Recaps

Shen Tang, Qi Cang, and Cui Mi watched an unnatural fog and rain gather while the allied army prepared for a suspected Kang night raid. The attackers struck underwater, but the allies had anticipated them and trapped their force in a barrage of arrows and explosions.

• Shen Tang endured three nights of fishing with Qi Cang, who stubbornly baited the river despite catching no fish.
• Cui Mi noticed the fog thickening over the river as rain began, and Qi Cang suspected the weather would cover a night raid.
• Kang attackers used the fog to ambush an allied patrol, prompting the ruler of Qi Country to alert the army.
• Qi Cang and the allied generals suspected the enemy would attack underwater, while Shen Tang questioned whether Kang could manage a river assault.
• The allied army ambushed the underwater attackers with explosions and flaming arrows, then sealed off their escape routes.

Shen Tang and Qi Cang watched the allied forces discover that the river ambush was a ruse, while Bai Su’s orca Martial Gall Totem attacked their swimmers and held off a general. Shen Tang then followed Qi Cang toward the allied camp, where fire bulls charged through the defenses as another feint.

• The allied swimmers found driftwood and straw dummies instead of Kang soldiers, and their general ordered a retreat.
• Bai Su’s orca Martial Gall Totem attacked the swimmers, killed many, and fought an allied general until the forces withdrew.
• The orca kept another general from reaching shore, while Shen Tang and Qi Cang watched from the fog with Cui Mi.
• Shen Tang persuaded Qi Cang to head toward camp after hearing signs of another attack, then carried Cui Mi after him.
• Fire bulls burst through the allied camp’s defenses before cavalry scattered and brought them down.
• Qi Cang recognized the fire-bull attack as another feint, while Shen Tang whistled and sang to a charging bull.

Shen Tang and Qi Cang watched Kang’s deceptive Fire Bull Formation devastate the allied army’s defenses with hidden bombs, while Kang’s provocations kept the enemy on edge. As freezing rain and snow turned into blades, Gongyang Yongye rose into the sky to confront a white figure riding an ice dragon.

• Shen Tang enraged Qi Cang by singing badly, and he questioned why she lost her composure over his insult.
• Kang’s fake and genuine fire bulls charged the allied cavalry, then exploded when struck apart, killing and injuring more than a thousand soldiers.
• Qi Cang destroyed the remaining fire bulls in fury, scattering foul, waste-soaked shrapnel across the battlefield.
• The allied generals adapted by corralling the fire bulls, but the blasts damaged their defenses while Kang launched further distractions across the battlefield.
• Shen Tang summoned freezing rain and snow, and Gongyang Yongye flew into the sky as a white figure descended on an ice dragon and sent spear-shadows toward him.

Yun Ce fought Gongyang Yongye across the Allied Army camp while Ice Dragons and the soldiers’ Word Spirits turned the battlefield chaotic. Gongxi Chou joined Yun Ce to hold Gongyang Yongye off, while Shen Tang and Qi Cang watched the other attacks and suspected a traitor was helping the enemy evade the Allied Army.

• Gongyang Yongye and Yun Ce clashed, with Yun Ce using rain, fog, and Ice Dragons to withstand the older warrior’s stronger Saber Domain.
• The Allied Army’s scholars rallied their soldiers with Word Spirits, allowing them to organize and destroy some of the rampaging Ice Dragons.
• Gongyang Yongye blasted Yun Ce through the battlefield, but Gongxi Chou arrived and helped him recover his broken spear.
• Gongxi Chou unleashed his venomous martial aura and attacked Gongyang Yongye alongside Yun Ce, despite their poor coordination.
• Shen Tang teased Qi Cang as they observed the scattered assaults, and the Allied Army suspected a traitor was helping enemy attackers slip through their encirclements.
• Gao Country had been divided into the four provinces of Shen, Wu, Tang, and Di at Tang Mei’s suggestion, despite Wu Xian’s objections.

Qin Li directed Kang’s forces from a concealed passage, using deception to disrupt the allied army and prepare an ambush. As the attack began, Tan Ting prepared to confront a newly discovered Nineteenth Rank opponent, while fire-oil dragons set the enemy camp ablaze and the chapter ended with the general under attack.

