Chapter Summaries

Lin Rong absorbed the Kongqing Bamboo Soul Ring, but its soul power attacked him inside his Spiritual Sea of Consciousness. He defeated it with the Nine Bend Vine Dragon’s Azure Dragon origin and survived, leaving him aware that his confidence had made him careless.

• Lin Rong summoned the Kongqing Bamboo Soul Ring and absorbed its power through the Marrow Cleansing Scripture.
• Kongqing Bamboo appeared in Lin Rong’s Spiritual Sea of Consciousness and attacked him with silver flames.
• Lin Rong used the Nine Bend Vine Dragon’s Azure Dragon origin to restrain and erase Kongqing Bamboo.
• Old Butler’s Falling Star skill helped Lin Rong recover, and Lin Rong realized that his arrogance had nearly cost him his life.

After recovering from the Kongqing Bamboo’s soul assault, Lin Rong discussed how he would safely purify and absorb its head soul bone and explained the Green Leaf Mark spirit skill he had gained. Old Butler’s concern moved Lin Rong to tears, deepening his trust in the only person he could fully rely on.

• Old Butler used Falling Star to restore Lin Rong’s appearance, though Lin Rong still needed ten days to half a month to recover from his weakened state.
• Lin Rong kept the Kongqing Bamboo head soul bone sealed in his Azure Dragon Vine storage Soul Tool until Old Butler and the Nine Bend Vine Dragon could purify it.
• Lin Rong promised Old Butler he would avoid unknown mutated soul beasts for future Soul Rings and described Green Leaf Mark’s tracking and teleportation abilities.
• Lin Rong demonstrated teleporting to and from Old Butler, explaining the skill’s mark limit, range, soul power cost, and weakness to stronger targets.
• Old Butler said he was unsurprised by Lin Rong’s powerful skill because he believed Lin Rong had risked his life to obtain it, and Lin Rong silently cried as Old Butler wiped away his tears.

A black-clad young master obtained Seven-Colored Splendor from Yang Wushuang, who claimed no one else could identify or make the poison. After having Yang Wushuang killed, the young master decided to wait before poisoning Xue Ye and explained why Xue Beng had to remain alive.

• Yang Wushuang explained how Seven-Colored Splendor worked and refused the young master's offer to submit to him.
• The young master questioned Yang Wushuang about who could refine and identify the poison, then ordered a spear-wielding figure to kill him.
• A shadowy subordinate asked whether they should begin poisoning Xue Ye, but the young master refused because his political support was not yet secure.
• The spear-wielding figure suggested killing Xue Xing and Xue Beng, and the young master rebuked him, explaining that Xue Beng had to stay alive to preserve the balance of succession.
• The young master took the Seven-Colored Splendor and left the secret chamber to return to his duties.

Lin Rong traveled into the Star Luo Empire to seek the Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng from Bai He and the Breaking Clan’s Herb Illustrated Handbook from Yang Wudi. With his new life-saving abilities, he felt more confident about approaching them, though he still depended on Bai He agreeing to the deal.

• Lin Rong’s Soul Power reached level twenty-three, and he safely absorbed the Kongqing Bamboo’s head Soul Bone after the Old Butler purified it.
• Lin Rong asked the Old Butler whether his negotiations with Bai He would go smoothly, and the Old Butler said Bai He would likely accept the offered ginseng plant.
• Lin Rong considered the risks of approaching Bai He and reflected on how Green Leaf Mark and Flower Transfer, Wood Grafting gave him greater confidence.
• Lin Rong continued toward the Star Luo Empire, intending to obtain Bai He’s Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng and trade with Yang Wudi for the Breaking Clan’s Herb Illustrated Handbook.

Lin Rong and Yu Yuan visited the impoverished Speed Clan and offered Bai He one million Gold Soul Coins for the Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng. Bai He had not yet accepted the offer when the chapter ended.

• Lin Rong and Yu Yuan arrived at the Speed Clan village, where a gatekeeper recognized Yu Yuan's eight Soul Rings and hurried to announce them.
• Bai He received the visitors and identified Lin Rong as the young Duke of the Lin Family.
• Lin Rong told Bai He that he knew the Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng's age, appearance, and storage place.
• Bai He demanded to know how Lin Rong learned about the ginseng, but Lin Rong offered one million Gold Soul Coins for it.
• Lin Rong urged Bai He to consider his impoverished clansmen before deciding whether to sell the ginseng.

Bai He gave Lin Rong the Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng and, after Lin Rong requested it, a Letter of Recommendation to Yang Wudi. Lin Rong and the Old Butler then used Spatial Swap to escape three li away, and Lin Rong reflected on the soul skill’s capabilities and limits.

