four soul skills.
• Before the four can plan, Dai Mubai blasts Tang San in the crotch with a platinum-colored attack, leaving him injured and with another hole in his trousers. The women avert their eyes and become more convinced that the academy is indecent.
  Character developments and interactions: Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong gravitate toward Ye Lin as someone who might be safer to trust; Zhu Zhuqing’s resentment toward Dai Mubai intensifies; Zhao Wuji and Dai Mubai share a grudge against Tang San and arrange for him to be tested harshly. The chapter’s humor and conflict center on the contrast between Shrek’s claims of toughness and its residents’ crude behavior, alongside themes of propriety, trust, hypocrisy, and shifting expectations.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points

• Dai Mubai continues fighting Tang San, while Ye Lin and the others form a plan to survive Zhao Wuji’s test until the incense burns out. Ye Lin argues they should keep attacking, even if Zhao Wuji is too strong to hurt.
• Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, Ning Rongrong, and Ye Lin release their Martial Souls. Ning Rongrong uses the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda to boost the others’ strength and speed.
• Zhao Wuji’s opening shockwave is evaded: Xiao Wu and Zhu Zhuqing dodge it, while Ye Lin carries Ning Rongrong over it.
• Ye Lin combines his two strength-enhancing Soul Skills with Ning Rongrong’s boosts and lands a powerful punch. Zhao Wuji stumbles, surprising him.
• Zhao Wuji then activates his Mighty Vajra Bear Martial Soul and reveals the overwhelming pressure of his seven Spirit Rings.
• Zhu Zhuqing attacks with her Netherworld Hundred Claws, but Zhao Wuji’s defensive Soul Skill repels her and dislocates both her arms. Ye Lin catches her as she falls.

Character developments

• Ye Lin takes charge of the group’s strategy and shows quick thinking and protectiveness, first helping Ning Rongrong evade the shockwave and later catching Zhu Zhuqing. His amplified punch also reveals unusually formidable strength.
• Ning Rongrong contributes actively with precise strength and speed boosts. Her brief, close contact with Ye Lin makes her flustered.
• Zhu Zhuqing fights with speed and determination, but her direct assault demonstrates the danger of Zhao Wuji’s defenses.
• Zhao Wuji begins playfully confident, then becomes genuinely interested after Ye Lin makes him stumble. He responds by revealing his full strength.
• Tang San is shown struggling against Dai Mubai; his physical condition is weaker than it was in his previous life.

Significant themes

• Teamwork and complementary abilities: The group relies on Ning Rongrong’s support, their individual skills, and Ye Lin’s coordination.
• Courage against overwhelming power: The students continue attacking despite the vast gap between them and Zhao Wuji.
• The limits of strength: Ye Lin’s surprising punch succeeds partly because Zhao Wuji underestimates him, while Zhu Zhuqing’s speed cannot overcome Zhao Wuji’s defenses.

Character interactions

• Ye Lin directs the group’s plan and acts as a protective partner to Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing.
• Ning Rongrong’s boost enables Ye Lin’s unusually powerful punch; their close encounter leaves her embarrassed.
• Zhao Wuji mocks the students’ inability to penetrate his defense, but Ye Lin’s hit forces him to take them seriously.
• Zhu Zhuqing’s failed attack ends with Ye Lin catching her, emphasizing his readiness to protect his teammates.

Key plot points and events

• Ye Lin catches Zhu Zhuqing after Zhao Wuji knocks her away, identifies her dislocated shoulders, and quickly sets them. He gives her a handkerchief and asks Ning Rongrong to look after her.
• Dai Mubai contrasts Ye Lin’s considerate behavior with Tang San’s leering thoughts. He decides Ye Lin is someone worth befriending, while Tang San silently vows revenge after Dai tells him to change his torn trousers.
• Ye Lin charges Zhao Wuji and converts half his Soul Power into physical strength. He warns Xiao Wu not to use her Charm skill, since Zhao Wuji’s stronger Spiritual Power could make it backfire and harm her.
• Xiao Wu heeds the warning and instead attacks Zhao Wuji’s knee. Her well-aimed kick disrupts his balance, helping Ye Lin’s strengthened punch push Zhao Wuji half a step back.
• Impressed that Ye Lin has not yet used his full strength, Zhao Wuji asks how he will endure the remaining time. Ye Lin says he will fight head-on.
• Ye Lin asks Ning Rongrong to direct her Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda’s full boost to him, explaining that concentrating it on one person makes the enhancement stronger. He then takes a Healing Pill in anticipation of the strain his next attack will cause.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Lin demonstrates compassion toward Zhu Zhuqing, sound combat knowledge in warning Xiao Wu, and tactical confidence against Zhao Wuji. He coordinates effectively with both Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong.
• Xiao Wu trusts Ye Lin’s judgment, abandons a risky mental attack, and adapts by using a physical strike to create an opening.
• Ning Rongrong follows Ye Lin’s instructions and concentrates her support on him.
• Dai Mubai grows more impressed with Ye Lin and more disgusted by Tang San’s behavior.
• Zhao Wuji shifts from casually testing the students to taking Ye Lin’s strength seriously.
• Tang San remains resentful after Dai Mubai humiliates him.