• Qin Li used feints and his Way of the Scholar to confuse the allied forces and guide Kang’s troops into position for a rear ambush.
• Qin Li detected another powerful opponent resembling Gongyang Yongye, and Tan Ting volunteered to confront him with only one chance to strike.
• Luan Xin concealed himself in Qin Li’s fog and used [Silent Nurturing] and [Masterful Painting and Calligraphy] to support the ambushers, despite the strain slowing his reactions.
• Gu Chi and the elite ambushers reached the enemy’s rear and launched fire oil over the allied camp in the form of black dragons.
• An allied general recognized the fire oil and tried to warn his troops, but Kang’s arrows and fighters attacked him before he could finish.

Zhao Wei and Yang Ying helped set the allied encampment ablaze with fierce fire oil, while Shen Tang and Qi Cang realized the granary was also under attack. A sword wielder whose identity surprised Qi Cang appeared near the granary, leaving the raid’s outcome unresolved.

• Zhao Wei killed an allied martial officer with her heavy axes after he was distracted by the bronze-mace wielder, then explained to Zhao Feng that she had taken up axes after learning from Zhi Zong’s earlier attack.
• Yang Ying and Zhao Wei set fierce fire oil alight, and Zhao Wei broke through the allied shield formation to ignite the area closest to the enemy forces.
• Shen Tang told Qi Cang and Cui Mi that rain would spread the fierce fire oil rather than extinguish it, while Qi Cang reasoned that the raid might target the allied army’s granary.
• Qi Cang spotted a growing glow near the granary and suspected Kang Country was attacking it, but he believed its defenses would be too strong for the raiders.
• A powerful Sword Qi rose near the granary, and Qi Cang realized its wielder could not be Shen Tang, who stood beside him.

Shen Tang disguised as Zhongli Fu joined Gongyang Yongye, Gongxi Chou, and Yun Ce in battle, stealing the spotlight while secretly helping the fire spread. Gongxi Chou and Yun Ce escaped after breaking Gongyang Yongye’s resolve, while the fire remained a threat to the granary.

• Qi Cang left Shen Tang to inspect the granary, and Shen Tang ordered Liao Qian and her people to stay behind the front lines under Cui Mi’s command.
• Shen Tang donned her armor and mask, transformed her folding fan into a sword, and joined Gongyang Yongye, Gongxi Chou, and Yun Ce in battle.
• Gongyang Yongye rejected Shen Tang’s help, but he eventually allowed her to fight alongside them as she performed flashy techniques while doing little damage.
• When earth walls rose to contain the fire, Shen Tang pretended Gongxi Chou had sent her crashing into them, opening a gap that let the flames surge out.
• Gongxi Chou shattered the earth walls and broke Gongyang Yongye’s resolve, allowing Yun Ce to carry him away while Shen Tang pursued before being forced to stop.
• The Sovereign of Qi Country learned that the fire had only reached the granary’s outer edges, while the Black Baboon still lay at the guard’s entrance after fighting for two hours.

Cui Zhi learned that a mysterious force had turned the allied forces’ granary into a marsh, and Luo Yuan identified the attackers as a living skeleton and a chatterbox monkey. In a flashback, Luo Yuan fought Gongshu Half Step and recognized that the skeleton general knew his former name, leaving Luo Yuan intent on killing him.

• A foot soldier reported that the granary had been turned into a marsh, and Cui Zhi went to investigate while the Sovereign of Qi Country suppressed her anger.
• Cui Zhi found Luo Yuan, who explained that a living skeleton and a chatterbox monkey had attacked and that the living skeleton might be connected to Wei Cheng and the Eternal Life Cult.
• Luo Yuan gave Cui Zhi a report on the attackers and said the allied forces would need to eliminate the scholar behind the marsh.
• Luo Yuan recalled that an allied general had encountered Gongshu Half Step during the raid, and Luo Yuan had intervened before the skeleton general could kill him.
• Gongshu Half Step recognized Luo Yuan as Luo Benfu, and Luo Yuan’s killing intent rose.

Shen Tang and Gongshu Wu fought Luo Yuan, whose past scandal and former enemies Gongshu Wu had learned about from Wei Cheng. Shen Tang and an archer arrived to support Gongshu Wu and set fire to the granary, leaving Luo Yuan facing their coordinated attack and the spreading flames.

