Chapter Summaries

Lin Rong pressured Tang Yuehua into agreeing to obtain the Clear Sky Sect’s Exploding Ring technique in exchange for Tang San’s safety. He left Tang San poisoned with a delayed antidote, forcing Tang Yuehua to travel to the sect within seven days.

• Tang Yuehua invoked her Noble Ring domain and argued that the Clear Sky Sect would retaliate if Lin Rong harmed Tang San, but Lin Rong exposed the sect’s weaknesses and challenged her claims.
• Lin Rong demanded the Clear Sky Sect’s secret Exploding Ring technique, and Tang Yuehua said she could not provide it herself.
• Lin Rong lifted the unconscious Tang San over Bai He’s deadly venom, and Tang Yuehua agreed to obtain the technique from her brother to save him.
• Lin Rong put a drop of Snow Swan Kiss juice essence into Tang San, containing it with life force that would last seven days, and threw him to Tai Tan.
• Lin Rong warned that breaking the life-force seal with any power but his would release the poison, then told Tang Yuehua to leave at once and secure the technique.

After Dugu Bo reported that he had exterminated the Speed Clan, Lin Rong released Dugu Yan and gave him three pills before leaving the Tang Sect. Niu Gao departed with the Defense Clan, while Tai Tan blamed the Clear Sky Sect and Bai He for the rift between him and Niu Gao.

• Dugu Bo returned and told Lin Rong that the Speed Clan had been exterminated, then asked him to release Dugu Yan.
• Lin Rong gave Dugu Bo a Jade Bottle containing three Dragon Rhyme Immortal Ganoderma Pills and explained their effects and limits.
• Dugu Bo thanked Lin Rong and left the Tang Sect with Dugu Yan; Lin Rong also departed with the Old Butler.
• Niu Gao announced that he would take the Defense Clan back to Dragon Rise City and disown Tai Tan as his brother.
• Lou Gao told Tai Tan that Niu Gao had left because he had lost hope, while Tai Tan privately blamed the Clear Sky Sect and Bai He for the conflict.
• Lou Gao returned to the forging room to study the Hidden Weapon Blueprints as darkness fell over the banquet hall.

Lin Rong studied the Great Sumeru Hammer’s Exploding Ring technique and considered the Soul Bones needed to use it safely. Two and a half months later, Ma Hongjun reached Rank 30, and Xu Pan told him the Duke had already prepared a rare soul beast for his third Soul Ring.

• Lin Rong read that Exploding Ring temporarily consumed a user's Soul Rings and carried lethal risks without at least three Soul Bones over fifty thousand years old.
• Lin Rong noted that he had only two Soul Bones, while Grandpa Yu had one Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone, and the Spirit-Gathering Wisdom Skull would not be available for six years.
• Two and a half months later, Ma Hongjun broke through to Rank 30 at nine years and one month old.
• Ma Hongjun went to the academy library and told Xu Pan that he had reached Rank 30 and was ready to obtain his third Soul Ring.
• Xu Pan revealed that the Duke had kept a Seven-Colored Profound Sound Bird with over 2,200 years of cultivation for Ma Hongjun, explaining that its Phoenix bloodline and sound abilities suited his Fire Phoenix Martial Soul.

Xu Pan showed Ma Hongjun the Seven-Colored Profound Sound Bird and explained its innate soul skill, then guided him as he absorbed its soul ring. Ma Hongjun gained Heavenly Phoenix Profound Sound, a wide-area enhancement skill that could make him a powerful future military commander.

• Xu Pan told Ma Hongjun to use his Fire Phoenix Martial Soul, whose cry caused the white bird to reveal its seven-colored radiance and perform Profound Sound Heavenly Melody.
• Xu Pan explained the bird's group-enhancement ability and why Ma Hongjun's evolved Fire Phoenix Martial Soul made him a strong match for its soul ring.
• Xu Pan knocked out the bird, and Ma Hongjun killed it and smoothly absorbed its soul ring, reaching Soul Power Level thirty-two.
• Ma Hongjun revealed that his third soul skill, Heavenly Phoenix Profound Sound, removed control effects, healed allies, boosted attributes and morale, and covered a four-kilometer radius.
• Xu Pan realized the skill could greatly enhance a large army and ease Ma Hongjun's path toward becoming the empire's future Grand Imperial Marshal.

