Recaps

Nine-year-old Hu Fangyuan’s family was massacred by Evil Soul Masters after his father, Hu Heming, fled the manor, leaving the wounded boy to run for his life. The chapter ended with Hu Fangyuan desperately clinging to the desire to survive.

• Hu Heming was overwhelmed by Evil Soul Masters who attacked the Hu Family Manor over his past ties to the Holy Spirit Cult.
• Hu Heming struck his own guards to create a diversion, then escaped through a secret passage as the attackers ordered the manor’s residents killed.
• The Hu Family’s Soul Guidance Defense Array collapsed when its Soul Power Source Core shattered, allowing the Evil Soul Masters to slaughter the clan.
• Hu Fangyuan fled through the burning manor with his left arm severed while an Evil Soul Master pursued him.
• Hu Fangyuan kept running despite his blood loss and pain because he did not want to die.

Hu Fangyuan was cornered by three Evil Soul Masters when a lotus-shaped Gu worm appeared and empowered him with the killer move Steal Life. After draining the pursuers and regrowing his severed arm, he was left alive with the mysterious Gu worm hovering above his palm.

• Hu Fangyuan collapsed from blood loss as three Evil Soul Masters caught up and taunted him.
• A lotus-shaped Gu worm flew into Hu Fangyuan’s hand, raising his cultivation from rank thirteen to rank twenty and filling him with Soul Power.
• A distant voice told Hu Fangyuan to watch as it unleashed the Immortal Dao Killer Move: Steal Life.
• Hu Fangyuan’s killer move drained life, Soul Power, and vitality from the surrounding area and the three Evil Soul Masters, killing them.
• The stolen vitality restored Hu Fangyuan’s body and regrew his left arm, while the lotus-shaped Gu worm hovered above his palm.

Hu Fangyuan received the Heaven Refining inheritance and learned that his seemingly useless furnace martial soul was the Heaven Refining Furnace, a bridge between soul power and Gu. The furnace bestowed a rank 4 Blood Skull Gu on him, offering a way to improve cultivation aptitude as Hu Fangyuan set his sights on surpassing mortal limits.

• Hu Fangyuan touched the lotus petal, and the Heaven Refining inheritance flooded into his mind.
• Hu Fangyuan awakened the true form of his furnace martial soul, the ornate Heaven Refining Furnace.
• Hu Fangyuan learned that the furnace could convert soul power into Dao marks and let him refine Gu in the Douluo Continent.
• The Heaven Refining Furnace produced a rank 4 Blood Skull Gu that could consume blood essence and analyze bloodlines to improve aptitude.
• Hu Fangyuan considered how aptitude constrained soul masters and recognized that becoming a god was the only escape from mortality.

After vowing to become a god and avenge his dead family, Hu Fangyuan returned to the burning Hu Family Manor to seize its resources. He reached the main compound and found it littered with bodies, with the fighting nearly over.

• Hu Fangyuan resolved to become a god so no one could threaten his life, then decided to use his clansmen's remains and family treasures as cultivation resources.
• Hu Fangyuan slipped back into the Hu Family Manor, reasoning that the Evil Soul Masters would not expect him to return.
• Hu Fangyuan suspected the Holy Spirit Cult had attacked to kill Hu Heming and plunder the Hu Family's wealth, and blamed his father for the massacre.
• Hu Fangyuan reached the main compound and saw dozens of bodies across the courtyard as blood flowed into the pond.

Hu Fangyuan entered the ruined Hu Family estate to harvest resources before Changhuo City's reinforcements arrived, using the Blood Skull Gu to drain his dead clansmen and improve his aptitude. After vowing revenge on Hu Heming and the Holy Spirit Cult, he heard a cough from a side room and attacked it with the Heaven Refining Furnace.

• Hu Fangyuan recalled that Evil Soul Masters would flee before Changhuo City's powerful forces arrived, and resolved to gather resources and leave before anyone discovered his Blood Skull Gu.
• Hu Fangyuan saw his dead clansmen and blamed Hu Heming and the Holy Spirit Cult, vowing to repay their blood debt one day.
• Hu Fangyuan activated the Blood Skull Gu, which drained the blood essence of more than twenty corpses and improved his cultivation aptitude, though not enough to reach its full effect.
• Hu Fangyuan entered the inner courtyard and headed toward the Hu Family main courtyard, where he expected to find more corpses.
• Hu Fangyuan heard a cough from a side room and sent the Heaven Refining Furnace smashing toward it.