• Wei Cheng had told Gongshu Wu that Luo Yuan was a powerful former opponent who had fled for years after exposing his affair with his teacher and that the Assembly of Gods' Inner Society had once backed Luo Yuan's enemies.
• Luo Yuan exploited Gongshu Wu's weaknesses and badly damaged his bones, but Gongshu Wu rattled him by revealing knowledge of his enemies and taunting him about his past.
• Shen Tang arrived and used her Word Spirits to strengthen Gongshu Wu and attack Luo Yuan with swordlight.
• An archer fired silver-white arrows at Luo Yuan while Gongshu Wu supported the attack, and flames spread near the granary.
• The Silver Armored Swordsman taunted Luo Yuan about the fire as Luo Yuan continued facing their assault.

Shen Tang used manipulated rain to wound Luo Yuan and ruin the allied army’s provisions, then exploited the resulting distrust to fracture the coalition. As the allied nations prepared to attack Kang on four routes, Shen Tang received their intelligence and planned to act despite knowing some of it was false.

• Luo Yuan unleashed water dragons against Shen Tang, but she disrupted his control, wounded him, and revealed that her prepared clouds had flooded the allied granaries and accelerated the grain’s germination.
• Cui Zhi discovered that every granary’s provisions had sprouted, and the allied leaders argued over whether a traitor had revealed their locations before agreeing to manage supplies separately.
• Shen Tang recognized that the disaster was meant to undermine trust in Qi Country and split the allied forces, while Luo Yuan drank Gongyang Yongye’s tonic and vowed revenge.
• The allied army moved up its attack plan and divided into four routes, but Liao Jia and Shen Tang’s other contacts obtained intelligence about their movements.
• Shen Tang showed the reports to Kang’s ministers and explained that the intelligence was a mixture of truth and bait, then said half-truths would be enough to pursue her objective.

Shen Tang’s army discovered that Gongxi Chou and Yun Ce had been unknowingly poisoned, prompting her to order precautions and consider a cheaper way to retaliate. Meanwhile, Lin Feng sought Tan Ting’s guidance about his unusual Word Spirit, and Gongshu Wu explained that it had given an enemy martial energy with an opposing attribute.

• Shen Tang learned that Gongxi Chou and Yun Ce had been poisoned by a toxin that could pass unnoticed and spread through ordinary soldiers, so she ordered the army to watch for symptoms.
• Jimò Qiu explained that a lethal poison would be too costly, then offered to make inexpensive incense that could induce hallucinations under the right conditions.
• Gongxi Chou found Lin Feng at Tan Ting’s tent and learned she had asked him to teach her the Word Spirit he had used against Luo Yuan.
• Lin Feng explained that Tan Ting’s Word Spirit relied on his family’s Way of the Scholar and could not be replicated by her, even if he taught her its method.
• Gongxi Chou asked Gongshu Wu about Tan Ting’s power, and Gongshu Wu said it had made the previous opponent’s Dantian produce martial energy with an opposing attribute.

Gongxi Chou proposed that Lin Feng might become a High Priest, while Jimò Qiu explained the limits on combining divine service with secular power and offered to find her rare Word Spirits. Shen Tang’s council planned for the allied invasion, and a bat-borne message revealed Qi Country’s plan to unite Luo Yuan and Gongyang Yongye for a lightning strike.

• Gongxi Chou dismissed Tan Ting’s Word Spirit and said he would retrieve Word Spirits from Mountain Sea Sacred Land, then went to persuade Jimò Qiu to help Lin Feng learn Gu Art.
• Jimò Qiu explained that Lin Feng could not cultivate Gu Art without divine power, and the brothers discussed her becoming High Priest after serving as a high-ranking official.
• Jimò Qiu agreed to search the old Clan Land for rare Word Spirits for Lin Feng, while Shen Tang warned an official to focus on the enemy rather than report on Gongxi Chou.
• Shen Tang and her officials mapped the allied forces’ possible routes but could not determine where Luo Yuan and Gongyang Yongye would appear.
• A bat delivered a message to Shen Tang, who revealed that Qi Country planned to have Luo Yuan join Gongyang Yongye and launch a lightning strike.