• Bai He gave Lin Rong a Jade Box containing the Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng after struggling with his decision.
• Lin Rong asked Bai He for a Letter of Recommendation to Yang Wudi, and Bai He wrote one despite his misgivings.
• Lin Rong and the Old Butler left the village and used Spatial Swap to exchange places with two marked stones three li away.
• Lin Rong considered how Green Leaf Mark enabled Spatial Swap and reviewed its range, Soul Power cost, and limitations.

Lin Rong traveled toward Windy City to seek out the Breaking Clan, reasoning that its location and inherited martial soul made it the best fit. During the journey, he cultivated the Marrow Cleansing Scripture and sensed an opportunity to break through to Mind Empty, Body Transforms Itself.

• Lin Rong used clues about the Lower Four Sects and the clans’ martial souls to conclude that the Breaking Clan was based in Windy City.
• Lin Rong reflected that the Star Luo Royal Family held firmer control over its empire than the Heaven Dou Royal Family and considered his own plan to seize the Heaven Dou throne.
• Lin Rong put away his map and cultivated the Marrow Cleansing Scripture during the carriage ride.
• Lin Rong connected his cultivation progress to the nourishment of his soul from the Kongqing Bamboo head Soul Bone and the resulting changes in his mental power and state of mind.
• Lin Rong sensed an opportunity to break through to Mind Empty, Body Transforms Itself.

Lin Rong broke through to the first realm of the Marrow Cleansing Scripture, Mind Empty, Body Transforms Itself, while traveling by carriage. After cleansing his body and escaping the site of the conspicuous phenomenon, he wondered how long it would take to reach the next realm.

• Lin Rong entered an ethereal state and broke through the bottleneck into Mind Empty, Body Transforms Itself.
• Heaven and Earth Vital Energy gathered around the carriage, and Old Butler Yu Yuan stopped it and watched over Lin Rong.
• Lin Rong absorbed the vital energy, which improved his physical condition and spiritual power and raised his Soul Power to level twenty-five.
• Lin Rong emerged covered in foul black grime, then bathed in the carriage and changed into clean clothes.
• Old Butler ordered the carriage away after the phenomenon ended, and Lin Rong decided future breakthroughs should happen somewhere secluded.

Lin Rong and Yu Yuan visited Yang Wudi at the Breaking Clan’s residence to request an antidote for the Poisonous Miasma surrounding the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye. Yang Wudi accepted the challenge and went to prepare the medicine, while Lin Rong concluded that Yang Wudi was not suitable for recruitment because of his close ties to Bai He.

• Lin Rong and Yu Yuan entered Yang Manor after Yang Wudi agreed to receive them.
• Yang Wudi recognized the old business ties between their clans and asked why Lin Rong had sought Bai He's Letter of Recommendation.
• Lin Rong showed Yang Wudi a sample of Poisonous Miasma and explained that a vast field of Azure Phosphorus Seven Absolute Flowers produced much more potent poison.
• Yang Wudi declared that he could make an antidote and left for his private alchemy room to begin refining it.
• Lin Rong admired Yang Wudi's decisiveness but decided his friendship with Bai He made him unsuitable for recruitment.

Lin Rong obtained an antidote for the Poisonous Miasma from Yang Wudi and asked to consult the Breaking Clan’s treasured Herb Illustrated Handbook. Yang Wudi allowed him to read it for half an hour, and Lin Rong memorized the information he needed about Immortal Grade Medicinal Herbs.

• Yang Wudi spent the night refining thirty Poisonous Miasma antidote pills using treasured herbs.
• Yang Wudi offered Lin Rong the three bottles of antidote for thirty thousand Gold Soul Coins, and Lin Rong paid and tested a pill by inhaling Poisonous Miasma.
• Lin Rong explained that he wanted to consult the treasured Herb Illustrated Handbook to identify and gather herbs in the Poisonous Miasma.
• Yang Wudi agreed to let Lin Rong read the handbook for half an hour as a favor to Old White Bird.
• Lin Rong read through the handbook page by page and memorized its information on Immortal Grade Medicinal Herbs.

Lin Rong left Yang Wudi after deciding not to warn him about Tang San, then planned how to seize the rare herbs at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye. He intended to wait until Dugu Yan’s birthday, when Dugu Bo would be away, and take the herbs and spring-nourished soil.

• Lin Rong thanked Yang Wudi for his help and learned that the Single Attribute Four Great Clans would gather in Heaven Dou City in four months.
• Lin Rong chose not to tell Yang Wudi about Tang San, reasoning that Tang San would be unable to win over the Breaking Clan without the Immortal Grade Medicinal Herbs.
• On the journey back to Heaven Dou City, Lin Rong planned to enter the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye while Dugu Bo celebrated Dugu Yan’s birthday.
• Lin Rong decided which Immortal Grade Medicinal Herbs to keep or give to others, and planned to destroy the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Delicate Apricot.
• Lin Rong planned to take the soil around the springs so his Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng could reach ten thousand years in less than three years.

