Chapter Summaries

Zhu Ying prepared Daning’s defenses as a massive Tatar army and its Jurchen allies advanced against the Ming Dynasty. As the enemy arrived outside the city, he readied his forces to defend the border and crush them in battle.

• Zhu Ying learned that the Tatars and the Three Jurchen Tribes of Jianzhou had divided their forces to attack Daning and Liaodong, and he ordered the Ming armies to meet them.
• Banyashili and Arutai led nearly four hundred thousand Tatar troops toward Daning, confident that their alliance could defeat the Ming and restore the Great Yuan.
• Zhu Ying ordered Daning’s gates closed and assigned the First Infantry Battalion to defend the walls while reserves and artillery awaited orders.
• Zhu Ying instructed Chen Heng to fire Daning’s stored shells without restraint and directed Li Jinglong to prepare roads and supplies for a campaign into the grasslands.
• As the Tatar army approached Daning, Zhu Ying and his generals watched from the walls and prepared for battle.

Zhu Ying rallied the Ming defenders as Banyashili and Arutai launched a Tatar assault on the border city. The Ming artillery, archers, and Zhu Ying’s divine archery devastated the attackers, forcing them to withdraw for the day as they prepared a fiercer attack for tomorrow.

• Zhu Ying rallied the soldiers and ordered Lan Yu, Xu Huizu, Chang Mao, and Li Jinglong to prepare their forces for battle.
• Arutai led the Tatar vanguard toward the city while Banyashili commanded from the rear.
• Chen Heng ordered the Ming artillery to fire, and cannon shells and arrows inflicted heavy losses on the advancing Yuan Army.
• Zhu Ying shot down Tatar officers and generals, and his attribute and lifespan notifications resumed after nearly three years away from battle.
• Arutai warned Banyashili that Zhu Ying was defending the city, and Banyashili ordered the Yuan Army to withdraw and attack again tomorrow.

Zhu Ying returned the Northern Yuan Emperor to the Tatar camp, forcing Banyashili and Arutai to accept him while they planned to control him and use his legitimacy. The Tatars launched a two-sided assault on Daning Prefecture’s border city, but Ming defenses held firm as Zhu Ying prepared his 80,000 cavalrymen to deploy.

• A Tatar scout report confirmed Zhu Ying was at the Ming border city, and Arutai and Banyashili planned a two-sided attack to capture him and obtain the Ming method for making cannons.
• Ming envoys left the Northern Yuan Emperor and several dozen former ministers at the Tatar camp, forcing Banyashili and Arutai to welcome the emperor rather than risk provoking the grassland tribes.
• Arutai advised Banyashili to keep the emperor under control and use his legitimacy to unite the grasslands, and Banyashili agreed to receive him as a potential asset.
• Zhu Ying told Chen Heng that the emperor’s return would sow conflict among the Tatars, then ordered preparations for the expected full-scale assault; he also instructed Liu Lei to ready the 80,000 cavalrymen.
• The next morning, Arutai divided the Tatar army between attacks on the city’s northern and southern sides, but Ming cannons and arrows held them back through hours of fighting.
• As the battered Tatar army still failed to breach the city, Lan Yu reported that the 80,000 Cavalry Battle Camp soldiers were standing by for deployment.

Zhu Ying led the Great Ming cavalry out of Daning’s border city as the Yuan Army withdrew, turning its retreat into a rout. As the Ming forces crushed the Yuan formations, Zhu Ying ordered the Golden Eagle to track Banyashili’s banner and continued pursuing a decisive victory.

• After suffering heavy casualties without capturing the city, Banyashili ordered the Yuan Army to withdraw from the attack.
• Zhu Ying rode out through the opened city gates with Liu Lei’s three thousand Wang Wei cavalry and Lan Yu’s eighty thousand Cavalry Battle Camp riders.
• Zhu Ying and the Ming cavalry struck the fleeing Yuan troops, killing many and shattering their retreat formation.
• Banyashili withdrew under the protection of his Royal Court guards while Arutai ordered the rear ranks to form up and counterattack.
• Zhu Ying commanded the Golden Eagle to track Banyashili’s King’s Banner and led the Ming soldiers onward in pursuit.

