Chapter Summaries

Lü Hua set fires across Jiangning to draw Chen Hengchang’s forces into a pursuit while his allies stole a vast store of gold and silver. The chase led away from the city as the boats escaped, and the treasure was hidden beneath the Song River within Jiangning Prefecture.

• Chen Hengchang discovered that fires had engulfed his mansion, the granary, the armory, and the prefecture office, and Ji Feiyu realized Lü Hua was missing.
• Lü Hua watched the fires from the East City Gate, then fled east on horseback with Lin Fu'an and Ji Feiyu in pursuit.
• Lü Hua kept his pursuers chasing him through the night, while more than a hundred boats carrying gold and silver slipped out of Jiangning City.
• Lin Fu'an realized the pursuit might be a trick, and Chen Hengchang learned that all the gold and silver in the North City treasury had been stolen.
• Two days later, Lü Hua's people reached Wanshan Ridge, while Lü Hua left the stolen treasure sunk in the Song River.

Lü Hua brought the Shenyang Sect followers to Great An and learned that they would be monitored for two years before they could join the Secret Martial Guard. After meeting Yang Zhengshan in the Capital, Lü Hua agreed to rebuild the Guard for five years before retiring.

• Lü Hua crossed Wanshan Ridge with his followers and waited near Cuixia Valley, where Yu Tonghai’s army stopped them from proceeding north.
• Yu Tonghai arrived with Yang Zhengshan’s arrangements: the followers would settle in a valley near Cuixia Valley, abandon the Spirit-Continuing Blood-Refining Technique, and undergo two years of observation.
• Yu Tonghai told Lü Hua that Yang Zhengshan wanted him to return to the Capital and rebuild the Secret Martial Guard, while Ding Qiu would temporarily oversee the Imperial Guard Division.
• Lü Hua traveled to the Capital and met Yang Zhengshan, who reflected on how much Lü Hua’s appearance and manner had changed.
• Lü Hua agreed to rebuild the Secret Martial Guard for five years, then retire to Three Mountain Valley and take in a disciple.

Yang Zhengshan learned that Chen Hengchang and Wutuo planned to attack the Great An New Dynasty together next year, and he and Yang Chengye decided to strike the Wuliang Royal Court first. They settled on their limited forces and began preparing a campaign against the Wuliang Hu Tribe.

• Lü Hua told Yang Zhengshan that Chen Hengchang had allied with Wutuo and that they expected to launch a joint attack next year.
• Yang Zhengshan introduced Lü Hua to Yang Chengye and agreed to provide five hundred strong bows, while telling him to train his own archers and keep the Yang Family distinct from the dynasty.
• Yang Chengye chose to attack the Wuliang Royal Court before it could join forces with Chen Hengchang, since it would be easier to fight than Chen Hengchang's regime.
• Yang Chengye estimated that Chongshan Town and Beiyuan Town could provide about eighty thousand troops, while the northern towns lacked enough available forces for a larger campaign.
• Yang Zhengshan asked his second uncle to bring his elite soldiers from Shenmu Island and sent a letter there as the Great An New Dynasty began preparing its campaign against the Wuliang Hu Tribe.

Han Fei received orders to prepare Chongshan Town for a campaign against the Wuliang Royal Court, while Zhou Lan advanced the expedition date because the enemy was massing near Longbei Town. Han Zhenchuan visited Zhou Lan to offer his family’s allegiance and military support, but she left his proposals unanswered.

• Han Fei learned that Chongshan Town had to send troops westward and that Yang Mingzhi would arrive with two thousand elite soldiers.
• Zhou Lan ordered the campaign to begin on the first day of the ninth month after reports showed the Wuliang Royal Court moving troops north of Longbei Town.
• Wang Yunqiao brought Han Zhenchuan to meet Zhou Lan, and he introduced himself as Han Che’s son and her nephew through the Zhou Family’s past ties to his grandfather.
• Han Zhenchuan offered his father’s help in taking Anxi Town and Wusi Town and repelling the Great Yue Dynasty, but Zhou Lan’s steady scrutiny unsettled him.

Zhou Lan rejected Han Zhenchuan’s attempt to bargain for the Han Family’s support and ordered the western border forces to resist the Great Yue Dynasty while she focused on the Wuliang Royal Court. She sent Han Zhenchuan away with a warning that the Han Family’s best chance was to persuade the Sun Family to surrender to Great An.

