Chapter Summaries

Lin Qing defeated an earth-attribute Soul Master by using alternating cold and heat to crack his defenses, then watched several other matches unfold. The dark blue-jacketed observer finally entered the arena, where his slender sword blocked his dagger-wielding opponent’s approach.

• Lin Qing used Bamboo Sea Emergence to slow the earth-attribute Soul Master, then struck his rocklike defenses with alternating cold and heat until the man yielded.
• The steward declared Lin Qing the winner, while the dark blue-jacketed man watched his hands from the edge of the field.
• Lin Qing watched three more brief matches, including a fast exchange between a short-spear wielder and his opponent.
• A tall fighter with two short spears defeated his opponent by pressing one spear against his waist.
• The dark blue-jacketed man entered the arena against a dagger-wielding opponent, summoned a slender dark sword, and blocked the route of the opponent’s attack.

Lin Qing won his second-round match by using Bamboo Soul and carefully laid frost to break his opponent’s short rope. After the round, eight competitors remained, and Lin Qing returned to the arena after resting, where he noticed a figure in a dark blue tunic walking away.

• Lin Qing rested and balanced his energy before the second round began.
• Lin Qing faced a lean man with a short rope and used Bamboo Sea Emergence to constrain his movements.
• Lin Qing used Bamboo Soul to disrupt the man’s timing, then made the ground slippery with cold Qi.
• Lin Qing sent ice and fire through the rope, causing it to crack and snap, and the man admitted defeat.
• The steward announced that eight people remained and that the next round would begin.
• Lin Qing rested in his lodging, then returned to the arena and saw a figure in a dark blue short tunic walking away near the city wall.

Lin Qing faced the blue-clad swordsman in the next round and won by combining his Bamboo Soul with ice and fire to crack the swordsman’s blade. The swordsman conceded before his weapon broke, and Lin Qing remained in the competition.

• Lin Qing rested after the second round while the blue-clad swordsman walked through the courtyard without engaging with anyone.
• At dusk, the steward announced a single-match round in which winners stayed and losers left, then paired number four Lin Qing with number seven, the blue-clad swordsman.
• Lin Qing used Bamboo Sea Emergence to fill the arena with bamboo, but the swordsman walked through the stalks as they split apart ahead of him.
• Lin Qing’s cold Qi briefly slowed the swordsman, and he noticed the man’s breathing grow faster as he maintained his measured movements.
• Lin Qing sent the Bamboo Soul to interrupt the swordsman and struck his blade with ice and fire, leaving a crack in it.
• The swordsman withdrew and conceded to prevent his sword from breaking, and the steward declared Lin Qing the winner.

Lin Qing defeated the short-spear fighter in the first match of the final selection, then faced the remaining competitor, whose rapid, precise strikes kept him from fully deploying Bamboo Sea Emergence. The fight continued as the opponent targeted the bamboo’s roots.

• The deacon announced that the three remaining contestants would face off in pairs, with the winner selected.
• Lin Qing used Bamboo Sea Emergence and Bamboo Soul against the short-spear fighter, then cracked the man's spear with a strike combining cold Qi and heat.
• The deacon declared Lin Qing the winner of the first match and paired him against the man in the dark brown jacket.
• The dark-jacketed fighter rushed Lin Qing before he could spread Bamboo Sea Emergence, then struck at the bamboo roots to make them split.

Lin Qing defeated his opponent and earned a Golden Generation reserve token, then met Hu Liena, Xie Yue, and Yan at the main building. He chose to delay reporting in and strengthen his control of Bamboo Sea Emergence, leaving the city to train on a barren slope.

• Lin Qing concentrated Bamboo Sea Emergence around himself, struck his opponent with an ice-and-fire bamboo leaf, and won the match when the man admitted defeat.
• The deacon told Lin Qing to collect his Golden Generation reserve token the next day, and Lin Qing returned to his lodging.
• Lin Qing collected a silver token at the main building and saw Hu Liena, Xie Yue, and Yan pass through the hall.
• Lin Qing discussed the Golden Generation's strength with Lone Bamboo and decided to improve his control of Bamboo Sea Emergence before reporting in.
• Lin Qing left the competition grounds early the next morning and stopped at a barren slope outside the city.

Lin Qing spent five days refining his control of Bamboo Sea Emergence, then returned to begin official Golden Generation training. At the first gathering, he learned that only seven of the twelve trainees would remain in the core, and Yan prepared to spar with Shen Du.