Zhu Ying led the Ming cavalry in breaking Arutai’s Yuan Army formation, forcing the surviving troops to surrender or retreat. He then pursued Banyashili to the Tatar camp and hurled a spear through the Great Khan’s chest, leaving his fate at the brink.

• Arutai ordered the Yuan archers to fire into the charging Ming cavalry, but Zhu Ying and Lan Yu’s forces broke through the formation and devastated the Yuan Army.
• Arutai ordered the rear ranks to withdraw while the front ranks held off Zhu Ying, but the Ming cavalry surrounded the remaining troops and forced them to surrender.
• Zhu Ying ordered Lan Yu to pursue the fleeing Yuan forces, then led the King's Banner after Banyashili and the Tatar Great Khan.
• Banyashili reached the Tatar camp and ordered its defenders to prepare, but Zhu Ying led a Long Serpent Assault through the camp’s defenses.
• Zhu Ying hurled a short spear through the Yuan soldiers’ shields and pierced Banyashili’s chest.

Zhu Ying killed Banyashili, shattered the Yuan Army’s invasion, and captured its main camp. He ordered the army to march north and planned to draw Arutai into a decisive battle using Great Ming’s modern weapons.

• Zhu Ying killed Banyashili with a spear thrust, broke through 8,000 points in all attributes, and rallied the Royal Guards to attack the fleeing Yuan soldiers.
• Lan Yu arrived with tens of thousands of cavalry, and Ming forces took the Yuan Army’s main camp after its troops routed.
• Zhu Ying ordered captured prisoners sent to build roads, supplies used to feed the soldiers, and wounded and fallen Ming soldiers given care and compensation.
• Zhu Ying ordered Banyashili’s head sent to Yingtian and his body delivered to Arutai with a declaration of war, confident Arutai would fight rather than retreat.
• Zhu Ying ordered the army to march north and called for more troops and weapons, planning to use artillery, Explosive Shells, Fire Chariots, and Flintlock Muskets in the coming battle.

Zhu Ying cultivated to convert his remaining Internal Breath into Internal Force while his army secured the Tatar camp. After Banyashili’s headless body reached Arutai’s camp with Zhu Ying’s challenge, Arutai was pressured into agreeing to fight the Ming Army in a direct confrontation.

• Zhu Ying reviewed his Attribute Panel, then used two Low-grade Spirit Stones to cultivate the final conversion of his Internal Breath into Internal Force.
• The Ming Army took control of the Tatar camp, seized its supplies, and began transferring surrendered soldiers toward the Ming heartland.
• Arutai learned that the Great Khan had died, then recognized Banyashili’s headless body when it was delivered outside the Tatar camp.
• A wounded soldier delivered Zhu Ying’s challenge, which offered the Tatars a direct battle or the loss of Banyashili’s head.
• Arutai questioned why Zhu Ying would give up the Ming Army’s defensive advantage, but the Tatar generals and soldiers demanded battle to avenge their Great Khan.
• Arutai agreed to meet the Ming Army, while Lan Yu asked Liu Lei whether Zhu Ying had emerged after three days.

Zhu Ying converted all his Internal Breath into internal force, emerged from seclusion, and prepared to lead Great Ming’s Northern Expedition against the Tatars. News then reached Ying Tian of his victory over the Tatar army and the death of Banyashili, prompting Zhu Yuanzhang to mobilize the court for war.

• Zhu Ying transformed his Internal Breath into innate internal force, opened his Ren Du Meridian, and received a Tier 3 treasure chest reward.
• Zhu Ying emerged from seclusion, learned that Great Ming’s troops were deployed at the border, and ordered the generals to prepare for battle as Tatar forces advanced.
• Dispatch riders announced that Zhu Ying had defeated the Tatar army, killed Banyashili, and taken tens of thousands of prisoners.
• Zhu Yuanzhang celebrated the victory, ordered Banyashili’s banner stored in the treasury, and instructed the ministries to prepare supplies, weapons, and reserve troops for the Northern Expedition.
• Zhu Biao supported Zhu Ying’s campaign, and Zhu Yuanzhang assigned him to oversee the court’s wartime preparations.

Zhu Ying’s Ming army unleashed its new artillery and Fire Chariots against Arutai’s advancing Yuan forces, devastating their formation before they could reach the Ming lines. With the Yuan army in chaos, Zhu Ying ordered two more artillery volleys before leading the attack.

