Chapter Summaries

Gu Xingyue overwhelmed the other freshmen and led Group Seven to victory in the Freshmen Assessment, earning Core Disciple places for himself and his teammates. After the results were announced, Huo Yutong invited Gu Xingyue to celebrate with grilled fish.

• Gu Xingyue defeated the burly student and stood as the only student left on the battlefield, securing all three soul bones for Group Seven.
• Gu Xingyue and the others left the woodland, and Du Weiya announced Group Seven as the championship team.
• Yan Shaozhe awarded Martial Soul Department Core Disciple places to Gu Xingyue, Wang Dong, and Xiao Xiao, and a Soul Guidance Department Core Disciple place to Huo Yutong.
• Gu Xingyue pulled Huo Yutong away from the crowd and caught up with Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao as they left the square.
• Huo Yutong celebrated becoming a Core Disciple by offering to cook grilled fish for Gu Xingyue.

As the semester ended, Gu Xingyue and Huo Yutong shared a quiet moment by Sea God Lake before she revealed she had become a Grand Soul Master and needed to travel to the Extreme North for a soul ring. Gu Xingyue offered to accompany her as a bodyguard, but she declined, leaving them to part for a while.

• Wang Yan told the class that another exam would take place at the start of the next semester, then dismissed the students for vacation.
• Gu Xingyue met Huo Yutong outside the Soul Guidance Department laboratory, and they walked hand in hand beside Sea God Lake.
• Gu Xingyue and Huo Yutong embraced by the lake, and he kissed her forehead as they spoke about wanting to stay together.
• Huo Yutong told Gu Xingyue she had become a Grand Soul Master and would leave to obtain a soul ring in the Extreme North.
• Gu Xingyue offered to go with Huo Yutong as her bodyguard, but she declined, and they faced their coming separation.

After Huo Yutong left Gu Xingyue a note promising to return, he resumed his routine until he learned Shrek Academy was launching an extensive cooperation with the Sun Moon Empire. He joined Yan Shaozhe and Zhang Lexuan to welcome Jin Hongchen and her delegation, whose mission included securing access to the Golden Tree for young soul engineers.

• Huo Yutong left Gu Xingyue a note telling him not to look for her and to wait for her return.
• Gu Xingyue returned to Shrek after the semester break and learned that Jin Hongchen was coming from the Sun Moon Empire to deepen cooperation with the academy.
• Yan Shaozhe explained to Gu Xingyue that the cooperation would include exchange students, soul tool research, cultivation methods, and Golden Tree access for the Sun Moon Empire's younger generation.
• Yan Shaozhe and Gu Xingyue joined Zhang Lexuan to welcome Jin Hongchen and her delegation outside Sea God Pavilion.
• Jin Hongchen privately considered her emperor's orders to win Shrek's support and obtain Golden Tree access as her group entered Sea God Pavilion and met Xian Lin and Qian Duoduo.

Shrek Academy and Jin Hongchen finalized a student exchange agreement between their Soul Guidance departments. Jin Hongchen then requested a sparring session between her students and Shrek students, and Yan Shaozhe agreed to arrange one at the training grounds.

• Jin Hongchen met Yan Shaozhe, Xian Lin, and Qian Duoduo to discuss cooperation between the Sun Moon Empire's Soul Guidance Research Institute and Shrek Academy.
• Xian Lin and Qian Duoduo questioned Jin Hongchen about her proposal for an initial exchange of thirty students, and both sides signed the agreement after half a day of negotiations.
• Jin Hongchen asked Yan Shaozhe to let her students spar with Shrek students so they could broaden their horizons.
• Yan Shaozhe agreed, summoned Shrek students of upper-middle strength, and asked Gu Xingyue to observe as the exchange coordinator.
• Jin Hongchen briefed her students, and Yan Shaozhe led the group toward the training grounds.

At a spar between Shrek Academy and the Sun Moon Empire, Ji Xueyi defeated Xi Xi with precise swordsmanship and an early grasp of sword intent. Ji Xueyi then awaited another opponent as Yan Shaozhe praised her potential and Jin Hongchen watched.

• Xi Xi and Ji Xueyi introduced themselves and began their match on the combat grounds.
• Ji Xueyi repeatedly anticipated Xi Xi’s attacks and forced her back with controlled sword strikes.
• Xi Xi used Phantom Assault, but Ji Xueyi identified the real Xi Xi and countered her with swordsmanship.
• Ji Xueyi stopped Xi Xi’s final attack with her sword at Xi Xi’s throat, and Xi Xi admitted defeat.
• Yan Shaozhe told Gu Xingyue that Ji Xueyi was close to reaching the threshold of sword intent, while Jin Hongchen watched her victory.

Ji Xueyi defeated Chen Zixuan in a hard-fought sword spar, and Yan Shaozhe signaled Gu Xingyue to take the stage. As Gu Xingyue stepped forward, Ji Xueyi sensed he was different from her previous opponents.

