Recaps

Xu Zhengyang returned home after three years away, reuniting with his worried parents and telling them he planned to enter the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy. He revealed his level-thirty-three cultivation and unusual Soul Rings, then vowed to become a top-tier Soul Master and raise his family’s standing.

• Xu Haoyang and Yang Miaowen opened the door and recognized Xu Zhengyang, who told them, “Dad, Mom, I'm home!”
• Yang Miaowen cooked for Xu Zhengyang, and the family ate together before talking late into the night.
• Xu Zhengyang told his parents he wanted to attend the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy to broaden his horizons and learn about Soul Masters and Soul Engineers.
• Xu Zhengyang revealed that his Soul Power had reached level thirty-three and that he was still a Level 1 Soul Engineer.
• Xu Zhengyang summoned his Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear and showed his parents one yellow and two purple Soul Rings.
• Xu Zhengyang promised to become a top-tier Soul Master and make his family rise.

Xu Zhengyang passed his junior academy graduation exam and traveled with the Xu Clan to Mingdu to seek admission to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy. The chapter ended with Xu Yuanxuan bringing the clan’s younger members to meet their true lineage head, Prince Xu Tianyuan.

• Xu Zhengyang demonstrated rank-33 Soul Power and Level 1 Soul Engineer skills, passed his graduation assessment, and received a recommendation to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy.
• After a month of cultivation, Xu Zhengyang traveled with Xu Yuanxuan, Xu Haoyang, and other students for six days to Mingdu.
• Xu Zhengyang arrived in Mingdu and observed its immense scale, prosperity, and unseen security as Xu Yuanxuan led the group to a luxurious hotel.
• The next morning, Xu Yuanxuan led the Xu Clan’s younger members and Xu Haoyang across Mingdu to a grand princely residence.
• Xu Yuanxuan introduced Prince Xu Tianyuan as the Sun Radiance Lineage’s true clan head, and Xu Zhengyang regarded him as a powerful figure to watch.

Xu Zhengyang met Xu Tianyuan, head of the Sun Radiance Lineage, and endured a test of strength before receiving advice about studying Soul Tools. After learning more about his family’s precarious position and the political situation in Mingdu, Xu Zhengyang wondered whether to support or oppose Crown Prince Xu Tianran.

• Xu Yuanxuan brought Xu Zhengyang and the others to meet Prince Xu Tianyuan, who praised Xu Zhengyang’s potential.
• Xu Tianyuan tested Xu Zhengyang with overwhelming pressure, and Xu Zhengyang resisted without kneeling.
• Xu Tianyuan advised Xu Zhengyang to study Soul Tools at the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy and promised that the Xu Clan would protect him from minor trouble.
• Xu Zhengyang learned from his father that the Sun Radiance branch in Dongyang City was politically marginalized and stationed there to defend the frontier.
• Xu Zhengyang reviewed Mingdu’s political ties, learned that Xu Tianyuan supported Crown Prince Xu Tianran, and questioned whether he should support or destroy him.

Xu Zhengyang passed the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy’s entrance assessments by demonstrating rank thirty-three Soul Power and crafting a Class 1 Soul Tool. After receiving his admission and dormitory assignment, he observed that the academy prioritized Soul Tool research over combat training.

• Xu Yuanxuan took Xu Zhengyang and the other students to the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy for their entrance examinations.
• Xu Zhengyang displayed rank thirty-three Soul Power, surprising the testing teacher and astonishing the students around him.
• Xu Zhengyang crafted a Class 1 Soul Tool during the practical assessment, and the teacher confirmed that he had passed.
• Xu Zhengyang received his admission proof and, three days after passing the assessments, collected his dormitory key, regulations, and academy map.
• Xu Zhengyang moved into an upscale single dorm room equipped for Soul Tool research and noted that the academy offered little in the way of Soul Master combat training.

Xu Zhengyang attended Class One’s entrance physical test and observed the exceptional Soul Power of Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen. After seeing the students’ results, he judged that even the academy’s gifted students had neglected physical training.