Shen Tang revealed that she had placed the white-eyed fortune-teller inside the Eternal Life Cult to gather intelligence, and Qin Li recruited an old acquaintance to help foment unrest among the southwestern armies. Meanwhile, Luo Yuan split off with elite troops while his abandoned third column took a dangerous mountain route, where a powerful traveler learned that scouts were nearby and that the southwestern alliance had invaded.

• Shen Tang explained that the white-eyed girl had entered the Eternal Life Cult using Wei Cheng’s token and was passing along Luo Yuan’s movements.
• Qin Li proposed stirring up an uprising among the southwestern countries’ Eternal Life Cult followers, then persuaded a reluctant scholar to assist the girl.
• The scholar accepted the assignment and set out, while Qin Li promised to buy him wine when Kang Country reached Qiulai River.
• Luo Yuan secretly left the third column with his elite troops and caught up with Gongyang Yongye, leaving inexperienced soldiers as a decoy.
• The third column took a perilous shortcut through the mountains, where a former scout spotted suspicious forces nearby.
• The bare-chested mace-wielding man learned that the southwestern countries had raised an army against Shen Tang and complained about the popular Shen-Wu sibling pairing and pirated illustrations.

Wu Xian discovered enemy scouts near the border and chose to attack them himself, hoping to earn Shen Youli’s favor while proving himself to his daughter. As his daughter secured reinforcements, General Yang recalled how Wu Xian had once saved his life, and his own buried longing to return to the battlefield stirred.

• Wu Xian debated whether to turn back after his scouts found enemy forces nearby, while his daughter worried over her inherited title and lack of cultivation aptitude.
• Wu Xian decided to send his children to alert the defenders and led several dozen Martial Gall Warriors down the mountain to attack the enemy scouts.
• Wu Xian’s daughter reached General Yang and asked him to send troops to reinforce her father, and he agreed.
• General Yang recognized Wu Xian as the man who had once saved him and remembered how his failing health had kept him from returning to battle.

Shen Tang persuaded the gravely ill Lord Yang to accept her offer, and the Medical Bureau restored his Dantian, meridians, and Martial Spirit. Recovered, Lord Yang led troops into battle while Wu Xian’s group ambushed enemy scouts, leaving the southwestern forces’ larger threat unresolved.

• Shen Tang visited Lord Yang, learned why he had refused to serve, and persuaded him to pledge his loyalty.
• Jimò Qiu and the Xinglin Physicians repaired Lord Yang’s meridians as National Fortune restored his Dantian, allowing him to rebuild his Martial Spirit.
• Lord Yang recovered and led veteran troops out to fight the approaching enemy, using a military formation Word Spirit to silence their advance.
• Wu Xian and his companions ambushed isolated southwestern scout units, while learning the enemy might have two Nineteenth Rank Marquises Within the Pass elsewhere.
• A former scout explained how he had learned rival factions’ combat techniques in public competitions, and Wu Xian marveled at Kang Country’s unusual training methods.

Wu Xian infiltrated an enemy camp with his men and set a plan in motion to sow chaos by starting a fire and triggering a rockslide. The plan worked, but battle cries outside the camp suggested the southwestern troops were fighting among themselves, leaving Wu Xian confused as the chapter ended.

• Wu Xian's squad ambushed enemy scouts with an electrified blade net, and Wu Xian reflected on how the Medical Office's methods could save lives or kill.
• Wu Xian's men followed another scout unit, killed its members, and disguised themselves to reach the enemy's main camp.
• Wu Xian chose to attack the outer camp and ordered some of his men to prepare explosives near the cliffs while he drew attention away from them.
• Wu Xian and a pretty-faced sworn brother staged a quarrel to distract the camp guards, then set fire to the rear supply area and shouted that the enemy had launched a night raid.
• The rockslide began, but battle cries sounded outside the camp, and Wu Xian wondered why the southwestern troops were fighting each other.

Lord Yang and Wu Xian raided the Southwest Alliance’s camp, fought their way through its defenses, and escaped after killing enemy officers. Meanwhile, the Saint Child traveled through Lu Country and saw starving tenant farmers praying for relief, leaving her furious at their suffering.

