Recaps

Qin Yan’s Red Shadow Army swept through two county seats and raced toward Changxin, using its speed and his Condensed Sha Arrows to break through defenses. After restoring his exhausted troops, Qin Yan launched a sudden assault on Changxin and charged through its gate with Lei Tong.

• Zhang Xin counted the spoils at Chiyu, where the army seized about 110,000 taels of silver and gold, supplies, and 250,000 shi of grain, while Qin Yan healed the wounded soldiers.
• After Ye Yingshan’s troops arrived to hold Chiyu, Qin Yan led the Red Shadow Army onward and recaptured two cities in one day.
• Qin Yan pushed toward Changxin without waiting for Ye Yingshan, who sent Shi Xiong and Feng Yi with 5,000 cavalry to support him.
• After a forced march, Qin Yan reached a point thirty li from Changxin, found only 3,400 defenders inside, and restored his soldiers’ and horses’ stamina with Magnetic Field Healing.
• Qin Yan bombarded Changxin’s gate tower with Condensed Sha Arrows, then seized Lei Tong and charged through the city gate.

Qin Yan and Lei Tong led the Red Shadow Army in a surprise attack that retook Changxin City, then secured the city and welcomed Shi Xiong and Feng Yi. The news left Lang Futian isolated and forced Hong Sheng to consider sending troops back to defend Pengzhou.

• Qin Yan and Lei Tong held Changxin's gates while Han Cui and the Red Shadow Army charged into the city and routed the Taiping Army.
• Qin Yan ordered repairs to Changxin's gates and walls and instructed Han Chen to reassure the residents as the army cleared the streets and gathered the dead for cremation.
• Shi Xiong and Feng Yi arrived with their troops, and Qin Yan welcomed them as they prepared to wait for Ye Yingshan's main force.
• Ye Yingshan celebrated Changxin's capture and ordered ten thousand infantrymen to reinforce the city.
• Lang Futian learned that Changxin had fallen and realized his forces were isolated, while Hong Sheng received the report and faced the need to send troops back toward Pengzhou.

Qin Yan decided to seize Xifeng before Taiping Army reinforcements arrived, then use the Red Shadow Army’s mobility to disrupt their supplies. His seven thousand cavalry captured the county with little resistance, leaving the Taiping Army’s next force of fifteen thousand without its stronghold.

• Qin Yan received Ye Yingshan’s order to hold Changxin for two months and proposed attacking Xifeng before its reinforcements arrived.
• Qin Yan persuaded Shi Xiong and Feng Yi to join the attack and told them to evacuate the people within a hundred li after Xifeng fell.
• Qin Yan led seven thousand cavalry toward Xifeng, while one thousand men remained to defend Changxin.
• Qin Yan blasted open Xifeng’s gate with his Ink Sun Bow and killed the Taiping Army’s general and skilled fighters from a distance.
• Lei Tong, Shi Xiong, and Feng Yi led the cavalry through the city as Qin Yan suppressed resistance, and the Great Li army wiped out the Xifeng garrison.

Qin Yan led the Red Shadow Army deep into Taiping Army territory to destroy its supplies, using his storage ability and keen perception to evade enemies and strike a major grain depot. After killing the depot’s guards and taking its provisions, he ordered the rest burned, leaving the Taiping Army facing a severe supply crisis.

• Qin Yan absorbed Xifeng County’s grain, evacuated its people, and burned the county seat before asking his three thousand armored cavalry to ride behind enemy lines with him.
• Qin Yan’s Red Shadow Army evaded Taiping Army forces and located a hidden grain camp guarded by Daoist Mingxu and other powerful fighters.
• Qin Yan shot Daoist Mingxu’s fleeing soul with the Ink Sun Bow, then destroyed the camp’s palisade and killed its defenders, including Wang Zhao.
• Zhang Xin reported that the camp held at least 2.1 million shi of provisions, and Qin Yan stored as much grain as the Cloud Luo Pearl could hold.
• Qin Yan ordered the remaining supplies burned, and the Hong Heavenly King nearly fainted with rage when he received the news.

