Chapter Summaries

Chen Xiaojun’s forces moved to consolidate control of Chang'an City’s southwest, recruiting the Green Lion Gang and Iron Palm Gang while eliminating rival gangs. The operation’s leaders reported back to Chen Xiaojun, who had been entrusted with managing the medicinal herb market.

• Cheng Yun, Mo Yuqi, Zhu Hefeng, and Xia Ying subdued the Green Lion Gang and persuaded Guan Wuzuo and Min Zhiyun to submit to the Chen Clan.
• Mo Yuqi joined the Green Lion Gang as its leader, while Min Zhiyun was told to gather the gang members and follow.
• The Chen Clan’s group brought Guan Wuzuo, Qiu Tianfeng, and their subordinates to a hill where Chen Xiaojun was waiting with his guards and several youths.
• Zhu Hefeng and Mo Yuqi reported that the Red Sand Gang and Soaring Dragon Gang had been annihilated and that the Green Lion Gang and Iron Palm Gang had submitted.
• Chen Xiaojun thanked Zhu Hefeng and the others for their work on the operation to secure the medicinal herb market.

Chen Xiaojun recruited Guan Wuzuo and Qiu Tianfeng’s merged gang into the Chen Clan’s service as the Brocade Guard, then organized a strike against the powerful Ghost Wolf Gang. The Chen Clan forces surrounded the gang’s gathering place and prepared to attack.

• Chen Xiaojun ordered Guan Wuzuo and Qiu Tianfeng to screen and discipline their members, end most illicit income, and begin training under Mo Yuqi as the Brocade Guard.
• Xi Li Junyi estimated that rebuilding the market grounds would take half a year.
• Cheng Hao reported that the Ghost Wolf Gang had over a thousand members, a vicious reputation, and ties to the Heavenly Wolf Sect, while its leader’s former rival had been killed by the Heartless Tower.
• Chen Xiaojun assigned his relatives and allies to defeat the Ghost Wolf Gang’s leaders and forces, and Xixi joined the expedition.
• Cheng Yun’s Sword Shadow Hall squad silently removed guards as the Chen Clan forces took positions around the gang’s gathering place.
• Chen Xiaojun ordered the attack and told his forces to leave no one from the Ghost Wolf Gang able to escape.

Chen Xiaojun and his allies attacked the Ghost Wolf Gang, defeated its leaders, and uncovered the gang’s trafficking victims and an escape passage beneath its Manor. By morning, the southwestern district’s power structure had changed, and the Brocade Guard was rising.

• Zhu Hefeng’s signal began the assault, and Cheng Yun, Zhu Hefeng, and Xi Li Junyi fought Lang Zhenghui while Chen Chen battled Hua Tiguang.
• Xia Ying, Mo Yuqi, the Soul Kings, and the Chen Clan squads helped overwhelm the Ghost Wolf Gang, while Xiao Yi’s Immortal Evergreen Vines trapped and devastated its lower-ranking members.
• After two hours, Xi Li Junyi killed Lang Zhenghui, and Chen Chen captured Hua Tiguang as the gang’s surviving members surrendered or died.
• Cheng Hao reported that the Manor’s dungeon held imprisoned women, children, and the wounded Fierce Tiger Soul Saint’s family; Chen Xiaojun ordered them rescued and the Dark Network destroyed.
• Mo Yuqi discovered a passage beneath the Manor leading outside the city, and the destruction or absorption of several gangs left the Brocade Guard rising in the southwestern district.

The Ji and Liu Families gave the Chen Clan and Sea God Island lavish gifts in gratitude, then discussed the Chen Clan’s plans to establish a medicinal herb market in Chang'an City. The chapter ended with Liu Ruyan presenting Ito Makoto’s letter, which exposed the Crimson Church’s schemes and raised the question of whether the Chen Clan would take on the danger.

