Chapter Summaries

Zhang Bo and Zhang Caidong concealed their roles in the previous night’s unrest while explaining the events to Shen Mu. Zhang Bo then reported his plan for peace talks with Green Leaf Group, and Shen Mu began to raise another point.

• Zhang Caidong thanked Zhang Bo for calming the Diesel Company Remnants and soothing Shen Mu, while Zhang Bo privately resented having to flatter him.
• Zhang Bo briefed Zhang Caidong and Sun Zhiru on their cover story and warned Sun Zhiru to keep his account consistent if Shen Mu questioned him.
• The three Blue Star Human entered the Noble Residence, where Shen Mu asked what they knew about the Diesel Company Remnants’ unrest.
• Zhang Bo, Zhang Caidong, and Sun Zhiru claimed the former reserve cadres had infiltrated the Middle-Level Managers, and Zhang Bo redirected the conversation toward Green Leaf Group.
• Zhang Bo proposed sending ten people, including High-Level Managers, Middle-Level Managers, and Sun Zhiru, to negotiate with Green Leaf Group, and Shen Mu accepted the plan before remembering something he wanted to ask.

Shen Mu appointed Zhang Bo to lead peace negotiations with Green Leaf Group, while reminding him that Dhirim would not tolerate defiance. He also assigned Zhang Caidong and Sun Zhiru to accompany Zhang Bo, leaving Sun responsible for watching for schemes.

• Zhang Bo pledged to uphold Shen Mu's authority and resolved to suppress dissent in Green Leaf Group so it could survive.
• Shen Mu told Zhang Caidong and Sun Zhiru that Zhang Bo had helped expose attacks on Dhirim, then promoted him to High-Level Manager.
• Shen Mu assigned twenty Heavy Horse Archers to protect Zhang Bo during his trip to negotiate with Green Leaf Group.
• Shen Mu named Zhang Bo chief negotiator and asked Zhang Caidong and Sun Zhiru to accompany him.
• Shen Mu tasked Sun Zhiru with watching for schemes during the negotiations, and Sun resolved to clarify matters with Zhang Bo and Zhang Caidong before they left.

Shen Mu ordered Zhang Bo, Zhang Caidong, and Sun Zhiru to negotiate with Green Leaf Group while Dhirim’s troops applied military pressure, though he secretly planned to use the talks as cover for a surprise attack. After they left, Sun Zhiru began to suspect that Zhang Bo and Zhang Caidong were drawing him into Dhirim’s political struggle.

• Sun Zhiru decided to avoid taking sides in Dhirim’s power struggle and said he would cooperate with Zhang Bo and Zhang Caidong on Shen Mu’s order.
• Shen Mu instructed Zhang Bo, Zhang Caidong, and Sun Zhiru to negotiate with Green Leaf Group while Dhirim’s forces camped nearby to intimidate the Wood Elves.
• Zhang Bo agreed with Shen Mu’s plan and prepared to return to Green Leaf Group with Zhang Caidong and Sun Zhiru to begin negotiations.
• After Shen Mu dismissed them, Zhang Bo, Zhang Caidong, and Sun Zhiru went together to Zhang Caidong’s residence.
• Zhang Caidong and Zhang Bo reassured Sun Zhiru that they needed to work as a team, prompting him to suspect they were involving him in their conflict with Dhirim’s High-Level Managers.

Sun Zhiru reluctantly aligned himself with Zhang Caidong and Zhang Bo for the Green Leaf Group negotiations, while Zhou Mo and the High-Level Managers arrived to discuss the Diesel Company Remnants and the previous night's arrests. The meeting left Zhang Caidong and Zhou Mo facing off over Zhou Mo's elimination of Zhang Caidong's Middle-Level Manager allies.

• Zhang Caidong and Zhang Bo pressured Sun Zhiru to cooperate with them, and Sun Zhiru agreed to follow their lead during the negotiations.
• Zhou Mo and two High-Level Managers arrived at Zhang Caidong's residence and reported on the Diesel Company Remnants and Green Leaf Group spies.
• Zhang Bo affirmed that the Diesel Company Remnants were real, knowing that exposing the story as a lie could reveal his deception and ties to the Green Leaf Group.
• Zhang Caidong criticized Zhou Mo for eliminating the Middle-Level Managers, but Zhou Mo defended the killings as actions taken under Zhang Bo's instructions.