After Qin Yan destroyed the Taiping Army’s grain stores, the Great Li commanders prepared to exploit the starving enemy at Xifeng while their other forces pressed the siege of Yuli. With Qin Yan’s cavalry back in Changxin, Huang Doufu decided to abandon Xifeng and flee with his trusted aides.

• Hong Sheng ordered his forces to seize grain from the people and powerful clans after the fire destroyed more than two million shi of provisions.
• Ye Yingshan halted the siege and ordered his army toward Changxin to take advantage of the Taiping Army’s supply crisis.
• Leng Qing continued the assault on Yuli, while Lang Futian relied on the city’s ample provisions to hold out.
• Qin Yan returned to Changxin, reported that the Taiping Army at Xifeng was nearly out of grain, and ordered an attack in three days.
• Huang Doufu learned that Qin Yan’s Red Shadow Army had returned, announced a retreat from Xifeng, and told his trusted aides he intended to flee.

Qin Yan caught the Taiping Army fleeing after Huang Doufu and the other officers abandoned their troops, then accepted the surrender of twelve thousand soldiers. At the prisoner camp, Qin Yan offered reduced punishments to prisoners who identified rebel officers and criminals, and the first accusation ended with Wang Qingliang being killed.

• Qin Yan learned that Huang Doufu's Taiping Army was retreating and led eight thousand men to pursue them.
• The abandoned Taiping soldiers panicked when Qin Yan's Red Shadow Army caught up, and more than twelve thousand surrendered after Qin Yan promised to spare those who laid down their arms.
• Qin Yan ordered the surrendered soldiers disarmed and guarded separately, then decided that rebel leaders should be executed to prevent future uprisings.
• Qin Yan offered prisoners reduced punishments and rewards for identifying officers and criminals among them.
• Chen Cai identified Wang Qingliang as a Taiping commander who had abused and killed women, and Qin Yan's men killed Wang when he lunged at Chen.

Qin Yan used promises of freedom and silver to make Taiping Army captives betray their comrades, then ordered the identified officers and criminals killed. Two days later, Ye Yingshan arrived and explained that the Taiping Army had concentrated its forces to defend Pengzhou, while the Great Li Dynasty had also deployed hidden reserves.

• After Qin Yan killed Wang Liangqing, Chen Cai pledged himself to Qin Yan and was released with silver for the journey home.
• Gao Daniu reported seven Taiping Army officers and collected his reward, prompting other captives to expose their comrades’ crimes and ranks.
• Qin Yan ordered the reported officers and criminals killed, and Han Cui led the execution while the Zheshen Ghost devoured the Vengeful Ghosts from their burning corpses.
• Two days later, Ye Yingshan arrived and praised Qin Yan for capturing more than ten thousand Taiping Army soldiers without a fight.
• Ye Yingshan told Qin Yan that the Taiping Army had rushed to defend Pengzhou with more than a hundred thousand men, and Qin Yan sensed powerful forces from the Great Li Dynasty’s Attendant Hall.

The Taiping Army gathered nearly 150,000 soldiers and marched on Changxin, where Qin Yan and the Great Li forces prepared to defend the city. Before dawn, Ba Wei shattered the city gate, and a fierce battle began inside Changxin.

• The Taiping Army's numbers grew to over 120,000, with more soldiers on the way, prompting Qin Yan and Ye Yingshan to prepare for a major assault on Changxin.
• Chen Shizhong praised Qin Yan and asked whether Qin Yan's senior would join the battle, but Qin Yan explained that the elder would not act unless a Supreme Grandmaster made a move.
• Hong Sheng ordered the march to continue, and Mu Old Ghost used a secret technique to drive the Taiping soldiers into an unnatural state of strength and excitement.
• Before dawn, Ba Wei attacked and blasted open Changxin's city gate while the Taiping Army brought siege equipment to the walls.
• Chen Shizhong confronted Hong Sheng as six formidable presences began fighting inside the city, and Great Li's troops suffered heavy casualties at the breached gate.

Qin Yan defended Changxin from the Taiping Army, killing its martial artists with his arrows and turning the tide of the battle. After slaying two Grandmasters in succession, he left the Taiping Army's experts shaken and Great Li's forces greatly encouraged.

