Chapter Summaries

Jiang Hao and Zhou Xinyan visited Maoling Mausoleum, where Jiang Hao confronted a restaurant owner for overcharging them and threatened him with a Misfortune Talisman. The owner, Yang Wei, suffered a string of accidents and fights before fearing Jiang Hao’s curse and paying him 135,000 yuan.

• Jiang Hao explained Huo Qubing’s history and the meaning of the Horse Trampling the Xiongnu sculpture to Zhou Xinyan at Maoling Mausoleum.
• Yang Wei overcharged Jiang Hao and Zhou Xinyan, so Jiang Hao burned a talisman and warned that Yang Wei would repay them a hundredfold.
• Yang Wei encountered a series of misfortunes, including a car scrape, gambling losses, a fight, a falling flowerpot, and an assault outside a bathhouse.
• Yang Wei suspected Jiang Hao had cursed him, found Jiang Hao’s WeChat ID, and messaged him from the hospital.
• After Yang Wei suffered a severe medical emergency, he transferred Jiang Hao 135,000 yuan and begged him to spare his life.

Jiang Hao and Zhou Xinyan accepted Yang Wei’s compensation, while the Misfortune Talisman continued to torment him until it expired. The couple then visited Jiang Hao’s parents, where Zhou Xinyan’s conversation with Mom Jiang turned toward marriage and grandchildren.

• Zhou Xinyan accepted Yang Wei’s 135,000-yuan transfer, and Jiang Hao told him the Misfortune Talisman would be lifted once the money arrived.
• Yang Wei fell while trying to use the bathroom, hurt his foot, wet himself, and begged the Great Immortal to spare him.
• Jiang Hao and Zhou Xinyan drove to his hometown and shared dinner with Dad Jiang and Mom Jiang.
• Jiang Hao learned that Dad Jiang hoped to make a set of rosewood furniture and encouraged him to pursue the project.
• Mom Jiang asked Zhou Xinyan when she and Jiang Hao would marry, and Zhou Xinyan said she had no objections.

Jiang Hao promised Zhou Xinyan that he would marry her next year, then the couple returned to Binhai after visiting his family. As Jiang Hao settled back into his quiet routine, the system announced a new mission.

• While harvesting peanuts, Dad Jiang urged Jiang Hao to marry Zhou Xinyan, and Jiang Hao decided on a wedding next year.
• That night, Jiang Hao told Zhou Xinyan his decision and promised to marry her next year; she happily agreed to wait.
• Before leaving for Binhai, Jiang Hao and Zhou Xinyan visited Jiang Yan at school, gave her clothes, and Jiang Hao left her two thousand yuan.
• After returning to Binhai, Zhou Xinyan went to work while Jiang Hao stayed home reading until the system announced a new mission.

Jiang Hao studied the history behind the mission before accepting it and was transported to Wang Mang’s Xin Dynasty, decades after the movie’s era. He found himself captured with his men and accused of rebellion, facing execution or enslavement as he looked for a way forward.

• Jiang Hao researched the Han Dynasty after receiving an unrestricted mission requiring him to become a Marquis and General.
• Jiang Hao accepted the mission and awoke bound among more than a hundred captured soldiers.
• Jiang Hao learned that he was a military marquis in the Western Regions Protectorate and that his men were being taken to Dunhuang for trial.
• Jiang Hao recalled that Governor Zhang Songfeng had framed them after Chen Da resisted Wang Mang’s order to be executed.
• Jiang Hao looked toward the troops guarding the prisoners as he considered his dangerous predicament.

Jiang Hao confronted Wei Kun after the Prefect’s Army denied the criminal soldiers water and brutally beat Pang Xiong. Wei Kun threatened Jiang Hao’s men to force him to drink from a waterskin he had filled with urine, and Jiang Hao began a melodramatic performance as he approached him.

• Pang Xiong and the other criminal soldiers demanded water, and a Prefect’s Army Squad Leader whipped Pang Xiong when he protested.
• Jiang Hao ordered the Squad Leader to stop, then challenged Wei Kun over the soldiers’ treatment.
• Wei Kun poured out his water, urinated into the waterskin, and offered it to Jiang Hao while threatening the prisoners.
• Wei Kun said he would kill Jiang Hao’s subordinates on a false escape charge if Jiang Hao refused to drink.
• Jiang Hao feigned grief, silenced his subordinates, and extended his bound hands as he walked toward Wei Kun.