• Ji Boda and Liu Ruyan presented the Chen Clan and Sea God Island with soul bones, money, business assets, and other gifts, which Chen Xiaojun accepted after they insisted.
• Liu Ruyan gave Xiao Yi several veils that could block probing gazes, spiritual perception, and some Soul Skills.
• Chen Cong confirmed that the Chen Clan planned to establish a medicinal herb market in Chang'an City, and Chen Xiaojun outlined possible forms of cooperation with the Ji and Liu Families.
• Liu Ruyan chose the third form of cooperation before hearing its terms, explaining that her family would contribute funds, connections, and management without taking a share of the earnings.
• Liu Ruyan gave Chen Cong and Chen Xiaojun the letter Ito Makoto had left, and she argued that its claims about the Crimson Church were supported by evidence from her grandfather’s medical records and other suspicious events.

Liu Ruyan offered the Chen Clan Nether Blood Lilies in exchange for protection, and Chen Xiaojun recognized that the Crimson Church planned to use an ancient ritual to harvest power from the dead. He and Chen Cong concluded that the Church had used blood sacrifice during past calamities to strengthen its members, possibly toward godhood.

• Liu Ruyan offered more than two hundred seventh-grade Nether Blood Lilies and seeds to the Chen Clan in exchange for protection for the Ji and Liu Families.
• Xiao Yi sensed a concealed netherworld aura in the lilies, prompting Chen Xiaojun to reexamine Ito Makoto's letter.
• Chen Xiaojun identified the planned ritual as the Death Spiral Magic Formation, which could absorb the corpses and souls of dead Soul Masters to aid cultivation and potentially help Crimson Church members become gods.
• Chen Xiaojun explained that godhood would require strict conditions, a willing divine successor, and enormous numbers of sacrificial offerings.
• Chen Cong connected the ritual to the Crimson Church's recurring Peerless Douluos and growing involvement in calamities, concluding that blood sacrifice could explain their strength and recovery.

Liu Ruyan pledged the Liu Family as a Retainer Family of the Chen Clan, and Ji Chenglie soon committed the Ji Family to the same alliance. Chen Cong accepted both pacts, leaving the families united under the Chen Clan as they prepared for the Crimson Church’s return.

• Liu Ruyan explained that the Liu Family had carefully decided to serve the Chen Clan and presented its sworn pact and asset inventory to Chen Cong.
• Liu Yirong knelt beside Liu Ruyan as Chen Cong accepted the Liu Family’s pact and praised Liu Ruyan’s resolve.
• Ji Chenglie declared that the Ji Family would also follow the Chen Clan and asked Ji Sijian for its blank sworn pact.
• Chen Cong accepted both families into the Chen Clan, while Chen Xiaojun noted that two more families remained to be won over.

Chen Xiaojun welcomed the Ji and Liu Families into the Chen Clan’s fold by presenting them with rare treasures and martial inheritances suited to their abilities. The families accepted the gifts, convinced they had made the right choice in joining forces with the Chen Clan.

• Chen Xiaojun gave Liu Yirong a supreme-quality Fire Dragon Stone, which she recognized as a treasure that could strengthen the Liu Family’s fire-based arts.
• Chen Xiaojun gave Liu Ruyan the Acupoint Tapping Chapter of the Nine Yin Manual and gave Liu Yirong the Insect Breathing Method, both of which impressed the Liu women.
• Chen Xiaojun presented Ji Boda with ninth-grade black jade bamboo and gave him the Ghost Prison Yin Wind Roar, while Ji Chenglie received the Sound Breathing Method.
• Chen Cong urged the Ji and Liu Families to accept the gifts as welcoming presents from the Chen Clan.
• The Ji and Liu Families bowed to Chen Xiaojun and Chen Cong and accepted the treasures and secret manuals.

Chen Cong and Chen Xiaojun explained the Chen Clan’s resources, benefits, and protection to the Ji and Liu Families as they joined its service. The families agreed to visit the Chen Clan’s village in a few days to discuss their incorporation.

• Chen Cong accepted the Ji and Liu Families’ valuable gifts as contributions and converted them into clan contribution points.
• Chen Xiaojun described the Chen Clan’s martial legacies, rare treasures, cultivation guidance, business support, educational connections, and protection.
• Chen Xiaojun offered the families help expanding their businesses and promised that a Titled Douluo would oversee their safety in Chang’an City.
• Chen Cong said Chen Yu would remain in the village and invited the Ji and Liu Families to visit there in a few days.
• The Ji and Liu Families agreed to accompany Chen Cong to the village and discuss their incorporation into the Chen Clan.