Significant themes

• Respectful conduct versus objectification: Ye Lin’s practical kindness sharply contrasts with Tang San’s lewd thoughts.
• Knowledge and restraint: Ye Lin’s understanding helps prevent Xiao Wu from injuring herself with an ineffective skill.
• Teamwork and adaptation: Ye Lin’s strength, Xiao Wu’s precise intervention, and Ning Rongrong’s focused support combine to challenge Zhao Wuji.
• Courage and endurance: Ye Lin chooses to confront a much stronger opponent directly, despite knowing his body may be hurt.

Plot points and events

• Ye Lin declares that his full-strength punch is his last chance to enter Shrek Academy. He converts all his Soul Power into strength and combines that power with his other boosts, alarming both Dai Mubai and Zhao Wuji.
• Ye Lin strikes Zhao Wuji, forcing the Soul Sage to slide backward. The effort badly injures Ye Lin’s arm and leaves him exhausted, but Zhao Wuji confirms that he has passed the fourth test. He explains that the test is about combat ability, not waiting for the incense to burn out.
• Zhao Wuji calls Oscar to heal Ye Lin. Oscar’s first Spirit Skill produces Recovery Tofu, which restores Ye Lin’s strength and Soul Power and heals his injuries.
• Tang San realizes that this matches the comic version of Douluo Continent, where Oscar’s Martial Soul is the God of Food and his first skill is tofu—not the sausage skill Tang San remembers from another life.
• Dai Mubai assigns the dorms: Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong share, Zhu Zhuqing gets her own room, Tang San room-shares with Oscar, and Ye Lin receives a room alone.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Lin demonstrates determination and extraordinary strength, accepting severe physical damage rather than holding back. His success earns Zhao Wuji’s respect.
• Zhao Wuji shifts from testing Ye Lin to approving him, recognizing the power and commitment behind the punch. He also arranges for Oscar to treat him.
• Dai Mubai is impressed by Ye Lin’s power and handles the room assignments, jokingly protecting the academy’s reputation by keeping Ye Lin away from Oscar.
• Oscar appears as a capable healer, though Tang San’s memories make the girls wary of him despite his harmless tofu skill.
• Tang San’s memories of a different version of the story create confusion and comic misunderstandings. Zhao Wuji, Dai Mubai, and the girls hear his thoughts and conclude that the former sausage skill made Oscar sound like a creep.

Significant themes

• Perseverance and sacrifice: Ye Lin risks injury to prove himself.
• Power and recognition: His strength matters, but Zhao Wuji evaluates him by the standards of the test rather than its remaining time.
• Memory versus reality: Tang San’s recollections conflict with the comic-world version he has entered.
• Comedy through misunderstanding: Oscar’s former sausage skill colors how others perceive his current, entirely different tofu ability.

Plot points and events

• Tang San settles into his shared dormitory with Oscar. Though Tang San says nothing aloud, his thoughts criticize Oscar’s interest in Ning Rongrong and recall their future marriage.
• Oscar hears Tang San’s thoughts. He is alarmed by Tang San’s apparent memories of a previous life, then becomes angry when Tang San privately regards him as a useful “tool.” Oscar resolves to treat Tang San accordingly.
• Elsewhere, Ye Lin meditates and assesses his condition: his injuries are improving, his Soul Power has recovered to about thirty percent, and he is close to reaching level thirty.
• Yu Xiaogang arrives early to meet Ye Lin. He praises Ye Lin’s decisive, if risky, final punch against Zhao Wuji and says he came to share news about what he has been doing. He produces a mysterious box.

Character developments

• Oscar shifts from casual friendliness to suspicion and resentment after learning what Tang San thinks of him. He intends to conceal his reaction and turn the situation to his own advantage.
• Tang San remains outwardly composed, but his private judgments reveal his confidence in his knowledge of the future and his tendency to view people in terms of their usefulness.
• Ye Lin is focused on recovering and becoming stronger, aware that relying on powerful allies is not enough if he cannot prove useful himself.
• Yu Xiaogang appears more confident and energetic than Ye Lin remembers, and his secretive arrival suggests that he has made progress on an undisclosed matter.

Significant themes

• Mind versus speech: Oscar hears thoughts that Tang San never says aloud, exposing the hostility hidden beneath their polite exchange.
• Trust and manipulation: Tang San plans to maintain a relationship with Oscar for future benefits; Oscar responds by considering how to use Tang San in return.
• Strength and usefulness: Ye Lin’s cultivation reflects his belief that survival and independence depend on becoming strong.
• Fate and foreknowledge: Tang San’s memories of a previous life shape how he judges others and plans for the future.

Character interactions

• Tang San rejects Oscar’s offer of healing tofu, while Oscar privately reacts to Tang San’s contempt and assumptions about his feelings for Ning Rongrong.
• Ye Lin greets Yu Xiaogang warmly. Yu Xiaogang recognizes Ye Lin’s performance against Zhao Wuji, offers measured praise, and begins to reveal something with the box he brought.