• Xu Zhengyang joined Class One and recognized Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen among the students gathered for their physical tests.
• Lin Jiayi explained the testing procedure and asked students to put away their Soul Tools before scanning.
• Xiao Hongchen took the first test and recorded level-thirty-four toughness, level-thirty-five resilience, and level-thirty-nine Soul Power.
• Meng Hongchen tested next, recording level-thirty-two toughness, level-thirty-four resilience, and level-thirty-eight Soul Power.
• The remaining students took their tests, and Xu Zhengyang noticed that their physical results lagged behind their Soul Power levels.

Xu Zhengyang stunned the students and Lin Jiayi with physical attributes far beyond his Soul Power rank, then recorded an even more astonishing power score. The class left the tests with Xu Zhengyang drawing the dean’s intense interest as a seemingly battle-tested student with a tool Martial Soul.

• Xu Zhengyang’s physical assessment showed Soul Elder-level Soul Power, Soul King-level strength, and resilience reaching the Soul Emperor level.
• Xu Zhengyang considered how his Soul Bones affected the readings and worried that his unfused Darkgolden Terrorclaw External Soul Bone might be exposed.
• Xiao Hongchen scored rank forty-four in the power test, while Meng Hongchen scored rank forty-one.
• Xu Zhengyang summoned his Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear and struck the testing machine, scoring rank sixty-one in power.
• Lin Jiayi became deeply interested in Xu Zhengyang, puzzled by his extraordinary power and the battle-tested presence he carried despite being twelve.

Xu Zhengyang dominated the entrance tests, revealing reaction skills and combat instincts that astonished Lin Jiayi and his classmates. Two days later, classes began at the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy, where Xu Jie explained the first-year curriculum and strict elimination system.

• Xu Zhengyang outperformed his classmates in the reaction test, lasting ten minutes before making a mistake and earning an excellent rating.
• Lin Jiayi recognized that Xu Zhengyang’s performance showed exceptional combat instincts and experience with life-or-death trials.
• Two days later, Xu Zhengyang and the other students attended their first Class One lesson at the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy.
• Xu Jie introduced the curriculum and revealed that Xu Zhengyang was the class’s only Level 1 Soul Engineer.
• Xu Jie explained that the academy would eliminate one-third of first-year students and that later years were assigned by Soul Engineer level.

Xu Jie introduced the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy’s curriculum and explained how students would choose specialized departments after foundational study. When the class elected its monitors, he urged Xu Zhengyang to participate and praised his assessment results and Soul Tool skills, surprising everyone by revealing Xu Zhengyang was only a Level 1 Soul Engineer.

• Xu Jie introduced himself as a Level 6 Soul Engineer and Soul Sage, then outlined the academy’s foundational courses and specialized departments.
• Xu Zhengyang listened closely and recognized that he had come to the academy to learn to make a Life-Bound Soul Tool.
• Xu Jie announced that the class would elect a class monitor and deputy, and several students, including Meng Hongchen, put themselves forward.
• When Xu Jie asked why he had not nominated himself, Xu Zhengyang said his dangerous cultivation and solitary habits made him unsuited to the role.
• Xu Jie praised Xu Zhengyang’s physical assessment and formation-engraving skills, then revealed that he was still only a Level 1 Soul Engineer, astonishing the class.

Xu Zhengyang described the harsh training that had shaped him, then won the class monitor election over Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen. Xiao and Meng challenged him to fights over the position, and Xu Zhengyang accepted both challenges.

• Xu Zhengyang signed up for class monitor and told the class he had trained across Soul Beast forests and the Ice Sea since he was nine.
• Teacher Xu Jie held an open vote, and Xu Zhengyang received fifteen votes, ahead of Xiao Hongchen with twelve and Meng Hongchen with eight.
• Xiao Hongchen objected to the election and argued that a Level 3 Soul Engineer should lead the class in Soul Tool study.
• Xiao Hongchen challenged Xu Zhengyang to a fight in the arena, and Meng Hongchen challenged him as well.
• Xu Zhengyang accepted both challenges and agreed to settle the matter in the arena.