Chen Xiaojun watched the girls in the garden choose Cloud Brocade garments gifted by the Liu Family. As they debated styles and comfort, the group comforted Xia Shujing about her lost sweetheart and encouraged Xiao Yi to try a fitted qipao.

• Chen Xiaojun passed the garden and saw Xiao Yi, Xixi, Rhea, and female Soul Masters choosing Cloud Brocade garments from the Liu Family.
• Zhao Lingling and Cheng Jinyan praised the garments, while Xia Shujing said the Liu Family's arrival would save money and offer more styles.
• Cheng Jinyan teased Zhao Lingling about choosing a garment to impress her sweetheart, and the group gently comforted Xia Shujing when she remembered her lost sweetheart.
• Xixi and Rhea debated whether red or purple suited them best, while Xiao Yi hesitated between a gauze skirt and a qipao.
• Xixi playfully tried to take Xiao Yi's measurements, and Rhea, Zhao Lingling, and Cheng Jinyan urged Xiao Yi to try the qipao.

Chen Xiaojun helped the women choose cloud brocade outfits, impressing them with his fashion advice. He chose a peony-embroidered outfit for Rhea and privately recognized her future potential as a powerful Titled Douluo.

• Xia Shujing, Cheng Jinyan, and Zhao Lingling persuaded Chen Xiaojun to help them choose outfits.
• Chen Xiaojun recommended a phoenix-patterned robe for Cheng Jinyan and a butterfly dress for Xia Shujing.
• Chen Xiaojun suggested a bright outfit for Zhao Lingling and advised her to watch her partner’s eyes and hands for signs of emotion.
• Zhao Lingling declared Chen Xiaojun their fashion adviser, while Xia Shujing and Cheng Jinyan teased him about understanding women.
• Chen Xiaojun chose a peony-embroidered court-style outfit for Rhea, who thanked him and said she liked it.

Xixi and Xiao Yi reunited with Chen Xiaojun, who revealed that he had discussed rare materials and a special Breathing Technique with the women. After he praised Xiao Yi’s qipao and teased Xixi, she chased him in anger.

• Xixi and Xiao Yi found Chen Xiaojun chatting with Rhea and the other women, and he joked that he was only passing through.
• Chen Xiaojun said he had discussed rare materials and a special Breathing Technique, then asked how Xixi and her family were finding the Water Breathing and Wind Breathing techniques.
• Rhea and Zhao Lingling told Xixi that Chen Xiaojun had helped them choose clothes and had an excellent eye for fashion.
• Xixi showed Chen Xiaojun Xiao Yi in a jade-green cloud brocade qipao, and he praised her beauty before making a romantic declaration that left her blushing.
• Xixi asked Chen Xiaojun to compliment her too, but he called her the green leaf that complemented red flowers, so she chased him and shouted that she would fight him.

Su Ningxia asked to join the Chen Clan after losing her family and gang, and Chen Xiaojun accepted her and offered the surviving gang members places in the Brocade Guard. Her rare Seven-Color Radiant Clouds martial soul and exceptional talent surprised Chen Xiaojun and Chen Cong, while her mother’s identity remained unknown.

• Su Ningxia told Chen Xiaojun that her father, Su Jinhu, and most of the Fierce Tiger Gang had died, and she asked the Chen Clan to take in the survivors.
• Chen Xiaojun accepted Su Ningxia into the Chen Clan’s service and offered the recovering gang members places in the Brocade Guard.
• At Xixi’s urging, Su Ningxia revealed her martial soul, which Chen Cong identified as the rare Radiant Clouds type, possibly of ninth rank.
• Chen Cong said he knew of no family associated with the martial soul, though a hidden family might still exist, leaving Su Ningxia without a clue about her mother.
• Su Ningxia revealed that she was eleven, had level 27 soul power, and had been born with level 8.8 innate soul power, impressing Chen Xiaojun and Chen Cong.

Su Ningxia revealed her exceptional soul power and martial soul, then joined Xiao Yi as her attendant. Xiao Yi and Su Ningxia discovered signs that their martial souls might be compatible, and Chen Cong advised them to practice sensing and coordinating before drawing conclusions.