• Zhu Ying and Chang Mao prepared the Divine Machine Battalion’s cannons, Explosive Shells, and Fire Chariots as both armies formed up on the northern frontier.
• Arutai ordered the Yuan army to advance and outflank the Ming formation after scouts reported that the Ming artillery was moving forward.
• Zhu Ying ordered the Ming artillery to fire when the Yuan army came within fifty zhang, and the first volleys inflicted enormous casualties and broke the Yuan formation.
• Chang Mao ordered the Fire Chariots to launch giant arrows at Yuan troops who pushed through the artillery’s firing line, killing many more soldiers.
• Liu Lei marveled at the artillery’s destructive power, and Zhu Ying ordered two more rounds of fire before advancing; Arutai watched the battle in shock.

Zhu Ying’s artillery shattered Arutai’s Yuan Army, allowing the Ming forces to launch a devastating pursuit across the grasslands. Arutai tried to escape, then turned to fight when Zhu Ying and the King's Banner Guards caught up with him.

• Arutai’s vanguard and central ranks were devastated by the Ming Army’s Explosive Shells and Red-Clad Cannons, throwing the Yuan Army into disorder.
• Zhu Ying led the Cavalry Battle Camp into the routed army while Xu Huizu’s infantry advanced and Chang Mao redirected the artillery to fire beyond the Ming troops.
• Arutai ordered a retreat as the Yuan Army collapsed, but Zhu Ying and the Ming forces pursued and slaughtered the fleeing soldiers.
• With the Golden Eagle tracking Arutai, Zhu Ying and three thousand King's Banner Guards caught up with his remaining escort.
• Arutai stopped and ordered his soldiers to engage the pursuers, but Zhu Ying killed the Yuan soldiers charging him with Torrential Pear Blossoms.

Zhu Ying slew Arutai and led the Ming forces to victory over the Yuan Army, then ordered plans to secure and settle the Northern Frontier. After opening his battlefield treasure chests, he obtained an Earth Tier High-grade Frosty Sword and other rewards.

• Zhu Ying charged through Arutai’s guards and beheaded him after refusing his offer to surrender.
• Zhu Ying ordered the Ming troops to take Yuan prisoners, and the army encircled the defeated forces through the night.
• Zhu Ying discussed building strongholds across the frontier and recruiting workers and settlers to secure the newly conquered territory.
• Zhu Ying counted and opened his treasure chests, gaining military techniques, cultivation methods, practical formulas, and a Frosty Sword.

Zhu Ying mastered the Frosty Sword’s competing life and death intents and began cultivating a new martial skill. Meanwhile, Zhu Yunteng was promoted for his battlefield service, met Zhu Ying in the command tent, and learned that Yun Yu had given birth to his son.

• Zhu Ying summoned the Frosty Sword, suppressed its Heart Sword and Demon Sword intents, and claimed the weapon as his own.
• Zhu Ying extracted and began cultivating the Blazing Sun Dragon Fist.
• Zhu Yunteng was confirmed to have killed thirty-two enemies and a Yuan Army commander of ten thousand, so he was promoted to Thousand-Household Commander.
• Xiao Han summoned Zhu Yunteng and Chen Song to meet Zhu Ying, who welcomed his former comrade and praised Zhu Yunteng’s service in the army.
• Zhu Ying revealed Zhu Yunteng’s identity to Chen Song and told him that Yun Yu had given birth to his son.

Zhu Ying prepared his forces to pursue the defeated Yuan army and expand the Ming frontier, while arranging for Joseon to help defend Liaodong against the Jurchens. He left Yao Guangxiao in command of the Northern Frontier as the Northern Expedition began.