• Lin Qing practiced spreading and withdrawing Bamboo Sea Emergence across varied terrain, improving its precision and speed over five days.
• Lin Qing noticed that his palm marks had grown heavier and Bamboo Breath flowed faster through his meridians.
• Lin Qing returned to the lodging, received a training log from the gray-robed man, and reached the training ground before the bell finished ringing.
• Qin Wuj iu told the twelve trainees that only seven would remain in the Golden Generation core.
• Yan arrived with Xie Yue and Hu Liena, announced he would take the first sparring match, and Qin Wuj iu named Shen Du as his opponent.

After ten days of training, Lin Qing awakened Bamboo Transformation during his second sparring match with Xie Yue and won. He began testing the new ability and planned to conceal the true origin of his fourth Soul Ring when the time came to obtain it.

• Lin Qing continued training with the reserves and found that his fourth bloodline still would not awaken despite his efforts.
• Qin Wuj iu paired Lin Qing with Xie Yue, who used his Moon Blades to break through Lin Qing's Bamboo Sea Emergence.
• When Xie Yue attacked, Lin Qing's fourth Bloodline Soul Ring broke through and Bamboo Transformation formed a protective layer that trapped Xie Yue's blade.
• Lin Qing struck Xie Yue with a cold palm, and Qin Wuj iu declared Lin Qing the winner.
• Lin Qing tested Bamboo Transformation after training, finding that it could activate passively to soften light impacts and remain active for about half a quarter of an hour.
• Lin Qing recorded his progress and planned to make others believe his fourth Soul Ring came from hunting a Soul Beast, though he knew it would grow from the fourth bamboo segment.

Lin Qing improved his control of Bamboo Transformation and lost a three-person free-for-all to Lu Qingya. A month before his fourth Soul Ring could form, Qin Wuj iu sent him to meet Hu Liena for individual training.

• Lin Qing stabilized Bamboo Transformation's passive defense and developed a battle strategy using partial coverage.
• Lu Qingya defeated Lin Qing and Shen Du by knocking both out of bounds in a free-for-all.
• Lin Qing learned from Lone Bamboo that his fourth Soul Ring would likely take another month to form, and he recorded his progress in his training log.
• On the twentieth day after Bamboo Transformation awakened, Qin Wuj iu summoned Lin Qing for individual training in the main building.
• Hu Liena told Lin Qing that she had come to see his bamboo-transformed arm, while he checked the room for hidden threats.

Hu Liena assessed Lin Qing’s Bamboo Soul and invited him to join a hunt for a ten-thousand-year Soul Beast, saying she wanted to see how far he could go. Three days later, Lin Qing, Hu Liena, and Xie Yue entered Spirit Hall’s north hunting ground, where Xie Yue drew a ten-thousand-year mantis from its nest.

• Hu Liena examined Lin Qing’s Bamboo Soul and Bamboo Transformation, noting its tracking potential, durability, and high Soul Power consumption.
• Hu Liena offered to arrange access to Spirit Hall’s Golden Generation hunting ground and told Lin Qing they would leave in three days.
• Lin Qing recorded the hunt in his training log and prepared to practice Bamboo Transformation before departing.
• Lin Qing met Xie Yue and Hu Liena at the north gate, and the three traveled to Spirit Hall North Hunting Ground.
• Xie Yue led Lin Qing and Hu Liena into the west district’s middle region to search for a ten-thousand-year mantis.
• Xie Yue tapped a tree to lure the mantis out, and the ten-thousand-year beast emerged from the woodland.

Lin Qing and Xie Yue defeated a ten-thousand-year mantis with Hu Liena’s support, and Lin Qing absorbed its Soul Ring to gain Bamboo Blade Storm. After registering his fourth Soul Ring, he encountered Lu Qingya in the corridor.

• Lin Qing used Bamboo Sea Emergence and Bamboo Soul against the mantis, but it broke free and injured him while attacking Xie Yue.
• Hu Liena slowed the mantis with her mental power, Xie Yue damaged its wing, and Lin Qing shattered its back armor with his ice-and-fire palms before Xie Yue killed it.
• Lin Qing absorbed the ten-thousand-year mantis’s power and formed a green-gold fourth Soul Ring.
• The next morning, Lin Qing tested Bamboo Blade Storm and destroyed a distant tree with its spinning bamboo leaves.
• Lin Qing registered his fourth Soul Ring at the main building, then met Lu Qingya, who noticed the ring and said it was not bad.

Lin Qing defeated Lu Qingya without revealing Bamboo Transformation and was promoted to core training with Xie Yue, Yan, and Hu Liena. On his first day in the north district, Yan tested him with a fire attack, and Lin Qing countered with bamboo and Bamboo Soul.