Xu Zhengyang challenged Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen to fight him together, then faced the siblings in the arena. He revealed an extraordinary second Soul Ring and countered their opening attacks, leaving the match underway.

• Xu Zhengyang accepted Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen's challenge and insisted they face him together.
• At the arena, Xu Zhengyang described his experience fighting Soul Beasts and people, unsettling Xiao Hongchen and impressing Xu Jie with his battle-hardened presence.
• Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen entered the arena together, and all three summoned their Martial Souls and Soul Rings.
• Xu Zhengyang's one yellow and two purple Soul Rings shocked the onlookers because his second Soul Ring was a thousand-year one.
• Xiao Hongchen attacked with cannon fire while Meng Hongchen charged with a cold-poisoned longsword, but Xu Zhengyang blocked both attacks with his Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear.
• The spear's intense heat melted the ice spreading from Meng Hongchen's sword and countered her cold poison.

Xu Zhengyang overwhelmed Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen in their match, breaking through their poison, Soul Tools, and combined defenses. He left both of them defeated, and the onlookers saw him as an almost monstrous opponent.

• Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen attacked Xu Zhengyang together, but he swept Meng Hongchen aside and shattered Xiao Hongchen’s barrage of Soul Cannons.
• Meng Hongchen used Ice Refraction to reach Xiao Hongchen, but Xu Zhengyang’s Devil Tiger Destruction Kill broke their defenses and sent them flying.
• Meng Hongchen strengthened her poison while Xiao Hongchen formed a powerful Soul Cannon, but Xu Zhengyang used Heavenly Dipper Poison Dragon Drill to knock Meng Hongchen down and hold his spear to her neck.
• Xu Zhengyang used Tyrant's Furious Collapse to break Xiao Hongchen’s cannon blast and destroy the temporary Soul Cannon, then struck Xiao Hongchen’s shoulder and sent him flying.
• Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen both fell, and the spectators regarded Xu Zhengyang as a monster after his decisive victory.

Xu Zhengyang explained how he overcame Meng Hongchen’s poison and criticized Xiao Hongchen’s dependence on Soul Tools and poor combat adaptability. He argued that strong Soul Masters formed the foundation of powerful Soul Engineers, leaving the students and Teacher Xu Jie reconsidering the academy’s training approach.

• Xu Zhengyang explained that his training in Sunset Forest had given him strong poison resistance and that his spear techniques dispersed Meng Hongchen’s poisonous mist.
• Xu Zhengyang told Xiao Hongchen that his Three-Legged Golden Toad Martial Soul and Soul Skills were wasted because he relied too heavily on Soul Tools and could not adapt when Xu Zhengyang closed in.
• The students and Teacher Xu Jie recognized that Xiao Hongchen had been unable to fight once his opponent reached close range.
• Xiao Hongchen questioned how Xu Zhengyang could become a powerful Soul Engineer while using a Soul Master’s approach and remaining a Level 1 Soul Engineer.
• Xu Zhengyang argued that powerful Soul Engineers first needed strong Soul Master abilities, including physical strength, combat skill, and adaptability, prompting the observers to reflect on the academy’s methods.

Xu Jie warned Xu Zhengyang that his low innate Soul Power might limit his future cultivation, but Xu Zhengyang vowed to break through those limits. Meanwhile, Jing Hongchen told Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen to learn from their defeat, leaving them with Xu Zhengyang as a formidable rival.

• Xu Jie announced Xu Zhengyang as class monitor and Xiao Hongchen as deputy monitor, then advised Xu Zhengyang to improve his Soul Engineer abilities.
• Xu Jie revealed that the Sun Radiance Lineage and its clan head had been watching Xu Zhengyang, but warned that his half-rank innate Soul Power could hinder his progress.
• Xu Zhengyang recalled his slow cultivation and declared that he would break through his limits and surpass his classmates.
• Xu Jie urged Xu Zhengyang not to provoke Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen unnecessarily, while promising the Sun Radiance Lineage would protect him from unfair treatment.
• Jing Hongchen told Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen that Xu Zhengyang was powerful enough to challenge a Soul King and that they should earn back their pride rather than complain.
• Jing Hongchen said Xu Zhengyang reminded him of someone and could surpass that person, and described him as useful competition for his grandchildren.