At Jialing Pass, Lin Rong introduced Ma Hongjun to Grand Marshal Ge Long and revealed that the nine-year-old was already a Soul Elder. Lin Rong then showed his own Soul Rings without releasing his Martial Soul, leaving Ge Long stunned by his nephew’s abilities.

• Ge Long welcomed Lin Rong at Jialing Pass and met Xu Pan and Ma Hongjun.
• Lin Rong introduced Ma Hongjun as a commoner-born genius with a Fire Phoenix Martial Soul, prompting Ge Long to suspect Lin Rong wanted him to join the army.
• Ge Long guessed Ma Hongjun’s Soul Power level, but Lin Rong told him to guess higher.
• Ma Hongjun summoned his Martial Soul and revealed two yellow Soul Rings and one purple Soul Ring, proving he was a nine-year-old Soul Elder.
• Lin Rong revealed his own three Soul Rings without releasing his Martial Soul, shocking Ge Long.

Lin Rong persuaded Ge Long to consider Ma Hongjun as his successor as Grand Imperial Marshal, then had Ma Hongjun demonstrate the powerful range and effects of his third soul skill. Ge Long accepted that the skill could win the soldiers’ support, while Lin Rong’s plan to seize the Heaven Dou Imperial Throne remained dependent on framing Qian Renxue and Tang San.

• Lin Rong explained that Ma Hongjun’s commoner birth and young age should not prevent him from succeeding Ge Long as Grand Imperial Marshal.
• Ge Long worried that only the Heaven Dou Emperor could appoint his successor and might reject Ma Hongjun because Lin Rong had raised him.
• Lin Rong asked Ma Hongjun to use Heavenly Phoenix Profound Sound inside the tent, and Ge Long felt its stirring effect, attribute boost, and healing.
• Ma Hongjun revealed that Heavenly Phoenix Profound Sound covered four kilometers in every direction at his current rank and came from a genuine Seven-Colored Profound Sound Bird.
• Ge Long acknowledged that Ma Hongjun’s soul skill could earn the soldiers’ support and said he would have to surrender his position in a few years.
• Lin Rong concluded that he would need to blame the Heaven Dou Royal Family’s destruction on Qian Renxue and the sabotage of her plan on Tang San.

Lin Rong left Jialing Pass for Thunderclap Canyon to secure the Thunderclap Nether Vine as his Fourth Soul Ring before its destructive power overwhelmed it. After a month’s journey, he reached the canyon and reflected on Spirit Hall’s history and his intention to overthrow it.

• Lin Rong left Ma Hongjun in Ge Long’s care at Jialing Pass and departed with the Old Butler.
• Lin Rong redirected the carriage to Thunderclap Canyon, hoping to obtain a Soul Ring and possibly a Soul Bone from the Thunderclap Nether Vine.
• During the journey, Lin Rong considered the Thunderclap Nether Vine’s suffering, the chance it would drop a Soul Bone, and how its position might affect his planned set.
• Lin Rong cultivated while traveling, and the carriage reached Thunderclap Canyon one month later.
• Lin Rong read an old account of Spirit Hall forcing the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan to keep Thunderclap Canyon open to all soul masters, then declared that Spirit Hall still had to be overthrown.

Lin Rong treated the Thunderclap Nether Vine until he reached level forty, then killed it to obtain its Soul Ring and a complete left leg Soul Bone. After absorbing the ring, he became a level forty-two Soul Ancestor.

• Lin Rong used Life Dragon Soul and Evil-Breaking Dragon's Roar to stabilize the Thunderclap Nether Vine, then treated it every three days while cultivating.
• Three days before turning nine, Lin Rong broke through to level forty and returned to Thunderclap Canyon to claim the vine's Soul Ring.
• Lin Rong disabled the Thunderclap Nether Vine with Evil-Breaking Dragon's Roar, then killed it with Nine Bend Vine Dragon.
• Nine Bend Vine Dragon found a complete left leg Soul Bone in the vine's seventh tendril, and Lin Rong discovered that it could absorb lightning and grow.
• Lin Rong absorbed the Thunderclap Nether Vine's Soul Ring at camp, reaching level forty-two.