• The Southwest Alliance’s camp came under a night attack, first by falling projectiles and then by Lord Yang’s charging Shield Wall force.
• Lord Yang split the enemy’s formation and fought an allied officer, but Wu Xian secretly struck the officer from behind and claimed the kill.
• Wu Xian and Lord Yang joined forces to kill another officer, then retreated when their casualties rose and the enemy rallied.
• After escaping, the wounded Wu Xian thanked Lord Yang, who said Wu Xian’s daughter had brought him the warning that let him distinguish himself.
• In Lu Country, the Saint Child stopped her carriage after seeing tenant farmers crouch in the fields and ordered that a nearly naked woman be given clothing.
• The Saint Child watched the tenant farmers kneel and pray for blessings and a better next life, and she clenched her fists in anger.

Shen Tang explained how Qian Yong’s eight thousand troops could stop a forty-thousand-strong southwestern army by using a concealed reservoir and a carefully controlled surge of water. Qian Yong accepted the assignment, and the meeting ended with Kang’s plan in place.

• Shen Tang assigned Qian Yong and eight thousand troops to intercept forty thousand enemy soldiers, prompting him and Luan Xin to question the odds.
• Gu Chi revealed that Kang had secretly built a reservoir near a likely enemy route, and Qin Li warned that simply opening its floodgates could devastate downstream communities.
• Shen Tang explained that they would increase the water’s pressure and speed to strike the enemy with less water, while limiting harm to people downstream.
• Qian Yong pledged to return victorious, and Shen Tang told him not to jinx himself before ending the strategy meeting.

Shen Tang used a secret Court Session and a daring raid to make the Southwest allied forces believe Kang had destroyed one of their member states. The allies turned back, leaving Su Shi Yilu’s undermanned garrison safe for now, while the retreat revealed how Shen Tang’s strike had forced their hand.

• Shen Tang and Tan Ting discussed the security of her secret Court Session, and Shen Tang prepared to lead an attack on a Dragon Slaying Bureau member state.
• Disguised as Zhongli Fu, Shen Tang accompanied Qi Cang as they returned from fishing and learned that the Sovereign of Qi Country had urgently summoned him.
• The allied forces learned Kang had destroyed a member state, and its Crown Prince urged them to retreat before their own homelands were attacked.
• Luo Yuan and Cui Zhi argued against turning back, but the Sovereign of Qi Country ordered the allied forces to retreat.
• Su Shi Yilu learned that the Southwest allied forces had withdrawn from the pass and that Kang’s raid on their homeland had caused the reversal.

Shen Tang’s army prepared to face the southwestern allied forces after capturing a country, while Qian Yong’s planned flood attack was nearly sabotaged by a long-hidden mole. Kang Shi and Ning Yan urged Qian Yong to proceed with the dangerous plan that night.

• Shen Tang argued with captured officials, dismissed their accusations, and ordered the prisoners taken away while explaining that Gu Chi had already extracted the intelligence they needed.
• Shen Tang told former officials she had discarded the National Seal, though she had secretly entrusted it to Cui Xiao, and Qin Li warned her that the allied armies were approaching early.
• Qin Li reported that Qian Yong had routed seventy percent of the enemy force, then explained that a mole had nearly turned Qian Yong’s planned reservoir flood against his own troops.
• Ning Yan’s incarnation exposed and captured the mole after detecting his controlled silence, and the suspect’s possible connection to Mei Jinghe raised questions about who knew of the reservoir.
• Kang Shi and Ning Yan agreed with Qian Yong that they should launch the flood plan that night before the enemy could share the leaked information.

Mei Meng secretly warned Qi Country’s defending general that Kang Country planned to flood the camp, but the flood struck before he could fully prepare. As Qian Yong’s forces attacked amid the chaos, Ning Yan confronted Mei Meng and raised a sword against her.

• Qian Yong agreed with Ning Yan to wager everything on their plan and promised to host a victory feast if they won.
• Mei Meng slipped out in disguise and warned Qi Country’s defending general that Kang Country would unleash a flood, but he doubted her identity and detained her.
• The flood surged into the camp before the defending general’s orders could reach everyone, sweeping away soldiers and supplies as the defenders tried to form barriers.
• Qian Yong led his troops downstream to attack the flooded camp, while hidden fighters struck at the defenders in the water.
• Qian Yong fought two coordinated Martial Gall Warriors and severed one brother’s arm.
• Ning Yan confronted Mei Meng away from the main fighting, and Mei Meng recognized her just as Ning Yan’s sword flashed toward her brow.