Xu Zhengyang studied the Practical Control Department’s books while trying to understand how Ji Juechen had forged his Martial Soul into a Soul Tool, but he found no answers and grew uncertain about his own method. He settled into an intense routine at the academy, and an incident began to change his thinking and others’ understanding of Soul Tools.

• Xu Zhengyang explored the library’s Practical Control Department books and learned how the department combined Martial Souls and Soul Tools for combat.
• Xu Zhengyang found no information about Life-Bound Soul Tools or Ji Juechen’s cultivation and wondered how Ji Juechen had absorbed Soul Rings.
• Xu Zhengyang questioned why his attempt to incorporate Gold of Life into his Martial Soul had failed, despite Ji Juechen appearing to have succeeded.
• Xu Zhengyang adopted a demanding daily schedule of physical training, classes, library study, Martial Soul forging, medicinal baths, and meditation.
• Xu Zhengyang’s classmates grew to respect his discipline, while an unspecified incident began changing his views and their understanding of Soul Tools.

Xu Zhengyang struggled to find a way to turn his Martial Soul into a Soul Tool, despite advancing quickly in Soul Engineering. Xu Jie brought him to Illustrious Virtue Hall, the academy’s hidden Soul Tool research center, hoping it would help him find answers.

• Xu Zhengyang grew skilled at inscribing Soul Tool formations but remained uncertain how to refine his Martial Soul into a Soul Tool.
• Xu Zhengyang asked Xu Jie for advice and showed him the Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear, which Xu Jie recognized as meticulously forged from high-quality materials.
• Xu Jie explained that Xu Zhengyang’s Martial Soul was already beyond the limits of human forging and said he could offer little guidance.
• Xu Jie took Xu Zhengyang through guarded checkpoints and down a lift beneath the academy.
• Xu Jie introduced Illustrious Virtue Hall as the heart of the academy’s Soul Tool research and an exception to its usual entry rules.

Xu Zhengyang entered the Illustrious Virtue Hall’s restricted repository and studied theories about life-bound soul tools. He began to understand how martial souls and external weapons could be nurtured and united, but had not yet learned the full process of forging one.

• Xu Jie brought Xu Zhengyang to the Illustrious Virtue Hall’s book repository, where guards admitted him because he belonged to the Sun Radiance Lineage.
• Xu Jie explained that the repository held unverified theories and far-reaching ideas that could shape the future of soul engineering.
• Xu Zhengyang found and read books about life-bound soul tools, martial soul and soul tool combinations, and humanoid soul tools.
• Xu Zhengyang studied how Kong Deming’s Silver Moon Divine Light Shield became a level 10 soul tool and how Ji Juechen’s growing longsword resembled a life-bound soul tool.
• Xu Zhengyang concluded that Ji Juechen nurtured his sword with soul power and spiritual power, allowing it to develop like a life-bound soul tool.

Xu Zhengyang infused his Soul Power and life force into the Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear, forging a bond between himself and his Martial Soul. The experience awakened his Spear Intent, and he arrived late to class with a sharper, more formidable presence.

• After meeting with Xu Jie, Xu Zhengyang reflected on Ji Juechen's sword and decided to infuse his soul into the Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear without destroying his Martial Soul.
• Xu Zhengyang poured his Soul Power and blood essence into the spear, draining his life force as the weapon gained an unusual, living presence.
• The next morning, Xu Zhengyang entered a state of enlightenment, summoned a spear of light, and unleashed a strike that tore a huge fissure through the ground.
• Xu Zhengyang realized that his Spear Intent had begun to take shape and vowed to advance alongside the Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear.
• Xu Zhengyang arrived nearly at the end of the second lesson, surprising his classmates and puzzling Xu Jie with his sharpened presence and the spear still in his hands.