Jiang Hao seized Wei Kun and turned the Prefect's Mansion troops into prisoners, taking their weapons, horses, and armor. He equipped his own men and ended the chapter dressed in Wei Kun's armor and carrying his gear.

• Jiang Hao tricked Wei Kun into turning around, then took his short sword and held it to Wei Kun's throat.
• Jiang Hao forced Wei Kun to order his soldiers to surrender their weapons, allowing Pang Xiong, Su Mu, Cheng Yong, and Niu Kaishan to free and arm their squads.
• Jiang Hao's men surrounded the Prefect's Mansion troops, took their horses, and made them surrender their armor.
• Cheng Yong and Niu Kaishan stripped Wei Kun of his armor and tossed him among the prisoners.
• Su Mu helped Jiang Hao put on Wei Kun's armor, and Jiang Hao took Wei Kun's horse and weapons.

After defeating Wei Kun, Jiang Hao decided to build a force in the Western Regions before heading to Zhongyuan and avenging Captain Chen. He sought to recruit Wei Kun’s captured soldiers and challenged Wei Kun to an archery duel, leaving their contest about to begin.

• Jiang Hao rejected surrender as an option and persuaded his four subordinates to follow him in carving out a place in the Western Regions before traveling to Zhongyuan.
• Su Mu reported that 168 of Jiang Hao’s brothers remained, and Jiang Hao considered adding Wei Kun’s captured soldiers to his force.
• Jiang Hao ordered Wei Kun to drink from the waterskin of urine he had left behind, then offered him a chance to return to Dunhuang if he won a duel.
• Jiang Hao challenged Wei Kun to an archery contest at three hundred paces, and Wei Kun accepted.

Jiang Hao killed Wei Kun in an archery duel, then forced the two remaining squad leaders to surrender and bring their men under his command. With his enlarged but poorly equipped force, he decided to return to the Western Regions desert and make it his refuge.

• Jiang Hao dodged Wei Kun's first two arrows, then shot him through the throat and ordered Cheng Yong to bury him.
• Jiang Hao offered Du Bin and Ke Ji the choice of death or surrender, and both agreed to join him.
• Jiang Hao sent Du Bin and Ke Ji to persuade their squads, and they returned saying all the soldiers would follow him.
• Jiang Hao introduced Du Bin and Ke Ji to Pang Xiong, Su Mu, Cheng Yong, and Niu Kaishan, then ordered everyone to leave.
• Jiang Hao chose to return to the desert because his force lacked the equipment and strength to pass the Great Han Dynasty's fortified checkpoints.

Jiang Hao led his poorly equipped force across the Gobi toward an oasis, where scouts discovered a Xiongnu camp. He divided his fighters into two groups and launched a surprise attack, leaving the battle about to begin.

• Jiang Hao learned that his force had only four days of rations and little water, and he continued toward an oasis to resupply.
• After more than forty li, Jiang Hao ordered the exhausted men to rest while they waited to reach the oasis.
• A scout reported that around fifty Xiongnu were camped at the oasis, unaware of Jiang Hao's force.
• Jiang Hao ordered the roughly one hundred fighters to attack, assigning Pang Xiong, Niu Kaishan, Du Bin, and Ke Ji to lead separate teams.
• Jiang Hao and his men approached the oasis, split into two groups, and charged the Xiongnu camp.

Jiang Hao led his riders in a surprise attack that wiped out the Xiongnu camp, then used acupuncture and a talisman to save the mortally wounded Jin Damao. The soldiers hailed Jiang Hao as an immortal, strengthening the authority and morale he hoped to build.

• Jiang Hao and his men charged the careless Xiongnu camp, shooting down many soldiers before cutting down the survivors in close combat.
• Jiang Hao ordered Du Bin and Ke Ji to tend the wounded and Pang Xiong and Niu Kaishan to clear the battlefield.
• Jiang Hao found Jin Damao gravely wounded and used silver needles to keep him alive temporarily.
• Jiang Hao drew a Hemorrhage Control Talisman, used the Celestial Master Seal, and ordered the military doctor to remove the arrow.
• Jiang Hao burned the talisman and sealed Jin Damao's wound, prompting the soldiers to praise him as an immortal.