• Zhu Ying gave Zhu Yunteng cultivation supplies, ordered Liu Lei to provide Chen Song with pills, and told both men to rest before the next day’s military business.
• Xu Huizu urged a Northern Expedition after the Tatar defeat, while Lan Yu warned that the Jurchens still threatened Liaodong; Zhu Ying decided to deal with the Tatars before turning to the Jurchens.
• Yao Guangxiao proposed ordering Joseon to attack the Three Jurchen Tribes, and Zhu Ying used a pre-stamped blank imperial edict to command Yi Seong-gye to send troops north.
• After Li Jinglong reported captured horses, prisoners, and losses caused by feigned surrenders, Zhu Ying ordered stricter handling of surrendering enemies and assigned the Cavalry Battle Camp, Infantry Battalion, and Divine Machine Battalion their roles.
• Zhu Ying gave Yao Guangxiao the Heavenly Sword and authority over the Northern Frontier, then ordered the army to begin the Northern Expedition.

Zhu Yuanzhang celebrated Zhu Ying’s victories on the Northern Frontier, approved plans to settle prisoners and move Han settlers north, and ordered Joseon to attack the Jianzhou Jurchen tribes. He revealed Zhu Ying’s longevity medicines to the court and offered them as rewards for meritorious service, leaving the officials eager to serve.

• A messenger reported that Zhu Ying’s forces had routed the Tatar Yuan Army, captured tens of thousands, and killed Arutai, prompting Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao to celebrate.
• Zhu Yuanzhang ordered ministers to register and transport captured prisoners for construction work, and approved relocating poor, landless Han people to the Northern Frontier with tax exemptions and loans.
• Liu Jing reported that Zhu Ying had issued Joseon an imperial order to attack the Three Jurchen Tribes of Jianzhou, and Zhu Yuanzhang warned that he would punish Joseon if it refused.
• Zhu Yuanzhang told the court that a Longevity Pill from Zhu Ying had rejuvenated him and that he and Zhu Biao had taken it.
• Zhu Yuanzhang displayed spirit stones, Spirit Pills, and a Longevity Pill, promising rewards to officials who served the Ming Dynasty with merit.
• After court, Zhu Yuanzhang told Zhu Biao that the medicines would motivate officials who valued longer life for themselves and their relatives.

Yi Seong-gye obeyed Ming Dynasty’s order to send troops against the Three Jurchen Tribes of Jianzhou, then learned that Zhu Xiongying had crushed the Tatar invasion. Meanwhile, Fang Xiaoru oversaw the registration and distribution of Tatar prisoners as Ming forces built fortified strongholds across the Northern Frontier Steppe.

• Yi Seong-gye ordered eighty thousand Korean troops to march against the Three Jurchen Tribes of Jianzhou, deciding that defying Ming Dynasty would be more dangerous.
• A courier reported that Zhu Xiongying had killed Banyashili and Arutai, destroyed the four-hundred-thousand-strong Tatar army, and launched a Northern Expedition, leaving Yi Seong-gye and his ministers shocked.
• Ming soldiers brought thousands of Tatar prisoners to Daning Prefecture, where clerks recorded them and officials branded slave marks on their foreheads before distributing them to other prefectures.
• Fang Xiaoru supervised the prisoner registrations and warned General Wu to guard the captives carefully, noting that more than seventy thousand slaves had already been escorted away.
• Ming logistics engineering battalions built concrete strongholds across the steppe to secure supplies, support the advance, and enable future settlement.

Zhu Ying captured the Tatar Royal Court at Mount Langju and forced its leaders to surrender, making clear that the Ming Dynasty would permanently annex the steppe rather than withdraw. He left the Tatar nobles alive under coercion and declared that their people would become Ming subjects.

• Over four months, Zhu Ying's army pushed deep into the Northern Frontier, capturing territory and establishing strongholds as Ming officials coordinated construction, resettlement, and troop deployments.
• Zhu Ying, Liu Lei, Lan Yu, and the Ming forces stormed and surrounded the Tatar Royal Court, killing armed defenders and pursuing those who fled.
• Zhu Ying confronted the young Great Khan Daliba and offered the Tatar nobles their lives and honors if they surrendered to the Ming Dynasty.
• Daliba and the other nobles knelt and swallowed pills Zhu Ying provided; Wang Wei executed several who tried to hide theirs.
• Zhu Ying told the nobles that the Ming army would not leave the steppe and declared that Tatar lands and their people would become part of the Ming Dynasty and Huaxia.

Zhu Ying forced the captured Tatar nobles to submit through the Heart-Devouring Gu and ordered them to help the Ming Dynasty govern the steppe. After planning to secure Tatar territory and deter the Oirats and Uriankhai, he carved “Celestial Ming Dynasty” into Mount Langju.