Zhang Caidong and Zhang Bo denied Zhou Mo a place on the Green Leaf Group negotiation mission and assigned him to hunt spies and Diesel Company Remnants in Dhirim. Zhou Mo yielded under Zhang Bo’s pressure, while Zhang Caidong concealed his anger and resolved to rebuild his own power.

• Zhou Mo backed down before Zhang Caidong, who invited him and the other High-Level Managers to share a meal.
• Zhang Caidong said that he, Sun Zhiru, and Zhang Bo would negotiate with the Green Leaf Group on Shen Mu’s orders.
• Zhou Mo asked to join the negotiations, but Zhang Bo assigned him to investigate Diesel Company Remnants and Green Leaf Group spies instead.
• Zhang Bo reminded Zhou Mo that he had praised him to Shen Mu, pressuring Zhou Mo to accept the assignment.
• Zhang Caidong hid his anger at Zhou Mo for killing the Middle-Level Managers and decided to rebuild his own power.

After Shen Mu accepted the explanation for the purge of the Middle-Level Managers, Zhou Mo organized the High-Level Managers to rebuild Dhirim’s command structure and expand their authority. They left the meeting united around Zhou Mo, with investigations into Diesel Company Remnants and Green Leaf Group spies serving as the basis for their new network.

• Zhou Mo returned from meeting Zhang Caidong and Zhang Bo and told the High-Level Managers that Shen Mu had praised their actions and would not hold them accountable.
• The High-Level Managers discussed using the spy investigations to expand their influence, while Zhou Mo discouraged them from openly breaking with Zhang Caidong.
• Zhou Mo proposed that the group appoint replacements for the vacant Middle-Level Manager posts and make decisions collectively, and every High-Level Manager supported him.
• Zhou Mo assigned the managers areas and organizational structures for investigating spies, giving each a sphere of authority to build a three-tier command network.

Zhang Bo prepared a negotiation team for talks with Green Leaf Group and persuaded its members to temper their victorious arrogance by claiming Shen Mu wanted to recruit the Wood Elves. He led the team to meet Shen Mu, where they entered the Noble Residence and greeted him deferentially.

• Zhang Bo warned the ten Blue Star Humans selected for the negotiation team to follow his lead and avoid excessive demands or hostility toward Green Leaf Group.
• Zhang Bo convinced the team that Shen Mu wanted a peaceful settlement so Dhirim could incorporate the Wood Elves into its forces.
• Zhang Bo instructed the negotiators in how to bow to Shen Mu and led them to the Noble Residence.
• A Swadian Sergeant warned the team to remain silent and respectful before escorting them into the meeting room.
• Zhang Bo and the ten negotiators greeted Shen Mu and kept their heads lowered as they awaited his response.

Shen Mu staged a meeting to convince Zhang Bo, his spy for the Green Leaf Group, that he wanted peace and planned only to intimidate them with low-tier troops. After Zhang Bo and the Negotiation Team left for the talks, Shen Mu dropped the act with Fatis and asked about the elite troops.

• Shen Mu approved Zhang Bo’s ten Negotiation Experts and told him he could make decisions for the negotiations without seeking approval.
• Fatis reported that the troops had assembled outside Dhirim and were ready to move toward New Uxkhal, then questioned why Shen Mu had chosen low-tier soldiers.
• Shen Mu explained that the troops would camp near the Green Leaf Group as a warning, while insisting that he wanted negotiations and did not intend to attack.
• Shen Mu warned Zhang Bo and the Negotiation Team that the Green Leaf Group had only one chance to negotiate and would face consequences if they harmed his subordinates.
• After Zhang Bo and the Negotiation Team left, Shen Mu praised Fatis’s acting and asked how the elite troops were progressing.

Shen Mu confirmed Fatis’s covert preparations for an attack on the Green Leaf Group, then reviewed his mission rewards and the Sacred White Oak Tree’s links to several Mount & Blade worlds. Manid presented plans to expand Dhirim, and Shen Mu approved them before considering upgrades to the city’s existing defenses.