After defeating a Xiongnu patrol, Jiang Hao questioned Mirhanlesh, an envoy from Yuli, and learned that the Xiongnu and Western Region kingdoms were embroiled in widespread conquest and coercion. He had Mirhanlesh guarded and sat by the river considering what to do next.

• Jiang Hao treated the wounded Han soldiers and decided to spend the night in the captured Xiongnu camp.
• Jiang Hao’s soldiers found Mirhanlesh and his younger companion hiding in a tent, and Mirhanlesh revealed he was an envoy of Yuli returning from a meeting with the Xiongnu Right Virtuous King.
• Jiang Hao learned that the Right Virtuous King commanded at least twenty or thirty thousand Xiongnu troops near Cheshi and demanded tribute from the Western Region kingdoms.
• Mirhanlesh told Jiang Hao that the Xiongnu had conquered Cheshi and were pressuring other kingdoms, while Shache had taken Kucha with apparent Xiongnu support.
• Mirhanlesh described further wars and annexations among the Western Region kingdoms, including Yuli’s war against Shan, and Jiang Hao ordered him held under guard.
• Jiang Hao sat beside the river at sunset and pondered his next move.

After saving Jin Damao, Jiang Hao became the object of his soldiers’ growing reverence and reorganized his camp’s staff and scouts. He forced the Yuli envoy Mirhan to teach him Western Regions languages, then amazed him by memorizing more than two hundred Xiongnu sentences in half a night.

• Jiang Hao’s men spread stories about his miraculous rescue of Jin Damao, and Jin Damao woke soon afterward.
• Su Mu reported the spoils, and Jiang Hao assigned him as clerk, appointed Cheng Yong to lead the scouts, and reorganized the remaining soldiers under the squad leaders.
• Jiang Hao summoned Mirhan and ordered him to teach every language he knew, threatening him with death if he refused.
• Jiang Hao promised to release Mirhan after six months and shortened his name from Mirhanlesh to Mirhan.
• Jiang Hao began learning Xiongnu, memorized more than two hundred sentences in half a night, and astonished Mirhan.

Jiang Hao prepared supplies and traveled with his army before deciding to tame two golden eagles. He succeeded and returned to camp with the eagles, which he planned to use as scouts.

• Jiang Hao drew two Blade Talismans and planned to stockpile talismans and water for emergencies.
• Jiang Hao filled five large waterskins and stored them before setting out with the army.
• During a rest stop, Jiang Hao spotted two fighting golden eagles and rode alone toward the cliffs to tame them.
• Jiang Hao used his Animal Communication Ability to tame one male golden eagle, then summoned and tamed a female; the other male escaped.
• Jiang Hao returned to camp with the two eagles and announced they would serve as the army's scouts.

Jiang Hao led his surviving troops to the ruined Western Regions Protectorate Headquarters, where he assessed their scarce supplies and considered how to rebuild their strength. He chose to raid the wealthy horse bandits at Tashi for supplies, leaving his men ready to prepare for the operation.

• Jiang Hao returned with two tamed Golden Eagles, boosting his soldiers' morale as they traveled to the Western Regions Protectorate Headquarters.
• Jiang Hao and his troops reached the damaged headquarters, gathered usable supplies, and recovered cinnabar and the Protectorate Banner.
• Su Mu reported that the three hundred soldiers had only enough grain to last about ten days.
• Jiang Hao rejected proposals to conquer a small kingdom or borrow supplies and told his squad leaders they would take what they needed themselves.
• Jiang Hao pointed out Tashi on the map and proposed raiding the wealthy horse bandits who controlled its oasis and trade route.

Jiang Hao prepared a drugged-wine ambush against the Tashi Horse Bandits and entered their territory disguised as a merchant. The bandits captured his caravan and took them toward Tashi Oasis, while Golden Eagle watched from above.