Hu Fangyuan found his wounded father, Hu Heming, and pretended to trust him despite recognizing his deceit. After seeing his mother’s corpse, Hu Fangyuan recalled their past and closed her eyes, leaving Hu Heming’s plan to subdue him unresolved.

• Hu Fangyuan entered the ruined room and found Hu Heming alive, then pretended to be delighted to see him.
• Hu Heming asked Hu Fangyuan to help him reach the Hu Family treasure vault while secretly planning to seize him and use a secret art.
• Hu Heming mentioned Hu Fangyuan’s mother, prompting Hu Fangyuan to notice her corpse in the room.
• Hu Fangyuan remembered how his mother had once cared for him before his failed potential led to her neglecting him.
• Hu Fangyuan gently closed his mother’s eyes and told her, “Mom, go to sleep.”

Hu Fangyuan survived Hu Heming’s ambush and killed his father after redirecting the Black Fiend Cauldron with his Water Refining Azure Furnace. With his mother and the entire Hu Family dead, he resolved to survive, grow stronger, and become a god.

• Hu Heming feigned helplessness before launching the Black Fiend Cauldron at Hu Fangyuan.
• Hu Fangyuan used his Water Refining Azure Furnace and a spinning water vortex to deflect Hu Heming’s attack into an adjoining room.
• Hu Fangyuan struck back with a compressed Water Blade and severed Hu Heming’s neck.
• Hu Fangyuan laughed over Hu Heming’s corpse, then faced the loss of his mother and the entire Hu Family.
• Hu Fangyuan vowed to survive, grow stronger, become a god, and attain eternal life.

Hu Fangyuan used the Blood Skull Gu to consume the Hu Family’s blood essence, raising his aptitude to innate full soul power, then fled with Hu Heming’s valuables. After evading Southern Legion trackers across the continent, he reached Eastsea City exhausted, with his next move still uncertain.

• The Blood Skull Gu drained Hu Heming’s corpse and reached its limit after consuming the blood essence of more than twenty Hu Family members.
• Hu Fangyuan activated the Gu, bathed in its blood fountain, and improved his body and aptitude to innate full soul power.
• Hu Fangyuan took Hu Heming’s Storage Soul Tool, finding about five million Federation Coins, Soul Tools, medicinal pills, and a valuable Soul Bone.
• Hu Fangyuan silently vowed to avenge his mother, left the Hu Family manor, and escaped before reinforcements from Changhuo City arrived.
• Southern Legion trackers pursued Hu Fangyuan, so he traveled by Soul Guidance Train through several cities and regions for half a month.
• Hu Fangyuan arrived at Eastsea City exhausted and pale after barely sleeping and eating during the journey.

Hu Fangyuan arrived in Eastsea City and decided to seek support and resources by enrolling at Eastsea Academy. He gained entry by claiming Innate Full Soul Power, and a girl who also claimed to have it followed him inside.

• Hu Fangyuan ate an enormous meal, then considered how he would obtain resources for cultivation and gu refinement.
• After a sleepless night, Hu Fangyuan condensed his second Soul Ring and became a level twenty-one Soul Grandmaster.
• Hu Fangyuan found Eastsea Academy and asked to enroll, but a campus guard told him admissions had ended.
• Hu Fangyuan claimed he had Innate Full Soul Power, and the guard let him enter to have Director Long test him.
• A girl waiting at the gate also claimed Innate Full Soul Power, received permission to enter, and caught up with Hu Fangyuan.

Wu Changkong tested Gu Yue and Hu Fangyuan by pairing them against Xie Xie and Tang Wulin in a two-on-two match. Gu Yue quickly overwhelmed Xie Xie with elemental attacks, while Hu Fangyuan entered the fight against Tang Wulin, leaving the battle underway.

• Gu Yue and Hu Fangyuan asked Wu Changkong for a chance to enroll, and he agreed to assess their abilities.
• Wu Changkong arranged a two-on-two combat test between Gu Yue and Hu Fangyuan and Xie Xie and Tang Wulin.
• Xie Xie charged Gu Yue, but she used wind, ice, fire, and earth attacks to drive him back.
• Tang Wulin tried to punch Gu Yue, but Hu Fangyuan sent out the Heaven Refining Furnace and forced Tang Wulin to redirect his attack.
• Gu Yue struck Tang Wulin with a Wind Blade as Tang Wulin punched the furnace back toward Hu Fangyuan.

Gu Yue and Hu Fangyuan outmaneuvered Xie Xie and Tang Wulin in a combat test, while Tang Wulin's stubborn endurance impressed Hu Fangyuan. Wu Changkong stopped the fight, passed Gu Yue and Hu Fangyuan, and assigned extra training to the two who lost.