• Qin Yan killed an Innate Martial Artist attacking Great Li's soldiers and blasted open a gap in the city gate with a blood-red arrow.
• Two Taiping Army Grandmasters charged Qin Yan, while Hong Sheng ordered that Qin Yan be killed.
• Qin Yan shot one Grandmaster to pieces before Shen Wei tried to approach him under cover of the buildings.
• Qin Yan battered Shen Wei's treasured armor with repeated arrows and then killed him with Four Stars Linked Beads.
• Qin Yan's successive Grandmaster kills lifted Great Li's morale and frightened the Taiping Army's martial world experts.

Qin Yan’s archery decimated the Taiping Army’s experts, prompting Hong Heavenly King to reveal his hidden strength and send Mu Old Ghost after him. Qin Yan lured Mu Old Ghost away from the city and killed him, while Hong Heavenly King continued fighting Chen Shizhong and Azure Register High Person.

• Qin Yan’s arrows killed Taiping Army martial artists at a devastating rate, and Hong Heavenly King ordered Mu Old Ghost to kill him.
• Hong Heavenly King unleashed Ten Thousand Abysses Return to the Sea, trapping Chen Shizhong and Azure Register High Person and revealing his overwhelming strength.
• Qin Yan fled beyond the city walls with Mu Old Ghost pursuing him, while Hong Heavenly King struck Chen Shizhong and left Azure Register High Person’s fate uncertain.
• Chen Shizhong took a pill that burned his potential and resumed fighting Hong Heavenly King despite his grave injuries.
• Qin Yan stopped in the forest, resisted Mu Old Ghost’s pressure, and killed him with a punch before seizing his illusory figure.

Qin Yan killed Mu Old Ghost and used his full strength to fire an arrow at Hong Sheng after Chen Shizhong was defeated. The shot badly wounded Hong Sheng and forced him to retreat, leaving the battle for Changxin City in turmoil.

• Qin Yan crushed Mu Old Ghost's soul, and Zheshen Ghost absorbed it before retreating to the Cloud Luo Pearl to sleep and advance.
• Qin Yan watched Hong Sheng defeat Chen Shizhong and judged that the Great Li Army was close to losing Changxin City.
• Qin Yan drew the Ink Sun Bow, gathered his full strength, and fired a blood-red arrow at Hong Sheng from afar.
• Hong Sheng was gravely wounded by Qin Yan's arrow and fled, while both armies were stunned by the mysterious intervention.
• Zuo Qingwen realized that the Taiping Army faced an unprecedented defeat if it failed to capture Changxin City.

Qin Yan returned to Changxin and killed Taiping Army commanders with precise arrows, turning the battle in Great Li’s favor. As Taiping leaders fled and their exhausted soldiers collapsed at dawn, the army’s defeat became imminent.

• Qin Yan reflected that his attempt to kill Hong Sheng had weakened both the Taiping Army and the Great Li imperial family, while supernatural threats kept the Demon-Suppressing Bureau’s strongest fighters occupied.
• Qin Yan returned to Changxin, where Azure Register High Person held the Great Li Army’s line against the Taiping Army.
• Qin Yan killed a senior Taiping general with an arrow, and Zuo Qingwen realized Mu Old Ghost had likely died and that an exceptionally powerful figure backed Qin Yan.
• Qin Yan picked off Taiping Army commanders, causing their forces to lose leadership and allowing Great Li’s senior generals to organize a counterattack.
• A bearded Taiping general and other commanders fled the battlefield, while Zuo Qingwen failed to stop them.
• At dawn, the Taiping Army’s soldiers lost their strength and collapsed as their frenzy wore off.

After the costly victory at Changxin City, Qin Yan healed the wounded and discussed the aftermath with Ye Yingshan, who warned that Qin Yan’s extraordinary achievements and youth could alarm the emperor. Qin Yan accepted that further military merit might bring more trouble than reward and turned his thoughts to the Taiping Army’s hoarded wealth.