Tang San traveled with Tai Tan to Gengxin City to find rare metals and meet Divine Craftsman Lou Gao, hoping to have him forge the Tang Sect’s peerless hidden weapons. The chapter ended with Lou Gao confronting Tang San after he eyed the blacksmith’s unassuming appearance.

• Lin Rong focused on cultivating the Marrow Cleansing Scripture as he resolved to become stronger.
• Tang San arrived in Gengxin City with Tai Tan to buy rare metals and assess Lou Gao’s ability to forge the Buddha’s Fury Tang Lotus.
• Tang San recalled his plans to recruit the Single Attribute Four Great Clans and take revenge on the Clear Sky Sect.
• Tai Tan led Tang San and his group to the Blacksmith Association’s fifth floor, where Si Long guided them to Lou Gao’s forging room.
• Lou Gao opened the door, and Tang San silently doubted that the short, unkempt old man could forge his hidden weapons.
• Lou Gao asked Tang San what he was staring at.

Tang San introduced the Tang Sect and the Zhuge Crossbow to Lou Gao, whose fascination with the hidden weapon led him to join the sect. Lou Gao handed the Blacksmith Association presidency to Si Long and prepared to leave with Tang San and Tai Tan.

• Lou Gao mistook Tang San for Tai Tan’s grandson, then learned Tang San was the Tang Sect Master and the son of a man he recognized.
• Tang San explained that he had founded the Tang Sect independently and showed Lou Gao the Zhuge Crossbow.
• Lou Gao rapidly dismantled the crossbow, but its anti-disassembly mechanism damaged several parts.
• Tang San described the crossbow’s capabilities and hinted that the Tang Sect possessed even more powerful hidden weapons.
• Lou Gao immediately agreed to join the Tang Sect and appointed Si Long president of the Blacksmith Association.
• Lou Gao told Si Long to run the association with his brothers and seek Tai Tan’s help if needed, then asked Tai Tan where he lived.

Tang San recruited Lou Gao as the Tang Sect’s Forging Elder and showed him the Buddha’s Fury Tang Lotus blueprint. Lou Gao identified Cold Iron Iron Mother and offered to find enough for two weapons, while Lin Rong’s men continued searching Gengxin City for rare materials.

• Lou Gao told Si Long that the Strength Clan lived in Heaven Dou City and advised him to seek Tai Tan if he ran into trouble.
• Tang San appointed Lou Gao as the Tang Sect’s Forging Elder and gave him the Buddha’s Fury Tang Lotus blueprint.
• Lou Gao produced Cold Heart Iron Essence, which Tang San recognized as Cold Iron Iron Mother, and said he could find enough to craft two Buddha’s Fury Tang Lotuses.
• Tang San considered that Gengxin City might also hold Deep Sea Silver and other rare materials.
• Two men sent by Lin Rong continued waiting in Gengxin City while searching for a yellow crystal, a chilling black ore, and a gray stone.

After spending two years searching Gengxin City, Lin Rong’s Shadow Guards reported that Tang San was still there, and Lin Rong considered what hidden weapons he might be making. With four rare materials now in his possession, Lin Rong planned to keep the Dragon Whisker Needles and use the ores to influence Tang San.

• Old Wang and Old Li continued searching Gengxin City for the Duke’s remaining two requested items after two years of finding only a cloudy crystal.
• A month after the brothers left Gengxin City, two Shadow Guards told Lin Rong that Tang San and his group were still there beside the Blacksmith Association.
• Lin Rong concluded Tang San might be rushing to make a Buddha’s Fury Tang Lotus before the Single Attribute Four Great Clans’ gathering, while lacking the materials or expertise for the other hidden weapons.
• Lin Rong examined two pieces of Crystal Clear Quartz, Cold Heart Iron Essence, and Deep Sea Silver, and decided to keep the Dragon Whisker Needles from the quartz for himself.
• Lin Rong planned to use the Cold Heart Iron Essence and Deep Sea Silver to hold Tang San’s ore supply hostage if necessary.

Dugu Bo worried that the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Venom would eventually kill Dugu Yan, whose low cultivation left her little hope of reaching the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye. Meanwhile, Lin Rong received gifts from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and deduced that Ning Fengzhi had used a Soul Bone to raise Ning Rongrong's soul power.