• Zhu Ying revealed that the Tatar nobles had swallowed pills containing Gu worms and made them suffer heart-devouring pain until they agreed to serve the Ming Dynasty.
• Zhu Ying ordered the nobles to distribute the pills to Tatar tribal chiefs, proclaim submission, and help pacify their tribes while Ming forces surrounded the Royal Court.
• Zhu Ying explained that the Ming Dynasty would use Tatar nobles to govern the Tatars, bar them from commanding armies, and build military outposts beside their tribes.
• Zhu Ying ordered Lan Yu to lead thirty thousand cavalry to the Oirat border to deter the Oirats and Uriankhai from expanding into Tatar lands.
• Zhu Ying carved “Celestial Ming Dynasty” into the cliff at Mount Langju, declaring the mountain Ming territory.

Zhu Ying intercepted Oirat forces driving Tatar civilians toward Oirat territory and forced them to surrender their armor and horses before withdrawing. He then reassured the frightened Tatars that they were now Ming subjects and promised them land and a better life, while preparing to secure the border and turn his attention to the Jurchen tribes.

• Choros led Oirat cavalry into Tatar territory to relocate thousands of Tatar civilians, but Zhu Ying surrounded them with thirty thousand Ming cavalry.
• Zhu Ying told Choros that Tatar territory belonged to the Ming Dynasty and demanded that the Oirat soldiers surrender their armor and warhorses or face battle.
• Choros ordered his soldiers to dismount, surrender their weapons and armor, and leave without their horses, then withdrew with the Oirat forces.
• Zhu Ying ordered Lan Yu to build border strongholds and said that the Jurchen tribes of Jianzhou were a future target.
• Zhu Ying introduced himself to the terrified Tatar civilians and promised that Ming rule would provide them with pastureland, farmland, food, and clothing.

Oirat Great Khan Choros withdrew across the border and vowed that the Oirats would eventually challenge the Ming, while Ying Tian celebrated Zhu Ying’s conquest and annexation of Tatar territory. Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao then issued orders to register and govern the new lands, deploy troops, and appoint Fu Youde to command the Northern Frontier garrison.

• Choros rejected an Oirat general’s suggestion to capture Zhu Ying and ordered his warriors to watch the Ming forces while waiting for a chance to seize Tatar territory.
• Dispatch riders announced Zhu Ying’s victory and the Tatars’ surrender, and people across Ying Tian celebrated the Ming’s expansion.
• Zhu Yuanzhang read Zhu Ying’s memorial and ordered officials to register Tatar households, establish local administrations, and extend Ming policies to the Northern Frontier.
• Zhu Biao proposed transferring border troops from Beiping, Daning, Xi’an, and Taiyuan to secure the newly conquered territory, and Zhu Yuanzhang ordered additional troops to be deployed.
• Zhu Yuanzhang appointed Fu Youde to command the Northern Frontier garrison and continued issuing orders for governing the former Tatar lands.

Zhu Yuanzhang celebrated Zhu Ying’s victory over the Tatars by ordering a general pardon, rewards for soldiers and officials, and a sweeping reform of the imperial examinations. After the court dismissed, Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao discussed Zhu Ying’s next campaign against the Jianzhou Tatars and whether the submitted Tatar nobles would remain obedient.

• Zhu Biao proposed proclaiming the victory and granting a general pardon, and Zhu Yuanzhang ordered pardons and tax exemptions for soldiers’ households according to their service and losses.
• Zhu Yuanzhang refused to distribute scarce Lifespan Pills but ordered spirit stones, pills, and medicinal wine bestowed on selected meritorious officials.
• Zhu Yuanzhang warned negligent officials and decreed annual imperial examinations that would select literary, military, and artisan talent; despite ministers’ protests, he ordered Liu Jing to announce the reforms throughout the realm.
• After court was dismissed, Zhu Yuanzhang praised Zhu Ying for anticipating the ministers’ opposition, while Zhu Biao said the decree would be difficult to reverse once announced.
• Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao discussed the Jianzhou Tatars’ continued attacks on Liaodong and worried about whether the submitted Tatar nobles would obey while Zhu Ying dealt with the remaining tribes.