Xu Zhengyang told Teacher Xu Jie that he planned to nurture his Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear as a life-bound soul tool, then discussed the academy’s prospects in the next Soul Master Tournament. After Xu Zhengyang explained that Shrek Academy’s brutal combat training gave its students an advantage, Xu Jie asked what he would do if he led the team.

• Xu Zhengyang arrived late carrying his Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear and kept it summoned after sitting down.
• After class, Xu Zhengyang told Xu Jie he had chosen to nurture his spear with soul power until it became a life-bound soul tool.
• Xu Jie explained that the academy hoped Xu Zhengyang’s class, including Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen, would compete in the next Soul Master Tournament.
• Xu Zhengyang revealed that he had traveled through the Extreme North to Shrek City and described Shrek Academy’s harsh trials and combat training.
• Xu Jie recalled his own crushing defeat by Shrek Academy and asked Xu Zhengyang what he would do as the next tournament team’s leader.

Xu Zhengyang persuaded Xu Jie to add daily physical training and frequent combat classes to Class One, arguing that Soul Engineers also needed strong bodies and practical fighting skills. After the students began the new routine, Xu Zhengyang finished the first fifty-kilometer run well ahead of them and went to practice with his spear.

• Xu Zhengyang recalled He Caitou's combination of Soul Master and Soul Engineer training and proposed morning weighted exercise and practical combat classes to Xu Jie.
• Xu Jie approved the new classes, and Xu Zhengyang suggested removing students with weak combat ability and spreading rumors about his low Innate Soul Power to provoke the class geniuses.
• Xu Jie announced that Class One would run one hundred laps each morning and hold two practical combat sessions a week, despite Xiao Hongchen questioning the need for running.
• Xu Zhengyang started running first, and two hours later the exhausted students rested while he practiced alone with the Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear.

After Xiao Hongchen challenged Xu Zhengyang’s physical training, Xu Zhengyang proposed fighting all thirty-nine classmates at once. The students gathered in the arena to face him, where Jing Hongchen watched and praised Xu Zhengyang’s potential despite his low Innate Soul Power.

• Xiao Hongchen objected to the extra physical training and accused Xu Zhengyang of holding the class back, insulting his low Innate Soul Power.
• Xu Zhengyang confronted Xiao Hongchen, argued that combat ability mattered, and challenged the entire class to fight him together.
• Xiao Hongchen, Meng Hongchen, and their classmates accepted Xu Zhengyang’s challenge and went with him to the arena.
• The referee and Xu Jie were startled as Xu Zhengyang faced thirty-nine students, including six Soul Elders, while onlookers gathered.
• Jing Hongchen arrived beside Xu Jie and said Xu Zhengyang might be the kind of talent the academy needed, though he regretted Xu Zhengyang’s Innate Soul Power.

Xu Zhengyang faced thirty-nine classmates armed with Soul Tools and used his agility and spear to disrupt their formation. He had knocked three opponents down without being injured, while Xiao Hongchen watched his plans unravel and Meng Hongchen stayed back to avoid poisoning her teammates.

• Xu Zhengyang and thirty-nine opponents revealed their Martial Souls and Soul Rings before the match began.
• At the referee’s command, the thirty-nine opponents attacked with Soul Tools while Xu Zhengyang ran along the platform’s edge to evade them.
• Xu Zhengyang counterattacked with Looking Back at the Moon, swept one opponent off their feet, and pierced another’s shoulder through a Level 3 Soul Tool shield.
• Xu Zhengyang used a nearby opponent to block a ray aimed at his head, leaving three opponents down and himself unharmed.
• Xiao Hongchen grew furious at his side’s early losses, while Meng Hongchen remained beside him because she could not safely use her toxins around teammates.

Xu Zhengyang battled the remaining members of his class, survived their coordinated attacks, and finally removed the hundreds of jin of weights he had been wearing. His opponents and the spectators realized that he had been fighting with a substantial handicap, just as the arena battle continued.