• Fatis assured Shen Mu that he had secretly moved high-tier soldiers at night, concealed them among low-tier troops, and arranged patrols to keep Blue Star Humans from noticing.
• Shen Mu reflected on his plan to destroy the Green Leaf Group and on the Legendary Level Will of Nature Fragment reward and the Sacred White Oak Tree’s connections across several worlds.
• A Swadian Sergeant announced that Manid had arrived to discuss city construction, and Shen Mu invited him in.
• Manid showed Shen Mu plans for Dhirim’s New East District and New West District, including walls, towers, barracks, residential areas, and barbicans outside the gates.
• Shen Mu approved the plans and delegated construction authority to Manid, who left to arrange workers and contractors.
• After Manid left, Shen Mu considered upgrading the ordinary walls and gates in Dhirim’s existing Castle Area.

Shen Mu spent 176,000 Denars to upgrade Dhirim’s walls and gates, with Building Contractors also agreeing to improve its towers and watchtowers. The construction crew arrived outside Dhirim and, after being challenged by Khergit Horsemen, continued toward the city.

• Shen Mu decided to upgrade Dhirim’s walls and gates after reviewing the costs and his Denar reserves.
• The system confirmed the 176,000-Denar project and offered upgrades to Dhirim’s towers, arrow towers, and watchtowers.
• A Building Contractor and more than five hundred Construction Workers appeared outside Dhirim, determined to improve Shen Mu’s defenses.
• Five Khergit Horsemen stopped the crew and warned them to obey Dhirim’s rules and respect Shen Mu.
• The Building Contractor showed the bidding contract, and the Khergit Horsemen allowed the crew to proceed toward Dhirim.

Zhang Bo prepared to negotiate with Green Leaf Group while Zhang Caidong stayed in Dhirim to maintain control amid tensions with the High-Level Managers. Zhang Bo and his delegation left with twenty Khergit Veteran Horse Archers as guards, and he saw the poorly equipped Spiritual Realm Human Race troops near New Uxkhal.

• The Building Contractor and Construction Workers inspected the planned eastern and western areas of New Dhirim while Dhirim struggled with severe overcrowding.
• Zhang Bo and Zhang Caidong agreed that Zhang Caidong would remain in Dhirim while Zhang Bo led negotiations with Green Leaf Group.
• Zhang Bo and Zhang Caidong discussed how Zhou Mo and the High-Level Managers had killed the Middle-Level Managers and forced them to approve rewards for the killings.
• Zhang Bo, Sun Zhiru, and ten Negotiation Experts departed for Green Leaf Group with twenty Khergit Veteran Horse Archers protecting them.
• On the road past New Uxkhal, Zhang Bo saw poorly equipped Spiritual Realm Human Race troops and judged them unfit as professional combat soldiers.

Yang Di and Green Leaf Group’s leaders prepared to negotiate their surrender to Dhirim, despite the Wood Elf Plane abandoning them. After privately questioning whether Zhang Bo had betrayed them, Yang Di resolved to use his Spiritual Realm Lord powers if Zhang Bo denied Green Leaf Group a dignified settlement.

• Yang Di reassured the department heads that they would negotiate with Zhang Bo, who had become Dhirim’s chief negotiator.
• Yang Di revealed that the Wood Elf Plane had revoked his planar descent authorization, and the leaders agreed to offer Dhirim Wood Elf archers in exchange for Spiritual Power and reconstruction support.
• After the department heads left, Yang Di and Zhang Song discussed their growing suspicion that Zhang Bo had sold out Green Leaf Group through his Grand Plan.
• Zhang Song said Green Leaf Group had no choice but to follow Zhang Bo’s negotiation strategy because most of its combat strength had been destroyed.
• Yang Di vowed to use the power and trump cards granted by the Wood Elf Plane if Zhang Bo betrayed them and denied them a dignified way out.