• The Great Li Army dug Chen Shizhong from the ruins, and Azure Register High Person and Ruthless Sword Xiao Qi stabilized his grave injuries.
• Qin Yan returned safely, learned that the Great Li Army had won at terrible cost, and used Magnetic Field Healing to treat the wounded Red Shadow Army soldiers.
• Ye Yingshan asked Qin Yan to help guard nearly eighty-five thousand Taiping Army prisoners and said Ba Wei had escaped with remnants of the defeated forces.
• Qin Yan proposed attacking Lin Yang Prefecture, but Ye Yingshan warned that their existing accomplishments were already great enough to make the emperor wary, especially of Qin Yan’s talent and youth.
• Qin Yan thanked Ye Yingshan for his advice and decided to seek profit from the gold, silver, and treasures the Taiping Army had collected.

After the imperial army defeated the Taiping Army’s main force, Qin Yan infiltrated Wanghai City and plundered the homes of Hong Sheng and other Taiping generals. A rumor credited him with stealing 100 million taels, and he headed for Lizhou to seek another fortune.

• The Hongjia Emperor celebrated Ye Yingshan and Qin Yan’s victory but pressed the Demon-Suppressing Bureau for news of its immortality research.
• Leng Qing intensified his assault on Yuli City, forcing Lang Futian to hold out and wait for Hong Sheng’s rescue.
• Qin Yan traveled to Wanghai City and used his concealment and strength to raid the Hong Residence’s seven treasure vaults.
• Qin Yan plundered the mansions of Taiping Army leaders overnight, taking more than thirty million taels’ worth of wealth along with medicines and manuals.
• News blamed a mysterious God of Thieves for stealing 100 million taels from Wanghai City, leaving Qin Yan bewildered at the inflated figure.
• Qin Yan decided to go to Lizhou, where he expected the Taiping Army’s plundered wealth to remain.

As the Taiping Army collapsed across Lizhou, Qin Yan pursued its remnants and tested the newly advanced Zheshen Ghost, who slaughtered a looting force. Qin Yan then found the wounded Hong Sheng and Ba Wei and attacked the experts in their tent, leaving Hong Sheng to recognize his presence.

• Ye Yingshan led thirty thousand troops to reclaim territory as clans across Lizhou rebelled against the weakened Taiping Army.
• Qin Yan ordered Han Chen to guard the prisoner camp, then went to Lizhou and found Ba Long's men hauling away treasure.
• The Zheshen Ghost awakened at Red Sha Level and killed Ba Long and more than a hundred soldiers, then devoured their souls and vital blood.
• Qin Yan collected fifteen chests of treasure worth at least 270,000 taels of silver and continued searching Lizhou.
• Qin Yan found the wounded Hong Sheng and Ba Wei at Phoenix Perch Mountain and killed more than a dozen experts in their tent.
• Hong Sheng recognized Qin Yan's familiar presence as the attack began.

Qin Yan defeated Hong Sheng and Ba Wei, then revealed his identity and persuaded Ba Wei to join him in pursuing a more just world. Ba Wei agreed provisionally, while Qin Yan made clear that refusal would have meant death.

• Qin Yan killed Hong Sheng and subdued Ba Wei after Ba Wei attacked him.
• Qin Yan challenged Ba Wei over the Taiping Army's crimes, and Ba Wei admitted he had known about them and had deceived himself about Hong Sheng's plans.
• Qin Yan asked Ba Wei to stay by his side and revealed that he was Qin Yan, the Great Li Dynasty's Count of Qinghe.
• Qin Yan explained his past and his ambition to overturn Great Li's corruption so ordinary people could live in peace.
• Ba Wei agreed to trust Qin Yan for now, but warned he would leave if Qin Yan acted like Hong Sheng.
• Ba Wei asked what Qin Yan would have done if he refused, and Qin Yan said he would have killed him.

Qin Yan recruited Ba Wei as his Shadow and took the Taiping Army’s hidden treasure, while the campaign to pacify Pengzhou concluded and the army prepared to move on to Lizhou. Ordered to remain in Changxin to guard the prisoners, Qin Yan accepted the assignment and sent his commanders to cultivate with their newly acquired techniques and treasures.