• Gu Yue and Hu Fangyuan pressured Xie Xie and Tang Wulin with ice and water attacks, while Hu Fangyuan's water garment disrupted Tang Wulin's breathing.
• Tang Wulin countered with Blue Silver Entanglement, but Hu Fangyuan's water curtain and water threads blocked him and intensified the water garment.
• Xie Xie used both dragon daggers and their soul skills to attack Gu Yue, but Hu Fangyuan's water curtain helped her stop his charge and counter with fire and ice.
• Tang Wulin kept advancing despite his injuries, and Hu Fangyuan unleashed a powerful water column that Tang Wulin endured without falling.
• Wu Changkong halted the fight, passed Gu Yue and Hu Fangyuan, and told Xie Xie and Tang Wulin they had lost.
• Tang Wulin vowed to get stronger, and Wu Changkong ordered Xie Xie to run ten extra laps and Tang Wulin to add ten jin to his iron vest.

Hu Fangyuan enrolled at Eastsea Academy in Class Five and obtained permission to live off campus. He rented and prepared a secluded courtyard with a basement that he planned to use for refining Gu.

• Wu Changkong told Gu Yue and Hu Fangyuan they were his students in Class Five, the academy’s weakest class.
• The dormitory office assigned Hu Fangyuan to the Advanced Department’s dormitories, but he secured an off-campus permit instead.
• Hu Fangyuan searched Eastsea City for a private rental and followed a street vendor’s directions to its old district.
• Hu Fangyuan rented a courtyard house for five thousand Federation Coins a month and found a half-basement suitable for a secluded Gu-refining chamber.
• Hu Fangyuan bought household supplies, cleaned the house, and settled into his new home.

Hu Fangyuan began refining his first Gu, choosing the supportive Moonlight Pearl Gu and using the Heaven Refining Furnace to prepare the materials and simplify the traditional method. He gathered moonlight essence into seven Moon Orchids and continued the refinement as their petals absorbed it.

• Hu Fangyuan chose to refine the Moonlight Pearl Gu using seven Moon Orchids and the Heaven Refining Furnace.
• Hu Fangyuan nurtured and purified the Moon Orchids inside the furnace, preparing them as Gu materials.
• Hu Fangyuan formed a water screen from Soul Power and arranged the seven Moon Orchids around the reflected moon in a Big Dipper formation.
• Hu Fangyuan activated Water Refining Azure Furnace and drew moonlight essence into the water screen.
• Hu Fangyuan sustained the refinement while the Moon Orchids absorbed the moonlight essence and their petals grew lustrous.

Hu Fangyuan refined the rank-one Wood Path Gu, the Moonlight Pearl Gu, using the Water Refining Azure Furnace and concentrated moonlight. The Gu successfully formed at midnight, and Hu Fangyuan examined its distinctive appearance and abilities.

• Hu Fangyuan drew a counterclockwise circle on the water curtain, concentrating moonlight into the hearts of the seven Moon Orchids.
• He used the Water Refining Azure Furnace and his Soul Power to nourish the Moon Orchids as their petals closed into buds.
• At midnight, Hu Fangyuan drove the furnace at full power as silver mist gathered from the buds and condensed into an insect.
• Hu Fangyuan completed the rank-one Wood Path Gu, the Moonlight Pearl Gu, and observed its Big Dipper-shaped star points and icy breath.

Hu Fangyuan successfully refined his first high-grade Moonlight Pearl Gu with the Heaven Refining Furnace, becoming a Gu Master. He then learned that Eastsea Academy was one of the weakest schools in the region and feared it could not provide the cultivation resources he had come to obtain.

• Hu Fangyuan completed a high-grade Moonlight Pearl Gu and placed it in the Heaven Refining Furnace to nurture.
• Hu Fangyuan reflected on beginning his Gu Refining path and the powerful Gu described in the inheritance.
• Hu Fangyuan learned from Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, and Gu Yue that Eastsea Academy ranked near the bottom and offered Class Five little support.
• Tang Wulin tried to reassure Hu Fangyuan by mentioning rewards for performing well in the Class Promotion Tournament.
• Xie Xie said his family had plenty of cultivation resources, and Hu Fangyuan angrily explained that money alone could not secure the resources and opportunities ordinary students needed.

Hu Fangyuan rejected Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, and Gu Yue’s encouragement and decided to withdraw from Eastsea Academy, arguing that it lacked the facilities he needed. Wu Changkong tried to persuade him to stay, but Hu Fangyuan challenged him to guarantee access to basic training resources, leaving Wu Changkong unable to answer.