• Jin Hongchen told Yan Shaozhe that Ji Xueyi had rank-three innate soul power, while Yan acknowledged how far she had advanced through effort.
• Chen Zixuan challenged Ji Xueyi with his rank-fifty-five Soul-Chasing Sword, and Gu Xingyue recalled that Chen had died in the original story.
• Chen Zixuan's tracking sword strikes pressured Ji Xueyi, but she defended herself through nearly a hundred exchanges and eventually touched his wrist with her blade.
• Chen Zixuan admitted defeat and left the platform, while Ji Xueyi revealed a cut on her shoulder from the fight.
• Yan Shaozhe gave Gu Xingyue a meaningful look, and he stepped forward as Ji Xueyi watched him with growing caution.

Gu Xingyue faced the wounded Ji Xueyi and overwhelmed her with a colossal Thunderclap Greatblade after she gained a flash of insight into her sword. Ji Xueyi remained conscious but was defeated, and Jin Hongchen called Gu Xingyue unfathomable.

• Gu Xingyue introduced himself as a Rank 31 Power Attack Soul Elder, and Ji Xueyi took an attacking stance despite her injuries.
• Ji Xueyi struck first, but Gu Xingyue blocked her sword with a blade formed from lightning.
• Ji Xueyi gathered her sword energy and delivered a thrust that carried a trace of King's Presence, impressing Yan Shaozhe.
• Gu Xingyue enlarged his Thunder Blade into a massive Thunderclap Greatblade and brought it down on Ji Xueyi.
• Ji Xueyi withstood part of the blow before being hurled to the arena's edge, and the referee shielded her from the remaining blade radiance.
• Jin Hongchen called Gu Xingyue unfathomable as he calmly withdrew his blade.

After defeating Ji Xueyi, Gu Xingyue challenged the visiting students and easily beat Tang Gang, whose pole-vaulting martial soul and soul tools failed to overcome his lightning attacks. Jin Hongchen prepared to end the exchange by praising Dean Yan’s students.

• Gu Xingyue called for another opponent after defeating Ji Xueyi, but the Sun Moon Empire Royal Soul Engineering Academy students hesitated to step forward.
• Tang Gang challenged Gu Xingyue, introduced his Lone Bamboo King martial soul and rank-four-seventh Soul Ancestor status, and attacked with soul tools while using Pole Vault.
• Gu Xingyue countered Tang Gang’s aerial attacks with lightning-powered elbow strikes and climbed lightning steps to reach him.
• Tang Gang’s defensive soul tool failed, and he crashed into the platform; he conceded defeat after Gu Xingyue asked whether he wanted to continue.
• The visiting students wondered how Gu Xingyue had defeated Tang Gang so easily, while Jin Hongchen prepared to praise Dean Yan and end the exchange.

After Gu Xingyue defeated the Sun Moon Empire students, he rejected Yan Shaozhe’s offer to cultivate at the Golden Tree and returned to the Outer Court to stay near Huo Yutong. He agreed to become Ji Xueyi’s sparring partner, and Mu En watched their training from afar, amused by how devotedly he kept her company.

• Jin Hongchen ended the sparring exchange and took the Sun Moon Empire students back to their guest quarters, while Ji Xueyi briefly acknowledged Gu Xingyue as she left.
• Yan Shaozhe suggested Gu Xingyue cultivate at the Golden Tree, but he returned to the Outer Court because he wanted to stay near Huo Yutong for system rewards.
• After class, Ji Xueyi challenged Gu Xingyue, apologized for her blunt request, and persuaded him to spar with her so she could improve her swordsmanship.
• Gu Xingyue spent the next several days sparring with Ji Xueyi, patiently answering her repeated requests for another match and different attacks.
• Mu En watched Gu Xingyue and Ji Xueyi train from a pavilion and remarked that his company would eventually satisfy the girl.

Huo Yutong returned to Shrek Academy with new power and reunited with Gu Xingyue, only to feel unsettled when she found him sparring with Ji Xueyi. After Gu Xingyue reassured her, he and Huo Yutong left together for a celebratory meal while Ji Xueyi watched from the shadows.

• Huo Yutong returned to Shrek Academy and told Fan Yu that her soul-ring hunt had delayed her; Fan Yu welcomed her back and invited her to study Sun Moon Empire blueprints.
• Huo Yutong went to the training ground and saw Gu Xingyue sparring with Ji Xueyi, which made her feel a cold pang of jealousy.
• Gu Xingyue introduced Ji Xueyi as an exchange student and explained that they were friends who sparred over swordsmanship.
• Ji Xueyi left after saying she would return to spar with Gu Xingyue the next day, while Huo Yutong admitted she had felt he looked happy fighting her.
• Gu Xingyue reassured Huo Yutong that he was glad she had returned, then invited her to a meal; Ji Xueyi secretly watched them leave before walking away.