• Han Zhenchuan offered Zhou Lan the support of six Assistant Regional Commanders in exchange for noble titles, but Zhou Lan dismissed his demands and refused to negotiate.
• Zhou Lan promised four Second-Class Earls to generals in Suzhou Town and Tingzhou Town who had resisted Great Yue, and ordered Sun Yunbo to campaign against Great Yue or face confiscation and execution of his clan.
• Zhou Lan told Han Zhenchuan that the Yang Family had the strength and connections to contend for the realm, then ordered Wang Yunqiao to remove him from the tent.
• Wang Yunqiao advised Han Zhenchuan to persuade the Sun Family to surrender to the new dynasty if he wanted to preserve the Han Family, and revealed that she was Yang Zhengshan’s disciple.
• Wang Yunqiao dispatched scout riders to spread Zhou Lan’s orders, using the promised titles to motivate the western town generals to fight Great Yue.

Yang Jizu delivered Zhou Lan’s order to Sun Yunbo, demanding that Anxi Town join the campaign against the Great Yue Dynasty or face military punishment. Sun Yunbo accepted, sending his forces west and freeing Zhou Lan to focus on the Wuliang Royal Court.

• Yang Jizu arrived at the Regional Commander’s Mansion and told Sun Yunbo to send troops against the Great Yue Dynasty within a month.
• Sun Yunbo questioned the order, but Yang Jizu warned him of the consequences of disobedience and revealed his standing as Yang Minghui’s grandson.
• Yang Jizu told Sun Yunbo that Great An would decide his rewards based on his service, and Sun Yunbo acknowledged he had lost his chance to negotiate.
• Sun Yunbo agreed to send troops against the Great Yue Dynasty and mobilized nearly all the forces he could command.
• Anxi Town’s attack forced the Great Yue Dynasty to retreat, while Zhou Lan was left free to focus on the Wuliang Royal Court.

Yang Mingzhi arrived at Chongshan Pass with two thousand elite Shenmu Island soldiers and discussed the campaign against the Wuliang Royal Court with Han Fei. He chose to lead a vanguard toward Daning Guard, hoping to expand Great An’s territory and strike Yemi City, while the larger army prepared to advance against the tribes.

• Yang Mingzhi arrived at Chongshan Pass, where Han Fei welcomed him and arranged lodging and a feast for the Shenmu Island troops.
• Han Fei explained that Zhou Lan had ordered Chongshan Town to attack the Tatar and Chici Tribes to relieve pressure on Longbei Town.
• Yang Mingzhi learned that the Wula Tribe was migrating north and proposed pursuing a broader campaign to seize territory east of the Menghe Mountain Range and occupy Yemi City.
• Han Fei reported that thirty thousand soldiers had gathered at Daning Guard and fifty thousand new troops were still on their way.
• Yang Mingzhi ordered Han Fei to leave with thirty thousand veteran soldiers while the new troops followed, then set out the next day with two thousand Shenmu Island soldiers and three thousand cavalry.

Song Dashan and Beiyuan Town’s generals prepared to attack the Ongud Tribe while Wutuo readied the Wuliang Royal Court for war against the Great An New Dynasty. Wutuo ordered Cui Liang to urge Chen Hengchang to attack early, leaving the conflict poised to expand on multiple fronts.

• Song Dashan reviewed Beiyuan Town’s plan with his generals and decided to strike the Ongud Tribe first.
• Yang Chengze and Yang Mingzhen advised following their existing plan rather than trying to predict Yang Mingzhi’s actions in Chongshan Town.
• Sixty thousand Beiyuan Town soldiers and fifty thousand laborers marched toward the Ongud Tribe.
• Wutuo learned of the movements in Chongshan Town and Beiyuan Town and expressed his enduring hatred of Yang Zhengshan.
• Tangwuxi explained that the Wuliang forces had fortified the approaches to guard against Chongshan Town, while the Chici and Tatar Tribes prepared to support one another.
• Wutuo decided to attack Longbei Town and ordered Cui Liang to ask Chen Hengchang to begin hostilities sooner.