• Gu Yue, Xie Xie, and Tang Wulin tried to convince Hu Fangyuan that he could excel and earn resources at Eastsea Academy, but he called them idiots and left.
• Hu Fangyuan headed to the Academic Affairs Office to withdraw, believing a better academy would offer faster cultivation and more resources.
• Wu Changkong stopped Hu Fangyuan in the corridor and asked why he wanted to leave, offering to help with any problem.
• Hu Fangyuan said Eastsea Academy’s poor training environment would waste his talent and listed facilities he expected from a proper academy.
• Wu Changkong realized he could not guarantee Hu Fangyuan access to those facilities and fell silent.

Hu Fangyuan abandoned his plan to withdraw from Eastsea Academy after Wu Changkong offered him monthly cultivation funding in exchange for attempting to enter Shrek Academy within five years. He returned to class under Wu Changkong’s sponsorship, leaving Xie Xie puzzled and Tang Wulin relieved.

• Hu Fangyuan started to leave, but Wu Changkong stopped him and offered 100,000 Federation Coins each month for cultivation resources.
• Wu Changkong made the funding conditional on Hu Fangyuan applying to Shrek Academy within five years, with repayment required if he failed to pass the entrance exam.
• Hu Fangyuan enthusiastically accepted the deal and promised to cultivate diligently as Wu Changkong set monthly progress assessments.
• Hu Fangyuan returned to Class Five with Wu Changkong, surprising Xie Xie and reassuring Tang Wulin that he was staying.
• Wu Changkong taught the class Soul Master cultivation fundamentals, and Hu Fangyuan found his explanations useful.
• After class, Hu Fangyuan brushed off Xie Xie’s questions by claiming Eastsea Academy suited him after all.

Hu Fangyuan read the story of Pan, who gained the Strength Gu and became humanity’s first Gu Master, then decided to refine a Copper Bone Gu to strengthen his own body. He summoned his Heaven Refining Furnace and prepared to begin refining the rank-one Gu worm.

• Pan traveled through the wilderness seeking strength to protect humanity from desolate beasts.
• The Strength Gu tested Pan with questions about desire, conquest, and arrogance, then gave him its strength after hearing his answers.
• Pan returned to his tribe and helped humanity survive, and later generations called him Pangu.
• Hu Fangyuan finished reading The True Man's Biography and reflected on his physical weakness compared with Tang Wulin.
• Hu Fangyuan summoned his Heaven Refining Furnace and chose to refine a Copper Bone Gu to strengthen his bones.

Hu Fangyuan used Moonlight Dew to sharpen his mind before refining the Copper Bone Gu with the Heaven Refining Furnace and his Scarlet Sun True Fire. The larva emerged from its copper-coated pupa and began eating its shell, but the refinement was not yet complete.

• Hu Fangyuan collected Moonlight Dew from the Moonlight Pearl Gu and drank some to improve his focus.
• Hu Fangyuan activated the Dao Marks in the Golden Armor Pupa, Beast Bone Powder, and Red Copper Filings with the Heaven Refining Furnace.
• Hu Fangyuan used Scarlet Sun True Fire to purify the Beast Bone Powder into Bone Essence Powder.
• Hu Fangyuan warmed the pupa, channeled primordial energy into it, and fused molten Red Copper Filings into its shell.
• A milky-white larva emerged from the cracked copper shell and ate it, growing larger with a faint copper tint.

Hu Fangyuan successfully refined a top-grade rank-one Copper Bone Gu and merged it with his body, greatly strengthening his bones and physical power. He ended the chapter confident that his abilities could challenge second- or third-year students.

• Hu Fangyuan used the Heaven Refining Furnace to fuse bone and copper essence, successfully refining a top-grade Copper Bone Gu.
• Hu Fangyuan cut the back of his hand and endured intense pain as the Copper Bone Gu merged into his bones.
• Hu Fangyuan felt the Gu strengthen the bones throughout his body and tested his increased power on a wooden table.
• Hu Fangyuan assessed his improved abilities and felt confident taking on second- or third-year students.

During physical training, Hu Fangyuan reflected on the Refinement Path and its power to transform people as he kept pace with the other students. Wu Changkong summoned Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, Gu Yue, and Hu Fangyuan after dinner, leaving the reason for the meeting unknown as the students finished their meal and dispersed.