At Shrek Academy’s freshman assessment, Huo Yutong challenged Dai Huabing to a wager that the loser would kneel and kowtow. Huo Yutong intimidated a thousand-year Frost Giant Python with her simulated hundred-thousand-year soul ring aura and declared that Dai Huabing had lost.

• Huo Yutong confronted Dai Huabing and wagered that the loser of the assessment would kneel and kowtow.
• Dai Huabing accepted the wager, then fought a thousand-year soul beast fiercely and lost points for trying to kill it.
• Huo Yutong chose a thousand-year soul beast for her assessment, and the teachers brought in a Frost Giant Python.
• Huo Yutong used her Simulation Soul Skill to make her soul ring appear hundred-thousand-year-old, terrifying the Frost Giant Python into cowering in the arena.
• Huo Yutong withdrew her martial soul, told Dai Huabing she had lost, and ordered her to kneel.

Huo Yutong left Dai Huabing kneeling after winning their assessment, then returned to the Soul Guidance Department, where imperial tensions and a class rivalry were taking shape. As Ning Tian gathered classmates through his wealth and connections, Huo Yutong focused on improving her soul-tool skills.

• Dai Huabing kowtowed to Huo Yutong, who walked away without looking back, while Dai Huabing refused Zhu Lu's help and left the arena on her own.
• Jin Hongchen praised the accuracy of Huo Yutong's simulated hundred-thousand-year soul-ring aura, and Old Gong complained that the assessment had frightened his soul beasts.
• Gu Xingyue returned to class and slept through Wang Yan's lesson, while Huo Yutong's class received a Sun Moon Empire teaching assistant amid hostility from students of the other empires.
• Ning Tian treated more than a dozen classmates to dinner and began building support with benefits and connections.
• Huo Yutong relied on her teammates and technically minded classmates for support, then studied the soul-tool blueprints Fan Yu had given her.

Shrek Academy began selecting seven reserve team members for the Continental Soul Master Tournament, and Xuan Zi appeared to test the candidates by inviting them to attack. After several students failed to move her, she pressed the entire training ground down with crushing gravity, while Gu Xingyue remained standing with an elemental lotus in his hand.

• The Outer Court grew tense as students prepared for the reserve team selection, and all who had signed up gathered at the training ground.
• Xuan Zi revealed herself as a Sea God Pavilion elder and ordered the students to attack her so she could judge their strength.
• He Caicai fired a soul cannon at Xuan Zi, who stopped and crushed the beam with one hand.
• Xu Shanshi charged with her Black Tortoise Shield as Bei Bei attacked with lightning enhanced by Gu Xingyue, but Xuan Zi repelled them both.
• Jiang Nan struck Xuan Zi and tried to bind and throw her with his bandages, but she broke free and sent him flying.
• Xuan Zi pressed down on the training ground with immense gravity, pinning the attackers while Gu Xingyue stayed upright with an elemental lotus in his hand.

Xuan Zi tested the Outer Court students in combat and discovered that Huo Yutong possessed Ultimate Ice. She declared Huo Yutong and Gu Xingyue Shrek’s Twin Stars, ending the spar with Shrek’s future looking transformed by three ultimate attributes under one roof.

• Gu Xingyue attacked Xuan Zi with a self-created purple-green elemental lotus, but she took the blast without injury and challenged the students to fight her.
• Xuan Zi suppressed her cultivation to the Soul Emperor level and began eliminating students with Eight Trigrams Palm and an elemental meteor hammer.
• Jiang Nan, Xu Shanshi, and Huo Yutong coordinated against Xuan Zi, with Huo Yutong using Spiritual Detection to help the students track her movements.
• Huo Yutong confronted Xuan Zi with an ice-attribute palm strike, and Xuan Zi recognized her power as Ultimate Ice.
• Xuan Zi celebrated the discovery of Huo Yutong’s Ultimate Ice alongside Gu Xingyue’s Ultimate Lightning and Ultimate Life, and named them Shrek’s Twin Stars.

Xuan Zi brought the Outer Court Reserve Team to the Inner Court, where they met the disciples and were assigned a combat match. After a golden-haired Inner Court disciple questioned the mismatch in strength, Xuan Zi defended the training and warned everyone about the Body Sect and its master.

• Xuan Zi led the seven Reserve Team members across Sea God Lake and introduced them to the Inner Court disciples.
• Gongsun Mo teased Xu Shanshi by asking about her scent, then revealed she had been joking and welcomed her as a future training partner.
• Xuan Zi assigned seven Inner Court disciples to fight the seven Reserve Team members in an assignment-free combat match.
• A golden-haired Inner Court disciple questioned whether the strength gap made the match unfair.
• Xuan Zi said harsh opponents were part of life beyond the academy and warned everyone to stay far away from the Body Sect's master.