• Zhao Lingling, Cheng Jinyan, Xia Shujing, and Xixi praised Su Ningxia after learning her innate soul power was level 8.8 and seeing her seven-colored martial soul.
• Chen Xiaojun agreed to make Xixi Sichuan boiled fish for dinner.
• Chen Xiaojun told Xiao Yi that Su Ningxia would stay by her side with Rui, and Su Ningxia formally offered to serve Xiao Yi.
• Xiao Yi said her Immortal Evergreen Vine had stirred when Su Ningxia revealed her martial soul, and Su Ningxia confirmed that its seven-colored light seemed to tremble.
• Chen Xiaojun suggested that Xiao Yi and Su Ningxia might have a martial soul fusion skill, and Chen Cong said the signs were inconclusive.
• Chen Cong instructed Xiao Yi and Su Ningxia to spend more time together and practice sensing and coordinating with each other.

Chen Xiaojun and the Chen Clan learned why Lang Zhenghui had kept Su Ningxia alive and discovered the unusual plan for developing her Seven-Color Radiant Clouds martial soul. Chen Cong recognized that her mother's guidance resembled the Yang Family's Seven Extremes Bow cultivation method, and they planned to ask the Yang Family about it when they established their household.

• Su Ningxia told Chen Xiaojun that Lang Zhenghui knew of her talent and intended to send her out of the city to someone, while Chen Cong suspected he meant to sell her.
• Su Ningxia described her fire-based and wind-based soul skills, explaining that her father had selected them according to letters from her missing mother.
• Su Ningxia showed the letter, which prescribed matching attributes to each color of the Seven-Color Radiant Clouds for her first seven soul skills.
• Chen Cong recognized the method as resembling the Yang Family's Seven Extremes Bow cultivation and recalled that its ancestor Yang Junzhi's mother had possessed the same martial soul.
• Chen Xiaojun suggested visiting the Yang Family, but Chen Cong said they could ask its representatives when the Chen Clan established its household in two months.

Chen Cong and Chen Xiaojun investigated the origins of Su Ningxia’s seven-color radiant clouds martial soul and concluded that her mother had left her an ancient inheritance. Su Ningxia resolved to pursue the truth and received the Radiant Clouds Breathing Technique, while Ma Rulong and Ning Jiang arrived to visit Chen Cong.

• Chen Cong inferred that Su Ningxia’s mother had possessed or obtained an inheritance connected to radiant clouds martial souls, despite Su Ningxia saying her mother’s martial soul was not seven-color radiant clouds.
• Chen Xiaojun noticed that Su Ningxia’s mother had left a suitable manual before Su Ningxia awakened her martial soul, and Chen Cong examined the manual and judged it ancient and suited to radiant clouds cultivators.
• Chen Cong concluded that Su Ningxia’s martial soul was not a mutation and that her mother may have had a three-color or five-color radiant clouds martial soul; he urged Su Ningxia to question her household’s surviving retainers.
• Xixi suggested that Su Ningxia’s mother may have been forced to leave, and Su Ningxia wept before vowing to cultivate diligently; Xiao Yi comforted her.
• Chen Xiaojun gave Su Ningxia the Radiant Clouds Breathing Technique, and Chen Cong proposed that they study her inherited manual for further secrets.
• Ma Rulong and Ning Jiang arrived to visit Chen Cong.

After learning that the Chen Clan had killed his nephew Lang Zhenghui, Lang Weiyuan demanded revenge despite the Heavenly Wolf Sect elders’ fear of provoking the powerful clan. He resolved to retaliate on his own and asked Lin Feng to help him act outside the sect’s decision.

• Lin Feng told Lang Weiyuan that the Chen Clan of the Seven Kill Sword had killed Lang Zhenghui while clearing gangs from its intended territory near Chang'an City.
• Lang Weiyuan vowed to make the Chen Clan pay for his nephew’s death and summoned the Heavenly Wolf Sect’s core elders.
• The elders reacted with shock but urged Lang Weiyuan and sect master Lang Chengming not to provoke the Chen Clan.
• Lang Weiyuan rejected their caution, then learned from Lin Feng that a Chen Clan youth of fifteen or sixteen was leading the operation.
• Lang Weiyuan reminded Lin Feng of their bond and said they could seek revenge even if the sect itself would not act.