• Dugu Yan walked through the autumn maples at Dugu Manor as Dugu Bo reflected on the clan's inherited venom and her childhood.
• Dugu Bo feared Dugu Yan would not reach Soul Saint level in time to suppress the poison and planned to capture a snake-type soul beast for her Third Soul Ring.
• Dugu Bo hoped Dugu Yan would reach level thirty by her birthday in two months and planned a grand celebration.
• The Old Butler brought Lin Rong two million-Gold-Soul-Coin cards and a fan from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
• Lin Rong identified the fan's materials as an Emerald Bird's feathers and a Diamond Mammoth's natural diamond, then concluded that Ning Fengzhi had used a Soul Bone to raise Ning Rongrong's soul power to level twenty.

Lin Rong and the Old Butler entered the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye and took its medicinal herbs, then disrupted the spring’s opposing energies. They left it stripped and weakened, with Lin Rong arranging for Guang Yue to be blamed.

• At the start of late autumn, Lin Rong and the Old Butler traveled to Sunset Forest while Dugu Bo stayed home with Dugu Yan.
• Lin Rong used his Vine Dragon Domain to protect them as the Old Butler carried him down into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye.
• Lin Rong harvested the Snow Swan Kiss while the Old Butler stored the other medicinal herbs and the surrounding soil in the Azure Dragon Vine.
• Lin Rong harvested the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Delicate Apricot with the proper tools, then threw each into the opposite spring, triggering a violent reaction that would weaken the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye for decades.
• Lin Rong scattered petals from a Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum and planned to make Guang Yue take the blame.

After Dugu Bo found the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye’s herb garden ravaged, he blamed Ju Hua Guan and decided not to seek revenge. Elsewhere, Ma Hongjun purified his phoenix flames with a rare herb, while Lin Rong used another herb to advance his cultivation; Xu Pan began refining a body-transforming ganoderma.

• Dugu Bo found petals from the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum, blamed Ju Hua Guan for the depleted herbs, and chose not to risk confronting him.
• Xu Pan told Ma Hongjun to swallow the Cockscomb Phoenix Sunflower whole, and Ma Hongjun began refining it while Xu Pan stood guard.
• Lin Rong consumed the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew and began cultivating the Marrow Cleansing Scripture as Old Butler guarded him.
• Ma Hongjun purged black impurities, emerged with pure phoenix flames and a renewed appearance, then dressed and offered to guard Xu Pan.
• Xu Pan chewed the Nine-Rank Purple Ganoderma and began refining its medicinal effects while Lin Rong’s cultivation reached a critical moment.

Lin Rong absorbed Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew and fused the Heart of the Banyan Wood, cultivating the Mind Mirror and reaching the Marrow Cleansing Scripture's second realm. He then prepared Old Butler Yu Yuan to advance toward Titled Douluo and obtained Lovesick Heartbreak Red for his martial soul avatar.

• Lin Rong refined Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew with the Marrow Cleansing Scripture and fused the Heart of the Banyan Wood into his heart.
• Lin Rong awakened the Mind Mirror, gaining detailed perception within ten zhang and resistance to illusion and charm skills.
• Lin Rong gave Old Butler Yu Yuan Aromatic Silk Beauty and Eight Petal Immortal Orchid to refine, hoping they would raise his Soul Power Level toward ninety.
• Lin Rong used his mind-empty state to make Lovesick Heartbreak Red fall from the Dark Absolute Stone.
• Lin Rong secured both Lovesick Heartbreak Red and Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng, the herbs he needed for the Nine Bend Vine Dragon Martial Soul Avatar.

Tang San, Tai Tan, and Lou Gao completed one Buddha's Fury Tang Lotus and rushed to reach the four clans' gathering before it began. Lin Rong assessed Ma Hongjun's progress, assigned duties to him and Xu Pan, and contemplated the delays in Old Butler's breakthrough and his own cultivation.

• Tang San, Tai Tan, and Lou Gao failed to complete a second Buddha's Fury Tang Lotus but successfully forged one.
• Tang San predicted the weapon would persuade the other clans to join the Tang Sect, and Tai Tan realized the gathering was less than a month away and hurried everyone toward Heaven Dou City.
• Lin Rong found that Ma Hongjun had reached level twenty-five and told him to cultivate toward level thirty for an important task.
• Lin Rong instructed Xu Pan to study military strategy and army affairs after Xu Pan's breakthrough to Soul Emperor.
• Lin Rong learned that Old Butler had reached the peak of Rank 89 instead of Rank 90 and expected to wait about half a year for his breakthrough.
• Lin Rong, at seven years and eight months old and Rank 27, decided to cultivate so he could reach Rank 30 and see the complete form of the Nine Bend Vine Dragon.