Zhang Bo and Sun Zhiru led the Negotiation Experts toward Green Leaf Group, while Dhirim prepared forces to protect them and respond if negotiations turned violent. The troops began moving into position for a concealed night ambush, with Shen Mu expected to join the commanders.

• Zhang Bo, Sun Zhiru, and ten Negotiation Experts rode past New Uxkhal toward Green Leaf Group, discussing the group's decline and the risks of their negotiations.
• Bunduk watched the Negotiation Experts leave and sent a Sacred Tree Knight to notify Shen Mu.
• Fatis arrived at New Uxkhal and confirmed Bunduk's plan to send more than a thousand apparently unarmored soldiers after the Negotiation Experts, with armor hidden on carts.
• Fatis ordered Lezalit and Bestur to lead the Swadian Heavy Cavalry and Khergit Heavy Horse Archers on a concealed route around Green Leaf Group's rear flank.
• Fatis told Lezalit and Bestur to stay well away and wait for a night surprise attack, while the Negotiation Experts deliberately stalled.

Zhang Bo and the Dhirim delegation arrived at Green Leaf Group to negotiate peace, while armed Wood Elf sentries met them with suspicion. Zhang Song accepted their assurances and opened the village gate, allowing the envoys to enter.

• Fatis prepared to establish camp and await Shen Mu, while Lezalit and Bestur led their troops deeper into Balihe Street for a nighttime sneak attack.
• Zhang Bo, Sun Zhiru, and the Negotiation Experts reached the Wood Elf Village and saw sentries watching from its tree wall.
• Khergit Horse Archers and Wood Elf Sentries aimed their bows at each other until Zhang Bo and Zhang Song exchanged words about the delegation's peaceful intentions.
• Sun Zhiru told Zhang Song that Dhirim could destroy Green Leaf Group, and Zhang Bo appealed to their shared identity as Blue Star Humans.
• Zhang Song chose to trust Zhang Bo and Shen Mu, then ordered the Wood Elves to open the gate and admit the envoys.

Zhang Bo and Zhang Song used a show of humility and a display of military strength to shape Dhirim’s negotiations with Green Leaf Group. The exchange ended in open hostility as Sun Zhiru and the Negotiation Experts accused the Wood Elves of provoking Dhirim.

• Zhang Song led Zhang Bo, Sun Zhiru, the Negotiation Experts, and twenty Khergit Veteran Horse Archers into the Wood Elf Village while its residents glared at them.
• Zhang Bo invoked peace and the future of Blue Star World, prompting Zhang Song to send the hostile Wood Elves away and signal his understanding of Zhang Bo’s negotiation tactic.
• The group passed the archery range, where Zhang Song praised Wood Elf skill and warned that Wood Elves could resist armies in forests and cities.
• A Khergit Veteran Horse Archer demonstrated his bow skill and claimed that Vaegir Marksmen were even better, making Zhang Song consider the danger of human forces overwhelming the Wood Elves through attrition.
• Zhang Song challenged the humans’ reason for displaying their strength, and Sun Zhiru and other Negotiation Experts retorted that Green Leaf Group had attacked Dhirim first.

Yang Di and Zhang Bo began negotiations over Green Leaf Group joining Dhirim, while hiding their conflicting loyalties and following Zhang Bo’s proposed plan. Yang Di asked what conditions Dhirim would impose, and his unfinished response left the negotiations poised to continue.

• Yang Di arrived with Green Leaf Group’s executives, and he and Zhang Bo exchanged guarded, emotional glances without revealing their feelings.
• Yang Di accepted responsibility for Green Leaf Group’s defeat and praised Shen Mu, while Zhang Bo emphasized that the group was negotiating from a position of weakness.
• Zhang Bo and Zhang Song framed a peaceful merger as a chance for Green Leaf Group to join Dhirim and work together against future threats.
• Yang Di asked what conditions Green Leaf Group would face in joining Dhirim, and Zhang Bo said they only needed to obey Shen Mu’s arrangements.
• Yang Di expressed gratitude for Shen Mu’s offer, then paused before stating what else he wanted to say.

Zhang Bo pressured Yang Di and Green Leaf Group into accepting that Dhirim held the stronger position, then began presenting its surrender terms. The public demands were revealed, and Sun Zhiru said Dhirim also wanted special concessions involving the Wood Elf Plane.