Lin Rong examined his Fourth Soul Ring’s abilities, then absorbed Thunderclap Nether Vine’s Left Leg Bone while using the Marrow Cleansing Scripture to refine the diluted Thunder God Bloodline within it. After safely absorbing the refined bloodline, he reassured Grandpa Yu that the subtle change in his appearance was nothing to worry about.

• Lin Rong discovered that Dragon's Roar Thunder Realm strengthened him within its barrier and that his Fourth Soul Ring granted Lightning Element Control.
• Lin Rong reasoned that Thunderclap Nether Vine’s Left Leg Bone might contain the vine’s Thunder God Bloodline and decided to absorb it while refining its energy with the Marrow Cleansing Scripture.
• Lin Rong used the scripture to trap and cleanse the diluted Thunder God Bloodline as he absorbed the soul bone.
• Lin Rong absorbed the refined bloodline, and Grandpa Yu noticed a subtle change in his bearing.
• Lin Rong told Grandpa Yu that he was fine and explained that he had absorbed a small amount of a god's bloodline.

After absorbing the Thunderclap Nether Vine, Lin Rong gained a trace of Divinity, advanced to Rank 44, and obtained a powerful lightning soul skill. As he headed home, he considered the upcoming tournament and Heaven Dou Royal Academy’s poor prospects, while its education committee discussed the same problem.

• Lin Rong sensed the Divinity within him and planned to nourish it gradually with life force from rare herbs.
• Lin Rong’s Soul Power rose from the peak of Rank 42 to Rank 44, and he gained Thunder Prison: Heavenly Punishment, which worked in combination with Dragon’s Roar Thunder Realm.
• Lin Rong left Thunderclap Canyon and reflected on the approaching All-Continent Advanced Spirit Master Elite Tournament and Heaven Dou’s weak competitors.
• Meng Shenji, Bai Baoshan, and Zhi Lin lamented that Heaven Dou Royal Academy had no rank-forty Soul Ancestors for the tournament and hoped its nobles would send stronger students next time.
• The education committee gathered the student rosters, one of which clearly listed Tang San.

Tang San reflected on his rapid cultivation and vowed to win the next All-Continent Advanced Spirit Master Elite Tournament for the Tang Sect. Meanwhile, Lin Rong skipped the royal banquet to exploit weakened palace security, and Xue Ke confronted Tang San over the proposed marriage between them.

• Tang San recalled nearly dying while forcing open two of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians, then advanced to Rank 26 through intense cultivation.
• Tang San resolved to enter the next All-Continent Advanced Spirit Master Elite Tournament as a Soul King and reclaim glory for the Tang Sect.
• Lin Rong told Old Butler to excuse him from the royal banquet so he could sneak into the Imperial Palace and take its National Treasure.
• Ning Fengzhi learned that Lin Rong would miss the banquet and considered clues linking him to recent events involving the Speed Clan and Defense Clan.
• Tang San attended the banquet to promote the Tang Sect, and Xue Ke confronted him while plotting to ruin their proposed marriage.

Lin Rong used Spatial Swap to infiltrate the Imperial Treasury and steal the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud, which he recognized as the Heart of the Sea God. He escaped and returned safely to his manor, while Tang San sensed an unexplained foreboding at the palace banquet.

• Xue Ke pondered how to sabotage her marriage, while Tang San grew angry when she ignored him but held back his Dragon Whisker Needles.
• Lin Rong swapped places with a marked birthday gift to enter the Imperial Treasury, and Xiao Qing hid the exchanged gift in the void.
• Lin Rong navigated to the central Treasure Room and identified the guarded relic as the Heart of the Sea God.
• Lin Rong used golden threads to destroy the Soul Tool barrier, took the brocade box, and swapped back to the original Treasure Room.
• Lin Rong escaped the palace and returned safely to his manor, where Old Butler waited for him.
• Tang San felt a sudden sense of foreboding while speaking with Xue Qinghe at the banquet.