• Ba Wei asked Qin Yan to save some Taiping Army prisoners, and Qin Yan agreed; Ba Wei then pledged his service and became Shadow.
• Qin Yan and Ba Wei found Hong Sheng’s treasure vault and took its silver, worth at least fifty-three million taels.
• Ye Yingshan captured Lin Yang Prefecture but found the rebels’ storehouses empty and managed to recover only three million taels.
• The five Supreme Grandmasters captured Yuli City, and Pengzhou was pacified after Lang Futian killed himself following his defeat.
• Leng Qing ordered Qin Yan to stay in Changxin and guard the prisoners, so Qin Yan dismissed his subordinates’ objections and told them to cultivate.

After the imperial tomb was looted, the Hongjia Emperor blamed the mysterious thief and ordered senior generals to the Capital, while Qin Yan avoided the fallout. Qin Yan bribed Huo Chunwen to arrange twenty thousand Taiping Army prisoners as slaves for his mines and fields, promising to raise the remaining silver within three days.

• The Hongjia Emperor learned that the founding emperor's tomb had been looted, spat blood, and collapsed, while Leng Qing's forces searched Lizhou for the culprit.
• The court blamed the thief who had looted Pengzhou and offered a large bounty, then summoned senior generals to the Capital to receive rewards.
• Qin Yan told Ba Wei he planned to take Taiping Army prisoners to Youshan Prefecture and sought Huo Chunwen's help arranging them.
• Qin Yan gave Huo Chunwen thirty thousand taels for eight thousand prisoners, then offered more money to secure a larger group.
• Huo Chunwen agreed to arrange twenty thousand prisoners for an additional one hundred and fifty thousand taels, and Qin Yan promised to gather the money within three days.

Qin Yan met Ye Yingshan and Leng Qing before returning to the Capital with the victorious army, where the public praised his achievements. The Hongjia Emperor heard how Leng Qing had kept Qin Yan from the later campaigns and blamed him for failing to prevent the founding emperor’s tomb from being dug up.

• Qin Yan sent Huo Chunwen the remaining 150,000 taels, and Huo Chunwen promised to move the people to Youshan Prefecture after the senior generals received their rewards.
• Qin Yan met Ye Yingshan and Leng Qing, and Ye Yingshan worried that the generals who retook Lizhou would be punished over the founding emperor’s tomb.
• The crown prince and officials welcomed the army in the Capital, where citizens praised Qin Yan’s campaign record and speculated that he would become a marquis.
• The Hongjia Emperor grew furious over the missing Taiping Army assets and suspected that the returning generals had embezzled the money.
• Li Fu recounted Qin Yan’s achievements and explained that Leng Qing had assigned him to guard prisoners instead of joining the later battles.
• The Hongjia Emperor blamed Leng Qing for wasting Qin Yan’s abilities and for failing to prevent the founding emperor’s tomb from being dug up.

Qin Yan received a second-rank marquisate for his role in quelling the rebellion, but accusations that he murdered his elder brother led the court to strip him of his military posts and send him back to Youshan Prefecture. He left the Capital with only a few guards, while Xia Chengqian and Qi Hao believed the emperor would eventually summon him back.

• The Hongjia Emperor enfeoffed Leng Qing with additional rewards and Ye Yingshan as the Mingjiang Marquis before granting Qin Yan the hereditary-for-three-generations title of Youshan Marquis.
• Qin Yan accepted gifts from the many visitors who came to congratulate him at his new marquis residence.
• Censors and Imperial Academy students accused Qin Yan of greed and murdering his elder brother, and the Hongjia Emperor learned that Leng Qing's household was among those stirring up the charges.
• The court fined Qin Yan three years' salary, stripped him of his military posts, and ordered him to return to Youshan Prefecture for reflection.
• Xia Chengqian and Qi Hao saw Qin Yan off as he left the Capital with a few dozen guards.

Qin Yan explained that he had deliberately exposed the matter used to drive him from the Capital, then returned to Youshan Prefecture as its marquis. As he prepared to reach Qinghe Town, local officials and acquaintances reacted to his return, while Wen Qinsi feared what Qin Yan’s arrival would mean for him.