Bai Ning judged Chongshan Town’s forces at the border to be too small to threaten the Tatar Tribe, while preparing to support Wutuo against Longbei Town. Meanwhile, Yang Mingzhi led two thousand Shenmu Island soldiers in a surprise night assault on the Mengke Tatar Banner Land, leaving its inhabitants in chaos as his troops fought toward the palace.

• Bai Ning returned from the Chici Tribe and learned Chongshan Town had gathered only thirty thousand soldiers at the border.
• Bai Ning considered attacking the Chongshan Army but chose to watch its movements and focus on supporting Wutuo.
• Yang Mingzhi led two thousand cavalry deep into Tatar territory and, after a brief rest, continued toward the Mengke Tatar division.
• Yang Mingzhi’s soldiers approached the Banner Land under cover of darkness and surprised its lightly guarded defenders with a bugle call and a sudden assault.
• Shenmu Island’s soldiers stormed over the stone wall, shot at tribesmen who emerged, and advanced toward the palace as panic spread through the Banner Land.

Yang Mingzhi’s two thousand Shenmu Soldiers overwhelmed the Tatar Tribe’s Banner Land in a night raid, with the Strong Archers and Shield-Bearers slaughtering the defenders and scattering the tribespeople. By dawn, Bai Ning and his master were dead, the Banner Land was subdued, and Yang Mingzhi learned his forces had suffered no deaths and only a few wounded.

• The Strong Archers swept through the Banner Land, killing exposed enemies with powerful, accurate shots as Yang Mingzhi watched their attack with pride.
• Bai Ning rallied his remaining elite Hu Cavalry, but the Shenmu Soldiers had already entered the Royal City and drove his forces back toward the palace.
• The Shenmu Soldiers shattered the palace doors, killed Bai Ning’s master and the palace defenders, and shot Bai Ning as he fled.
• The Shenmu Soldiers spread out across the Banner Land, while panicked Tatar tribespeople fled through the open gates and soldiers hunted those still hiding.
• At dawn, Xue Fuyang reported that the Shenmu Soldiers had four severely wounded and thirty-two lightly wounded, with no deaths in battle.

Yang Mingzhi’s two thousand Shenmu Soldiers destroyed the Tatar Tribe and isolated Kuku City, while Han Fei’s forces advanced behind them. Meanwhile, Song Dashan’s army fought the Ongud Tribe in a major field battle, where he committed Beiyuan Town’s heavy cavalry.

• Yang Mingzhi rested his troops, then swept through the Tatar Tribe’s settlements and left Han Fei’s thirty thousand soldiers to clean up the battlefields.
• Yang Mingzhi shifted his attacks to the Chici Tribe, destroying its smaller settlements and isolating Kuku City ahead of Han Fei’s approaching reinforcements.
• Yang Mingzhi arrived at Kuku City on September eighteenth and prepared to wait for the larger army to make its capture inevitable.
• Song Dashan led Beiyuan Town’s forces against the Ongud Tribe in a field battle south of its Banner Land on September twenty-second.
• Song Dashan ordered the central army’s heavy cavalry to charge the Ongud Tribe’s formation.

Song Dashan’s Heavy Armored Cavalry broke the Ongud Tribe’s army and drove it into a complete rout. In the Spirit Spring Space, Yang Zhengshan surveyed Longevity Village’s growth, approved plans to expand it and bring in more people, and found that the Dao Intent Sacred Lotus had grown thirty-six buds.

• Song Dashan sent two thousand Heavy Armored Cavalry into battle, where they inflicted devastating casualties on the Ongud Tribe’s Hu Cavalry and routed its army after two hours.
• Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi walked through Longevity Village and saw its farms, orchards, horse herds, and thriving community.
• Yang Mingcheng proposed bringing in more workers to reclaim farmland and cultivate medicinal herbs, and Yang Zhengshan agreed to arrange for more people to move into the space.
• Yang Mingcheng reported that three villagers had reached the Fifth Layer of Postnatal Realm, and Yang Zhengshan considered moving in Yang Family descendants to help them cultivate.
• Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi visited Red Cloud and Silly Big Guy, then found that the Dao Intent Sacred Lotus had grown thirty-six flower buds.

Yang Zhengshan left Great An after its northern campaigns stabilized the new dynasty and returned to Shenmu Island with Yu Qingyi. He reunited with his family and found the island more prosperous after his absence of over two years.