The Heaven Dou Second Team lost its tournament exhibition match to Blue Tyrant Academy, prompting Emperor Xue Ye to give Xue Qinghe authority to help oversee Heaven Dou Royal Academy. Xue Xing and Xue Beng then planned to use the academy’s persistent problems against Xue Qinghe and agreed that Tang San must not become his ally.

• Blue Tyrant Academy exploited the Heaven Dou Second Team’s inexperience and lack of resolve to win the exhibition match.
• Emperor Xue Ye reprimanded Xue Xing for the loss and ordered Xue Qinghe to help oversee the academy.
• Xue Qinghe accepted the order and considered winning over education committee members Meng Shenji, Bai Baoshan, and Zhi Lin.
• Xue Xing told Xue Beng that Xue Qinghe’s new responsibilities could make him appear incompetent if the academy’s culture did not improve.
• Xue Xing advised Xue Beng to befriend Tang San if possible, but warned him not to let Tang San support Xue Qinghe.

At Lin Manor, Lin Rong gave Dugu Bo three Dragon Rhyme Immortal Ganoderma Pills and ordered him to recruit the Peerless Dragon Snake couple in the Balak Kingdom. After Dugu Bo departed, Lin Rong considered how to expand his faction and eventually recruit Chrysanthemum and Little Ghost.

• Lin Rong discussed Blue Tyrant Academy's victory over Heaven Dou Royal Academy's second team and said Dugu Yan could help the Royal Family recover its honor at the next tournament.
• Dugu Bo asked Lin Rong for more Dragon Rhyme Immortal Ganoderma Pills, explaining that they had improved Dugu Yan's Martial Soul and might help ease his clan's backlash poison.
• Lin Rong gave Dugu Bo a jade bottle with three pills and ordered him to make the Peerless Dragon Snake couple submit to him in the Balak Kingdom.
• Dugu Bo accepted the mission and left Lin Manor, disappointed that he could not keep the pills for himself yet.
• Lin Rong relaxed and considered using Dugu Bo to recruit Chrysanthemum and Little Ghost after Grandpa Yu grew stronger.

Yu Xiaogang waited at Shrek Academy for a gifted student who could help him test his theories, then spotted twelve-year-old Dai Mubai and decided to make him his disciple. After Dai Mubai ignored him, Yu Xiaogang planned to impress him by becoming Shrek Academy’s chief instructor.

• Yu Xiaogang left Nuoding Academy for Shrek Academy, hoping to find a suitable student, but found the school and its sole Food System student disappointing.
• After waiting a year for enrollment, Yu Xiaogang rejected a prospective student whose Soul Power was only Rank 21.
• Dai Mubai arrived at Shrek Academy and passed the first enrollment test after displaying his White Tiger Martial Soul.
• Yu Xiaogang recognized Dai Mubai as a Star Luo prince and, guessing his Soul Power was Rank 28 or 29, decided he was a worthy subject for his theories.
• Dai Mubai walked past Yu Xiaogang without acknowledging him, so Yu Xiaogang planned to seek the chief instructor position and surprise him when school began.

Dugu Bo persuaded Meng Shu and Chao Tianxiang to pledge allegiance to Lin Rong, and the couple arrived in Heaven Dou City with their family. Lin Rong considered how to gain control of the Royal Knights without bloodshed and began thinking of using Dugu Bo to approach Xue Xing.

• Dugu Bo gave Meng Shu and Chao Tianxiang two Dragon Rhyme Immortal Ganoderma Pills in exchange for their allegiance to Lin Rong.
• Chao Tianxiang questioned why Meng Shu accepted Dugu Bo's claim that he had only two pills, and Meng Shu explained that demanding another could harm their future relationship with the Titled Douluo.
• Meng Shu urged Chao Tianxiang to take one pill, arguing that it could improve her Serpent Cane Martial Soul and help her reach the Soul Douluo realm.
• Lin Rong studied the fifty-thousand-strong Royal Knights and considered how to bring them under his control, possibly by having Dugu Bo sound out Xue Xing.
• Old Butler told Lin Rong that the Peerless Dragon Snake couple had arrived in Heaven Dou City with their family and had been settled in.