Lang Weiyuan sent Lin Feng to hire the Heartless Tower to kill a direct descendant of the Chen Clan, and the Tower accepted the assignment for a steep price. Lin Feng returned to report the agreement, while Lang Weiyuan prepared for the Chen Clan’s retaliation as he vowed to avenge his nephew.

• Lang Weiyuan wrote a coded letter detailing his revenge commission and sent Lin Feng to contact the Heartless Tower.
• Lin Feng reached the outpost near Heavenly Wolf City and delivered Lang Weiyuan’s letter to Li Gui.
• Li Gui accepted the job and told Lin Feng the Heartless Tower would need three months to investigate and prepare.
• Li Gui told a black-robed figure that Lang Weiyuan had offered two pieces of spirit gold and three Ten Thousand Year Soul Bones, including one fifty thousand years old.
• Lin Feng returned to the Heavenly Wolf Sect and reported the Heartless Tower’s decision to Lang Weiyuan.
• Lang Weiyuan said the sect would prepare for the Chen Clan’s retaliation and vowed to avenge Zhenghui.

Chen Xiaojun’s party visited Chang'an Soul Master Academy, where Su Ningxia’s former teacher Mu Zilian welcomed them and discovered she was Chen Xiaojun’s relative. Mu Zilian led them on a tour and explained the academy’s history, place among the province’s schools, and size.

• Xixi and the others arrived at Chang'an Soul Master Academy with Su Ningxia and met her former teacher, Mu Zilian.
• Su Ningxia introduced the group, and Mu Zilian welcomed them while noting the formidable bearing of Ou Ya and Cheng Yun.
• Chen Xiaojun learned that Mu Zilian belonged to the Green Lotus Mu Family and that they were relatives through Mu Lingyun; they agreed to call her Sister Zilian.
• Mu Zilian guided the group around the campus and described Chang'an Academy’s long history, provincial role, and competition with Canghui Academy and Yuesi Academy.
• Mu Zilian explained that the academy had lower, intermediate, and advanced divisions, with over three thousand students and a total population close to four thousand.

Mu Zilian explained Chang'an Soul Master Academy’s advancement system and its belief that a Soul Master’s strength depends on more than soul power. She then led the group on a tour of the academy, introducing its main buildings, classrooms, training grounds, and soul fighting arenas.

• Mu Zilian told Chen Xiaojun that students advancing from the intermediate to the advanced division faced written exams, combat tests, teamwork assessments, specialty tasks, and instructor evaluations, with some students eliminated.
• Chen Xiaojun and Mu Zilian agreed that willpower, practical skills, teamwork, and continued growth mattered alongside soul power, and Mu Zilian named willpower and determination as the most important qualities.
• Mu Zilian and Su Ningxia showed the group the Grand Auditorium, faculty office building, classroom buildings, sports grounds, and training fields.
• Xixi admired the academy, and Mu Zilian explained that its thirty-six soul fighting arenas hosted actual combat matches.
• The group followed Mu Zilian past the classroom buildings and reached the edge of the sports grounds.

Mu Zilian and Su Ningxia showed Chen Xiaojun and the others around Chang'an Soul Master Academy, introducing its library, Soul Beast exhibition hall, and extensive training facilities. Mu Zilian then explained the Lower School Division’s curriculum, leaving Chen Xiaojun learning how the academy educated its youngest students.

• Zhu Wuneng marveled at how many students stayed at the academy to train during summer vacation, and Mu Zilian explained the fierce competition and valuable facilities.
• Su Ningxia showed the group the library and dormitories, while Mu Zilian led them to the Soul Beast History Exhibition Hall.
• Zhu Wuneng admired the Mysterious Fire Qilin specimen, and Mu Zilian explained its identity and the academy’s history with it.
• Mu Zilian described the academy’s twenty Mimicry Training Grounds and its balanced approach to developing Soul Masters.
• Chen Xiaojun asked what students studied, and Mu Zilian outlined the Lower School Division’s Soul Master fundamentals, physical and combat training, teamwork, cultural subjects, and moral education.