• Tang Wulin led the endurance run, while Xie Xie struggled to keep up and Hu Fangyuan found the training easy after the Copper Bone Gu strengthened him.
• Hu Fangyuan considered how the Refinement Path could transform and temper a person, then Gu Yue ran past him.
• After training, Wu Changkong told Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, Gu Yue, and Hu Fangyuan to see him after dinner.
• Tang Wulin and Xie Xie hurried to the dining hall, while Hu Fangyuan and Gu Yue walked there together and speculated that Wu Changkong's summons concerned the Class Promotion Tournament.
• Tang Wulin ate several large portions while Hu Fangyuan, Gu Yue, and Xie Xie ate at the same table.
• After dinner, Tang Wulin and Xie Xie ran off to play by the field as the evening settled in.

Wu Changkong began evening training for the Class Promotion Tournament and challenged Tang Wulin to prove he deserved a place on the team. Gu Yue declined to take Tang Wulin’s spot, while Hu Fangyuan backed Wu Changkong’s decision, leaving Xie Xie angry and the group divided.

• Hu Fangyuan read The True Man's Biography while Gu Yue watched the sunset, until Wu Changkong summoned them and Tang Wulin and Xie Xie joined them.
• Wu Changkong brought the four students to an indoor training ground and announced that they would train with him each evening for the tournament in three months.
• Wu Changkong told Tang Wulin that Gu Yue’s talent gave him reason to reconsider the team, and that Tang Wulin would be left off unless he met the requirements.
• Gu Yue asked Wu Changkong not to let her arrival affect anyone else and declined to compete, while Hu Fangyuan agreed with Wu Changkong.
• Xie Xie took offense at Hu Fangyuan’s support for choosing the strongest, but Tang Wulin stopped him and accepted that he needed to improve.
• Wu Changkong ended the argument and said anyone unwilling to work could leave; Tang Wulin promised to train hard, while Xie Xie remained angry and distanced himself from Hu Fangyuan.

Wu Changkong began the students’ special training by explaining that they would improve through actual combat, then challenged Hu Fangyuan to attack him with everything he had. Hu Fangyuan’s water spears surprised Wu Changkong by resisting his ice, leaving the teacher intrigued as their fight continued.

• Gu Yue asked Wu Changkong about their special training, and he explained that they would use actual combat to develop their strength and combat abilities.
• Wu Changkong privately offered guidance to Xie Xie, Tang Wulin, and Gu Yue.
• Wu Changkong asked Hu Fangyuan whether he had been holding back, and Hu Fangyuan admitted that he had.
• Wu Changkong hardened his belt with ice, challenged Hu Fangyuan to defeat him, and gave him the first move.
• Hu Fangyuan summoned the Heaven Refining Furnace and launched three water spears at Wu Changkong.
• Wu Changkong tried to freeze the spears with his belt, but their ice shells shattered and the water forced him to dodge; he became interested in Hu Fangyuan’s control.

Hu Fangyuan used the Heaven Refining Furnace to attack Wu Changkong with heated Water Spears and finely controlled fire techniques. As Wu Changkong tried to escape the closing flames, Hu Fangyuan sent three nearly invisible Water Blades at him from beneath the Fire Curtain.

• Hu Fangyuan heated water with the Heaven Refining Furnace and launched dozens of spinning Water Spears at Wu Changkong.
• Wu Changkong blocked the Water Spears with his ice-blue belt, but the force pushed him half a step back.
• Hu Fangyuan split his Fire-Refined Scarlet Force into over a hundred Fire Needles, and Wu Changkong blocked most of them while dodging the rest.
• Hu Fangyuan formed three fire spears, two Fire Nets, and a Fire Curtain to hem Wu Changkong in.
• As Wu Changkong tried to slip through a gap in the Fire Nets, three transparent Water Blades shot toward him from beneath the Fire Curtain.

Hu Fangyuan pressed Wu Changkong with a barrage of combined water and fire attacks, then broke Wu Changkong’s ice-armored belt with his strongest strike. Wu Changkong acknowledged Hu Fangyuan’s skill and summoned his Heavenly Frost Sword, leaving their test poised to continue.

• Hu Fangyuan used hidden water attacks alongside fierce fire attacks, forcing Wu Changkong to defend and dodge.
• Hu Fangyuan gathered his attacks into a powerful water-and-fire spear and hurled it at Wu Changkong.
• Wu Changkong struck the spear with an ice cudgel, and the collision snapped his belt in two.
• Xie Xie, Tang Wulin, and Gu Yue reacted with shock as Wu Changkong praised Hu Fangyuan’s skill.
• Wu Changkong summoned his Heavenly Frost Sword, dropping the training ground’s temperature and bringing the test to a new stage.