Gu Xingyue received powerful battle armor and new abilities just before the match against the seven Inner Court disciples, transforming the battle’s odds. He opened the fight by unleashing a lightning storm that swallowed the arena.

• The Reserve Team doubted they could defeat the Inner Court disciples until Gu Xingyue argued that Huo Yutong’s abilities gave them a chance and said he would direct the fight.
• Gu Xingyue received One-Word Battle Armor, Dragon King Era Battle Armor Technology, two armor-related bonuses, and Heart of Elements.
• Gu Xingyue entered the arena with Huo Yutong and told her she was his lucky general before challenging the Inner Court disciples.
• Gu Xingyue assembled his battle armor, astonishing the Inner Court disciples, the Reserve Team, and Xuan Zi with its power.
• Gu Xingyue used Thunder Prison Storm, filling the arena with dark purple lightning that rivaled a Soul Sage’s full-power strike.

Gu Xingyue used his Battle Armor to defeat seven Inner Court disciples in a single Thunder Prison Storm, leaving the arena stunned. He left with Huo Yutong while Xuan Zi chose not to question him, and he anticipated that Mu En might soon gain Battle Armor as well.

• Gu Xingyue unleashed Thunder Prison Storm, overwhelming the seven Inner Court disciples’ combined defense and knocking them all unconscious in an instant.
• The reserve team and Xuan Zi watched in shock as Gu Xingyue withdrew his Battle Armor and told the others to snap out of it.
• Gu Xingyue invited Huo Yutong to leave with him, and they walked back toward the Outer Court together.
• Xuan Zi refrained from questioning Gu Xingyue, then ordered the reserve team to take the injured disciples to the infirmary and run ten laps before dinner.
• Gu Xingyue thought that Xuan Zi would report what she had witnessed and imagined Mu En recovering with the Evergreen Life Vine and eventually wearing Battle Armor.

After the battle, Gu Xingyue joined Huo Yutong in her workshop, where they cooked a meal together and shared a warm moment. In Huo Yutong’s sea of consciousness, the Ice Empress urged Tianmeng to help Huo Yutong study soul tools, while Gu Xingyue praised Huo Yutong’s cooking as they sat down to eat.

• Gu Xingyue followed Huo Yutong to her private soul tool workshop and discovered the small kitchen behind the workbench.
• Gu Xingyue and Huo Yutong prepared dinner together while Huo Yutong wished their peaceful moment could last.
• The Ice Empress questioned Tianmeng about why Huo Yutong lacked powerful armor, then ordered Tianmeng to study soul tools with her.
• Huo Yutong finished cooking and served Gu Xingyue a meal at the table.
• Gu Xingyue tasted Huo Yutong’s soup and called her the Cooking God of their age.

After discovering Huo Yutong's Ultimate Ice martial soul, Yan Shaozhe brought her to meet Mu En, who accepted her as a disciple and offered to teach her and Gu Xingyue King's Presence. The pair left the Sea God Pavilion together, with Huo Yutong reassured that she could learn the technique.

• Yan Shaozhe found Gu Xingyue and Huo Yutong by Sea God Lake and asked Huo Yutong to meet someone important.
• Gu Xingyue accompanied Huo Yutong to the Sea God Pavilion, where Mu En asked her to become her disciple.
• Huo Yutong accepted Mu En as her master, and Mu En announced that she would teach King's Presence to Huo Yutong and Gu Xingyue.
• Mu En explained that King's Presence combined Spiritual Power and soul power, and told both students to begin practicing with her the next day.
• Yan Shaozhe asked Gu Xingyue about the armor Xuan Zi had mentioned, and Gu Xingyue told her she would find out in a few days.
• Huo Yutong asked whether she could learn King's Presence, and Gu Xingyue assured her she could as they walked back together.

Gu Xingyue revealed Battle Armor to Mu En and explained that it could greatly enhance soul masters, with the potential to be widely produced. Mu En asked about its manufacture and Gu Xingyue said he intended to monopolize the technology.

• After training, Gu Xingyue went to Mu En's room and said the armor he had worn in combat would surprise her.
• Mu En recognized that Gu Xingyue's armor resembled a Life-Bound Soul Tool and recalled a Sun Moon Empire consecrator's offer to design her a Class 9 soul tool if Shrek formed an alliance.
• Gu Xingyue manifested his One-Word Battle Armor and explained that Soul Kings could wear a complete set, while its later stages could become a soul master's second life.
• Mu En wondered whether higher stages of Battle Armor could let her face two Limit Douluos alone.
• Gu Xingyue said One-Word Battle Armor could be manufactured under current conditions, but perfecting the forging would take time.
• When Mu En asked what he planned to do with the technology, Gu Xingyue said he would monopolize it.