Lin Rong considered the strength of the Peerless Dragon Snake and planned to strengthen the Two Extremes Stillness Domain by subduing Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo and giving them immortal herbs. He then reflected on his stalled Marrow Cleansing Scripture cultivation and recognized that he needed to deepen his understanding of the world before reaching the next realm.

• Lin Rong decided not to meet Meng Shu and Chao Tianxiang because their strength did not warrant his personal attention.
• Lin Rong recalled how the Two Extremes Stillness Domain had failed to secure victory in the original story and resolved to make it stronger by having Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo absorb compatible immortal herbs.
• The second round of the All-Continent Advanced Spirit Master Elite Tournament concluded the next day.
• Lin Rong meditated beneath a banyan tree and struggled to reach the Marrow Cleansing Scripture realm of Manifesting and Saving All Beings.
• Lin Rong concluded that his rapid past breakthroughs had left his understanding of the mind behind and that he needed to study the world more carefully.

Lin Rong assessed his soul skills and Ring Fusion, then practiced controlling his Soul Power without relying on his state of mind. He improved at shaping the twelve zodiac animals and left with a better understanding of the experience needed to advance his spiritual realm.

• Lin Rong reviewed his nine soul skills and concluded that Ring Fusion had little use for him because most of his Soul Ring skills could not gain greater power from it.
• Lin Rong dismissed most Self-Created Soul Skills as techniques and reflected that Heart Separation Control, the Nine Absolute Skills of Clear Sky, and the Great Sumeru Hammer were truly exceptional abilities.
• Beneath the Banyan Tree, Lin Rong practiced controlling his power without the absolute control provided by his state of mind.
• Lin Rong repeatedly shaped his Soul Power into the twelve zodiac animals, gradually making them faster to form and more lifelike.
• Lin Rong used the Dragon Soul of the Nine Bend Vine Dragon as a model for the dragon figure and felt satisfied with the progress he had made through his own control.

After six months of steady cultivation and expansion, Lin Rong learned that Tang San and Dai Mubai had both reached level thirty and prepared a scheme involving Shi Nian. He planned to make Yu Xiaogang relive his past with Bibi Dong so that their love would slow her progress in the Rakshasa God Trial.

• Lin Rong received a report that Tang San and Dai Mubai had reached level thirty, and he saw Dai Mubai’s trip to the Star Dou Great Forest as an opportunity to begin his plan.
• The chapter recalled how Lin Rong recruited Shi Nian and helped him reach Soul Saint, giving him a forty-thousand-year Demon Eye Demonic Tree as his Seventh Soul Ring.
• Shi Nian learned from Lin Rong’s message that Yu Xiaogang and Bibi Dong had been lovers and was instructed to use Nightmare to make Yu Xiaogang revisit their past and learn the truth about their separation.
• Lin Rong intended to rekindle Yu Xiaogang’s love for Bibi Dong, believing that stronger love would hinder her Rakshasa God Trial and delay her inheritance of the divine position.

Tang Xiao learned that Lin Rong had taught Tang San the principles of Exploding Ring and planned to kill him and capture Lin Rong when they left Heaven Dou City. Meanwhile, Shi Nian tried to trap Yu Xiaogang in a nightmare but had to stop when Yu Xiaogang nearly died from the strain.

• Tang Xiao discovered that Tang Yuehua had revealed the principles of Exploding Ring to Lin Rong and slapped her before deciding Lin Rong had to die.
• Tang Xiao ordered Tang Yuehua to watch Lin Rong and planned to attack him outside Heaven Dou City with Tai Tan's help.
• Shi Nian used an illusion to put Dai Mubai to sleep, then used his Nightmare skill on Yu Xiaogang while avoiding Flender.
• Shi Nian's nightmare showed Yu Xiaogang a memory of Bibi Dong encouraging him, but Yu Xiaogang rejected it as false and nearly died from emotional strain.
• Shi Nian ended the nightmare, and Yu Xiaogang woke in a sweat while Flender returned to sleep.