• Jiang Hao confirmed his soldiers were ready to fight and ordered Su Mu, Cheng Yong, and Du Bin to trade horses for camels and wine.
• Jiang Hao mixed a powder into the wine that would leave anyone who drank it numb after a day, and he prepared an antidote.
• Jiang Hao ordered Pang Xiong to choose ten men for the caravan and told Su Mu to follow at a distance with the troops, waiting for a message from Golden Eagle.
• Jiang Hao and the disguised caravan traveled toward Tashi Oasis, where horse bandits blocked their path and seized the wine.
• Jiang Hao claimed to be a Silk Road trader from the Jiang family, but the bandit leader ordered his group captured for ransom or sale as slaves.

Jiang Hao and his companions were taken to Tashi Fortress, where Luo Weina separated Jiang Hao from the other captives and locked him in a cell with several women. As the bandits celebrated and drank the wine Jiang Hao had tampered with, White Wolf revealed that the women were being kept for an important purpose.

• Luo Weina led the captured caravan into Tashi Fortress and ordered the wine stored, the workers imprisoned, and Jiang Hao held separately for ransom.
• A jailer placed Jiang Hao in a cell with several frightened women, including one who was sick with a high fever.
• Jiang Hao gave the women his water and flatbread so they could feed the sick woman.
• White Wolf hosted the bandit leaders for a feast and allowed wine to be distributed to the men.
• White Wolf refused a leader's request to take one of the women, saying they still had an important use.

In the prison cell, Jiang Hao treated a sick young girl with an Illness Dispelling Talisman after she refused acupuncture, and she recovered enough to sleep. Meanwhile, Su Mu and more than two hundred others waited in the desert for Jiang Hao’s signal.

• A young girl in the cell suffered worsening coughing and fever, but refused treatment that would require Jiang Hao to expose her skin.
• Jiang Hao secretly enchanted water with an Illness Dispelling Talisman and gave it to the girl, demanding ten thousand taels of gold as payment.
• The girl drank the water, thanked Jiang Hao, stopped coughing, and fell asleep.
• Su Mu and more than two hundred others waited in a desert hollow near the Tashi Horse Bandits’ fortress, trusting Jiang Hao to succeed.

Jiang Hao escaped from the dungeon after the horse bandits weakened from the drugged wine, then began freeing his companions. He learned that the sick girl he had treated was Dilina Zha, Princess of the Kucha Kingdom, and left her guards and maids locked up while he continued his plan.

• The women noticed that the girl’s fever had gone and that she had not coughed during the night.
• Two horse bandits brought food and water, complained of numbness and weakness, and refused to give Jiang Hao his share.
• Jiang Hao broke his shackles, escaped his cell, and incapacitated both horse bandits with silver needles.
• Jiang Hao freed Pang Xiong but told a bearded captive he would release the others later, once his plan was complete.
• Dilina Zha introduced herself as Princess of the Kucha Kingdom and offered to have her guards help Jiang Hao eliminate the horse bandits.

Jiang Hao disguised himself as a horse bandit and scouted the stronghold while preparing weapons for the people he had freed. He sent a message to Su Mu and gathered arms, leaving the group ready for the coming battle.

• Jiang Hao ordered the women to remain in their cells and placed Samoyed and the other guards under his command.
• Jiang Hao disguised himself as a horse bandit, subdued two guards, and discovered that the stronghold was in chaos.
• Jiang Hao contacted Su Mu by sending a message with his Golden Eagle, which had found Su Mu and the others hiding thirty li away.
• Jiang Hao killed four guards at the warehouse and hid their bodies.
• Jiang Hao found the warehouse’s stockpile of armor and weapons and stored enough arms for the thirty-two people fit to fight.

Jiang Hao helped the captives defeat the bandits who attacked the dungeon, while Su Mu prepared a cavalry assault on the stronghold. As reinforcements raced toward the stronghold, Cang Ni betrayed and killed White Wolf, intending to seize control.

• Jiang Hao killed the bandits who charged into the dungeon, armed Pang Xiong, Samoyed, and the others, and ordered them to barricade the entrance.
• Su Mu received Jiang Hao's orders by Golden Eagle and led the cavalry toward the mounted bandit stronghold, while Ke Ji hurried there with the infantry.
• Cang Ni left twenty men to guard the dungeon and led the rest to White Wolf's room, hoping to take power while the poisoned chiefs were helpless.
• Cang Ni rejected White Wolf's demand for the antidote and beheaded him, then declared that he would make Tashi his own world.