• Lin Qing used Bamboo Blade Storm and cold Qi control to defeat Lu Qingya in a sparring match.
• Hu Liena told Lin Qing that Qin Wuj iu had assigned him to core training because his combat strength exceeded the reserve team's upper limit.
• Lin Qing recorded that his thrown wind covered five zhang and that he had not used Bamboo Transformation.
• Lin Qing entered the north district training field, where Qin Wuj iu placed his training in the hands of Xie Yue, Yan, and Hu Liena.
• Yan attacked Lin Qing with his flame-wreathed fists, and Lin Qing raised bamboo from the flagstones and used Bamboo Soul to disrupt him.

Lin Qing defeated Yan and Xie Yue in succession, revealing that his bamboo abilities could withstand fire and combine ice and fire with devastating force. After training ended, Qin Wuj iu told Lin Qing to meet the archbishop the next afternoon.

• Lin Qing absorbed Yan’s flames, resisted his attacks, and defeated him with a blast of ice and fire.
• Qin Wuj iu declared Lin Qing the winner, and Xie Yue challenged him to a second match.
• Lin Qing damaged Xie Yue’s Moon Blade with an ice-and-fire strike, prompting Xie Yue to concede.
• Hu Liena and Yan acknowledged Lin Qing’s strength after the matches.
• Qin Wuj iu ended training and ordered Lin Qing to visit the archbishop the following afternoon.

Lin Qing met Pope Bibi Dong, who sensed an ancient presence within him and ordered him to retrieve the Nine Nether Bamboo for Spirit Hall. He left with the pope’s token and Hu Liena’s information, preparing to depart for the Sunset Forest the next morning.

• Salas escorted Lin Qing to Bibi Dong, who questioned whether he could help her obtain the Nine Nether Bamboo.
• Bibi Dong sensed an ancient presence in Lin Qing and ordered him to return the Nine Nether Bamboo, with everything beyond his share going to Spirit Hall.
• Bibi Dong explained that the Nine Nether Bamboo could self-destruct if it sensed Titled Douluo-level Soul Power, and named Lin Qing her core disciple if he succeeded.
• Salas gave Lin Qing a token bearing the pope’s seal, while Bibi Dong ordered him to recover Lin Qing’s Martial Soul if he died.
• Hu Liena gave Lin Qing information on the Sunset Forest’s core area and warned him to avoid disturbing a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
• Hu Liena told Lin Qing that Xie Yue had prepared a carriage and that they would leave the next morning.

Lin Qing infiltrated the Nether Poison Dragon’s valley to retrieve the Nine Nether Bamboo and persuaded it to leave with him. As its final root came free, the dragon shifted in its sleep, leaving Lin Qing frozen beside the boulder.

• Lin Qing entered Sunset Forest alone, used Bamboo Transformation to conceal himself, and followed Hu Liena’s map toward the Poison Dragon’s Lair.
• He lit the Soul-Stabilizing Incense and pushed through the poisonous miasma, purifying toxins with Bamboo Breath as his Soul Power drained.
• Lin Qing reached the valley and found the Nether Poison Dragon guarding the Nine Nether Bamboo.
• He crept past the dragon, located the Nine Nether Bamboo, and began transferring it into Salas’s jade box.
• Lin Qing offered the Nine Nether Bamboo independence and eternal life after he became a god, and it allowed its roots to be lifted into the box.
• As the final root came free, the Nether Poison Dragon shifted its head, and Lin Qing froze while it continued sleeping.

Lin Qing stole the Nine Nether Bamboo from the Nether Poison Dragon’s territory, but the dragon caught him as he escaped and badly injured him. He survived by fleeing through the poisonous miasma and purging the dragon poison from his body, then rested beneath a concealed tree with the jade box still safe.

• Lin Qing took the jade box and climbed toward the valley’s edge while disguised as bamboo, but a loose stone exposed him to the Nether Poison Dragon.
• The Nether Poison Dragon struck Lin Qing with its tail, shattering his defenses and hurling him into the forest with broken ribs.
• Lin Qing used his soul skills and a bamboo clone to escape the dragon’s claw and evade its venom attack.
• Lin Qing fled into Sunset Forest’s poisonous miasma, using Bamboo Breath and Bamboo Soul to withstand the toxins until the dragon stopped pursuing him.
• Lin Qing confirmed the Nine Nether Bamboo remained safe, purged the dragon poison from his body, and rested beneath a concealed giant tree.