• Xu Zhengyang used his speed and combat awareness to evade attacks and knock down more than half of his thirty-nine opponents while conserving his strength.
• Xu Zhengyang attacked Xiao Hongchen, but Qiu Yi blocked his spear with his shield, and Meng Hongchen, Xiao Hongchen, Ding Xiaobu, and others launched a coordinated counterattack.
• Lan Xiu's spiritual attack briefly dazed Xu Zhengyang, while Ye Nongfeng's blood-red ray struck him; Xu Zhengyang answered with Tyrant's Furious Collapse, driving back his attackers but suffering his first injury.
• Xu Zhengyang recognized Xiao Hongchen's plan to exploit a brief opening, while Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen insisted that their full team would eventually exhaust and defeat him.
• Xu Zhengyang removed his soft armor, wrist guards, and foot guards, revealing that he had fought while carrying several hundred jin of weight.
• The spectators erupted in surprise, and Xu Jie realized Xu Zhengyang had also been carrying enormous weights during his morning runs.

After removing his weights, Xu Zhengyang overwhelmed his classmates in a fight against thirty-nine opponents, leaving Xiao Hongchen, Meng Hongchen, and the others badly injured. He ended the battle by insulting the Hongchen siblings as they lay defeated.

• Xu Zhengyang removed his weights and launched a stronger attack, blasting aside Lan Xiu, Ye Canshang, and their Soul Tools.
• Xu Zhengyang feinted past the group’s defense and struck Ding Xiaobu, gravely wounding him.
• Xu Zhengyang disarmed Meng Hongchen and sent her flying with a spear strike, leaving her badly injured.
• Xiao Hongchen fired his merged Soul Tool cannon, but Xu Zhengyang blocked it and continued attacking Lan Xiu and the others.
• After two minutes, Xu Zhengyang had defeated all thirty-nine classmates, while Jing Hongchen and Xu Jie watched in surprise.
• Xu Zhengyang mocked Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen for failing to improve, and the injured siblings spat blood in humiliation.

Xu Zhengyang challenged Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen to rely less on Soul Tools and develop their bodies, Martial Souls, and real combat skills. Jing Hongchen began to understand why Shrek Academy produced stronger fighters, while Meng Hongchen realized her poison was already harming her.

• Xu Zhengyang told Xiao Hongchen that his dependence on Soul Tools left him poorly prepared for real combat, despite his exceptional talent and powerful Martial Soul.
• Xu Zhengyang explained that Shrek Academy's brutal life-and-death training gave its students the ability to survive desperate battles, and Jing Hongchen reconsidered the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy's approach.
• Xiao Hongchen rejected Xu Zhengyang's claim that he would lose to a genius from the Heaven Dou Empire, and Xu Zhengyang told him and Meng Hongchen that true experts needed comprehensive strength without major shortcomings.
• Meng Hongchen asked whether Xu Zhengyang had recommended physical training and combat experience for that reason, and he explained that poison Soul Masters needed strong bodies to withstand their own poison.
• Meng Hongchen realized Xu Zhengyang's warning applied to her, since she had already begun to feel the harmful effects of her poison.

After defeating Class One, Xu Zhengyang persuaded the academy to make physical conditioning and combat training a regular part of their education. The students trained harder while continuing to excel in Soul Tool studies, and Ye Nongfeng reached Soul Elder as the academy considered whether to expand the program.

• Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen questioned their repeated losses, and Jing Hongchen explained Xu Zhengyang’s advantages in physical fitness, Martial Soul use, and combat experience.
• Xu Zhengyang’s defeat of the class left the students shaken but also inspired many to respect his strength and take combat ability seriously.
• Teacher Xu Jie began arranging regular physical training and twice-weekly combat assessments for Class One, while Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen trained especially hard.
• At Xu Zhengyang’s suggestion, Xu Jie introduced varied conditioning exercises and medicinal baths, which the academy readily funded.
• Class One continued progressing in Soul Tool studies and cultivation; Ye Nongfeng broke through to Soul Elder, while academy leaders debated whether to adopt the training method more widely.