• Yang Di, Zhang Song, and Green Leaf Group's ministers doubted that Dhirim would honor peaceful negotiations, but Zhang Bo argued that they had no bargaining power and warned that Dhirim could force them to submit.
• Green Leaf Group's ministers claimed their Wood Elf powers could become a threat as supernatural factors increased, but Zhang Bo pointed to Dhirim's troops and Spellcasters, leaving them without a response.
• Zhang Bo drank the fruit juice as the agreed signal to begin real negotiations, and Yang Di welcomed him and the Dhirim negotiators.
• Sun Zhiru presented Dhirim's public terms: Green Leaf Group had to integrate its field troops into Dhirim's forces, hand over village defense, support Dhirim's agriculture and Animal Husbandry, and send all but 5,000 Blue Star Humans to Dhirim.
• After Yang Di and Zhang Song reviewed the list, Sun Zhiru said Dhirim also wanted special conditions involving the Wood Elf Plane.

Shen Mu coordinated the planned assault on Green Leaf Group, positioning Bunduk’s troops as a diversion and preparing Bestur, Lezalit, and Fatis’s forces for the attack. While waiting for nightfall, he and Fatis discussed the weakening undead threat and Shen Mu’s plans to prioritize developing his territory after taking Balihe Street.

• Shen Mu told Bunduk to conceal the plan as his low-tier troops advanced toward Green Leaf Group, with their armor hidden on wagons for use if they had to fight.
• Shen Mu left Bunduk’s force and rode to the district hospital, where Fatis reported that Bestur and Lezalit were ready at their northern attack point.
• Shen Mu and Fatis waited at the temporary camp, confident that Bunduk could manage Zhang Bo and that the forces were prepared for the assault.
• Fatis observed that undead monsters had become fewer and weaker, and suggested that killing them had weakened the Necromantic Rules’ control over the region.
• Shen Mu agreed that the undead threat required planning, but said that after taking Balihe Street he would focus on expanding and developing his territory.

Shen Mu and Fatis discussed using a night attack on Undead Monsters to train their soldiers, then shared lunch at the temporary camp. Meanwhile, Dhirim and Green Leaf Group’s negotiators wrangled over submission terms, and a toast between Zhang Bo, Zhang Song, and Yang Di signaled an unspoken message as negotiations continued.

• Fatis proposed sending troops to clear Undead Monsters, and Shen Mu agreed that the fighting could give his Straw Soldiers Combat Experience and prepare the new squad leaders.
• Shen Mu and Fatis ate a hearty lunch at the camp, where Shen Mu reassured Fatis that Black Bread was suitable wartime food.
• Yang Di and Zhang Bo paused their negotiations after hours of debate and shared pastries and fresh fruit from the Wood Elf Village.
• Green Leaf Group’s representatives boasted about their produce, but Dhirim’s Negotiation Experts countered by describing their abundant staple foods, meat, vegetables, and other rations.
• Zhang Song proposed a toast to Shen Mu and peace, and Zhang Bo, Zhang Song, and Yang Di used the shared toast as a signal.

Yang Di and the Green Leaf Group’s executives discussed their difficult position as Zhang Bo’s team treated the negotiations as an easy victory. Yang Di and Zhang Song concluded that Zhang Bo remained loyal and agreed to meet with him privately before the next round of talks.

• Yang Di praised Shen Mu and asked Zhang Bo to convey his respect, then Zhang Bo’s delegation moved to a guarded private tent.
• Sun Zhiru and the Negotiation Experts judged the talks easy and expected the Green Leaf Group to accept their terms, while Zhang Bo arranged a progress report to Bunduk.
• Zhang Bo’s team decided to rest, resume negotiations around three, and request a lavish dinner with meat and fruit wine.
• Yang Di told the Green Leaf Group’s department heads to rest before the difficult afternoon negotiations, then discussed Zhang Bo’s conduct with Zhang Song.
• Yang Di and Zhang Song agreed that Zhang Bo still supported them and decided to meet him privately to coordinate on confidential matters.