• Qin Yan told Qin Xiaoyi, Ba Wei, and the others that he had intentionally leaked the information behind the accusation, expecting the Emperor to send him away rather than punish him severely.
• Qin Yan returned to Youshan Prefecture in February, where Prefect Li Muyun and local officials welcomed him, and Jiang Fuji regretted not having built a closer relationship with him earlier.
• Qin Yan visited the Demon-Suppressing Bureau, renewed his friendship with Zhao Zhen, and agreed to call him Brother Zhao.
• After two days, Qin Yan set out for Qinghe Town, where his return as the Youshan Marquis stirred excitement among the townspeople.
• County magistrate Wen Qinsi dreaded Qin Yan’s return, fearing that a slight against him could bring ruin.

Qin Yan returned to Qinghe Town and Clear Water Village, where he reunited with old acquaintances and decided to rebuild the village. He refused to reconcile with Qin Zhao’s family but promised Qin Qing he would not make trouble for them, leaving their relationship distant but peaceful.

• Wen Qinsi and Zong Xiaoshan welcomed Qin Yan outside Qinghe Town, where Qin Yan greeted his old friends and relatives.
• Qin Yan visited the ancestral hall and his renovated home, then told the old village chief that he wanted no connection with Qin Zhao’s family.
• Qin Yan decided to fund new houses for the entire village, and the villagers celebrated the news.
• Qin Qing asked Qin Yan to forgive their eldest brother and consider his nephews, but Qin Yan refused reconciliation while promising not to pursue them.
• Qin Yan asked Qin Qing to look after the family and to tell him if they faced a problem he could solve.

Qin Yan returned to his mountain base and used Spiritual Suppression to subdue three Shanxiao, whose awakened bloodlines might let them grow into powerful spirit beasts. He inscribed Soul Restrictions on their souls, placing their lives under his control.

• Qin Yan toured the expanded mountain base with Zong Xiaoshan, who described the disciples’ rapid cultivation and Qinghe Town’s growing safety and prosperity.
• Qin Yan learned that the three Shanxiao had grown more irritable and went to inspect them, hoping to study the Spirit Taming Sutra on the intelligent beasts.
• Qin Yan identified the Shanxiao’s strong ancient bloodlines and said they might someday reach Supreme Grandmaster level.
• When the strongest Shanxiao attacked, Qin Yan used Spiritual Suppression to overpower it and force all three beasts to submit.
• Qin Yan sent the Shanxiao a Mind Perception and inscribed Soul Restrictions on their souls, making their lives and deaths depend on him.

Qin Yan used Soul Restrictions to control three Shanxiao and began raising them with Beast-Rearing Pills he had successfully refined. After confirming the pills accelerated their growth, he considered cultivating medicinal herbs in his blessed land to restore their spiritual properties.

• Qin Yan applied Soul Restrictions to three Shanxiao, gaining a silent channel for sensing their thoughts and sending orders.
• Qin Yan gathered medicinal ingredients and refined three Beast-Rearing Pills after several days of attempts.
• Qin Yan fed a pill to A Da and observed that it increased the Shanxiao's growth and strength.
• Qin Yan assessed the pills' cost and the Shanxiao's growth prospects, noting that they could reach Innate Martial Artist strength as subadults.
• Qin Yan decided to prepare a spirit herb garden in his blessed land and ordered medicinal herb seeds.

Qin Yan increased the Heaven and Earth Origin Qi at the Deep Mountain Base by creating a magnetic-field barrier, then cultivated and continued refining Hong Sheng into a Lunar Yin Corpse Puppet. The puppet sensed a source of Yin Qi, and Qin Yan considered targeting the ancient corpses in the Cypress Water River.

• Qin Yan devised a magnetic-field barrier that trapped the earth vein’s Heaven and Earth Origin Qi and raised its concentration at the Deep Mountain Base.
• Qin Yan trained with boulders weighing dozens of tons and found that the enriched Origin Qi helped him break through his physical limits.
• Qin Yan inspected Hong Sheng, whose corpse had become a Lunar Yin Corpse Puppet with strength comparable to a high-level Supreme Grandmaster after absorbing the corpse-nurturing ground’s Yin-Sha Qi.
• Qin Yan used his mind to imprint Restrictions on the Lunar Yin Corpse Puppet as it absorbed the sun and moon’s essence.
• The Lunar Yin Corpse Puppet sensed a source of Yin Qi, leading Qin Yan to consider eliminating the ancient corpses in the Cypress Water River.