“Ning Yan” failed to kill Mei Meng, then turned the river battle in Kang’s favor with a Word Spirit that summoned ice horses and froze enemy soldiers. After the victory, Shen Tang prepared for the approaching Southwest Alliance forces by seeking shipbuilding blueprints or a shipbuilding family.

• Mei Meng escaped “Ning Yan” by using a Literary Qi Incarnation, and “Ning Yan” returned to the battlefield to attack the Southwest Alliance army.
• “Ning Yan” summoned ice horses that charged the enemy, while Kang Shi turned the downstream waters into a swamp and Kang troops trapped and killed many alliance soldiers.
• Qian Yong’s forces routed the enemy along the river, but the fighting left the river blocked with corpses and few prisoners to capture.
• Qian Yong worried that Shen Tang would blame him for the slaughter, and Luan Xin suggested reporting the facts while shifting some blame to Kang Jishou.
• Shen Tang learned that Qian Yong’s scouts had checked the riverbanks for damage and turned her attention to the approaching main forces and Kang’s lack of warships.
• Shen Tang planned to obtain shipbuilding blueprints or find a shipbuilding family so Kang could better face the coming water battles.

Shen Tang assigned Bei Jiu and the Mohist craftsmen to decipher Liao Jia's warship blueprints and prepare Kang's soldiers for naval warfare. As Bei Jiu and Yun Ce tested ship models and discussed their designs, they settled on producing an instruction manual for the crews.

• Shen Tang gave the warship blueprints to Bei Jiu and ordered the Mohists to analyze them, build models, and teach soldiers to operate the ships.
• Bei Jiu and Yun Ce worked together under a tight deadline, while Yun Ce recounted Xianyu Jian's plan to help raise their imagined child.
• Bei Jiu and Yun Ce tested a miniature crystal warship and identified the roles of troop carriers, ramming ships, and support vessels.
• Bei Jiu explained that Kang's disciplined soldiers and Qin Li's command could help overcome the challenges of naval coordination.
• Bei Jiu asked Yun Ce to copy an instruction manual as they began preparing the chosen ship designs for use.

Shen Tang discovered that Yun Ce and Bei Jiu had been secretly together for years and tried to encourage them to marry, but they refused to make their relationship public while serving in government. The chapter ended with Gongxi Chou teasing Jimò Qiu about his devotion to Shen Tang as preparations for the navy continued.

• Yun Ce flirted with Bei Jiu while they copied a military manual, and Shen Tang overheard them with Qin Li and Jimò Qiu.
• Shen Tang explained the idea of a “Love Brain,” and Jimò Qiu admitted he was one because he loved Shen Tang.
• Shen Tang asked Yun Ce and Bei Jiu how long they had been together, and Yun Ce confessed that he had pursued her since they were young.
• Shen Tang clarified that she would not forbid their relationship and asked whether they planned to marry, but Bei Jiu said they would wait until Shen Tang achieved her great cause.
• Qin Li pointed out that Bei Jiu and Yun Ce could not make their relationship official while serving in government, then suggested Shen Tang lead by example and marry.
• Gongxi Chou teased Jimò Qiu for acting like an extra in Shen Tang’s life, while Jimò Qiu insisted that men affected her and argued he did not count as one.

Shen Tang taught the martial generals naval warfare and led them through a discussion of unconventional ways to trap enemy ships. The chapter ended with her proposing that their fleet hide on the riverbed and attack the enemy from below.

• Shen Tang explained why Gongxi Chou's reckless fighting could sink their own ships and told him to direct the fleet instead of seeking one-on-one duels.
• The generals studied naval manuals before Shen Tang called on them to discuss naval formations and Word Spirits.
• Gongxi Chou suggested using a Word Spirit to block the enemy's retreat, and the generals debated trapping ships by enclosing them and draining the water.
• Lin Feng proposed freezing or dividing the river and using hidden reefs, while the group also considered disrupting enemy communications.
• Shen Tang suggested rapidly lowering the water inside a barrier so that breaking it would unleash a flood on the enemy fleet.
• Shen Tang asked whether Zhou Kou had supplied submarines and proposed taking their ships to the riverbed to attack the enemy from below.