• Yang Zhengshan heard that Chongshan Town and Beiyuan Town had defeated several tribes, while the armies in Longbei and the west continued to pressure the Wuliang Royal Court and Great Yue.
• Yang Zhengshan hosted Innate Martial Artists across Great An and arranged for visitors to Shenmu Island to wait two years while Yang Chengye prepared to campaign against Chen Hengchang.
• Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi returned to Shenmu Island after more than half a month at sea, and saw that its commerce and population had grown.
• Jiang He and Yang Minghao welcomed Yang Zhengshan at Shenmu City's docks, and word of his return brought many family members and visitors to greet him.
• Yang Zhengshan sent his numerous descendants away before visiting the rear courtyard, where Yu Qingyi spoke with family members including Yang Yunyan and Yang Yunxue.

Yang Zhengshan discussed Yang Chengan’s betrothal to Zhou Yunxian and learned that she had beaten him after he teased her. He decided to settle more of the family in the Spirit Spring Space, arranging for Wang Mingzhe’s family and other descendants to move there in half a month.

• Yang Zhengshan heard that Zhou Yunxian had punched Yang Chengan after he teased her, and Lady Zhu assured him she was a suitable match for the mischievous boy.
• Yang Yunxue said she and Liang Jinyan would stay on Shenmu Island, while Qingping would inherit the Duke of Ping’s title; Yang Zhengshan arranged for Liang Jinyan to serve in the Shenmu naval force.
• Yang Zhengshan met the Yang family’s descendants one by one, then summoned Wang Mingzhe’s family and told them to prepare to move to the Spirit Spring Space.
• Wang Mingzhe agreed to follow Yang Zhengshan’s arrangement, and Yang Zhengshan told him the family would move in half a month without traveling by boat.
• Yang Zhengshan asked Jiang He to prepare supplies and train a successor as preparations began for a larger migration of Yang family descendants into the Spirit Spring Space.

Yang Zhengshan relocated more than a thousand Yang family members and affiliates into the Spirit Spring Space and planned a family-and-sect-style system to govern them. He and his companions surveyed the land, deciding to begin with a temporary Clan Grand Hall while postponing larger construction plans.

• Yang Zhengshan moved branches of the Yang Family and its affiliated families into the Spirit Spring Space, prioritizing his own family, Yang Family Disciples, and loyal affiliates.
• Yang Zhengshan outlined a governing structure centered on himself and the Clan Hall, with councils and specialized Halls to manage family affairs, law, defense, external forces, resources, and instruction.
• Yang Zhengshan brought Luo Shang to inspect the wasteland and said he wanted the old man and other longtime allies to spend their later years in the Spirit Spring Space.
• Yang Zhengshan proposed sites for the Clan Grand Hall, administrative offices, medicine and weapon-forging areas, and a martial arts arena, while Luo Shang suggested placing the councils on the mountain.
• Yang Zhengshan rejected building the main complex on the mountain because it lacked access to the Spirit River, then decided to build a temporary Clan Grand Hall on the flat land and consider larger plans later.

Yang Zhengshan prepared his family and the Spirit Spring Space for a long voyage while the Great An New Dynasty finished conquering the Northern Territory. Yang Chengye and Chen Hengchang then began a decisive battle at Wanshan Ridge, where Great An’s disciplined army clashed with the Shenyang Sect’s savage believers.

• Yang Zhengshan taught Wang Mingzhe about the Spirit Attachment Pill recipes and planned to cultivate him as the Yang Family’s chief alchemist.
• Yang Zhengshan moved supplies and organized construction in the Spirit Spring Space while gathering information for the coming voyage.
• Yang Mingzhi killed Wutuo and other Wuliang Royal Court leaders, and Zhou Lan and Song Dashan captured Yemi City, ending the Wuliang Royal Court.
• The Great An New Dynasty reorganized the Northern Territory, while the Great Yue Dynasty withdrew and declared allegiance.
• Yang Chengye led 110,000 troops against Chen Hengchang’s 200,000 at Wanshan Ridge, and both sides charged into a bloody battle.
• Lin Fu'an brought Shenyang Sect Innate Martial Artists, including ten fighters raised through the Spirit-Continuing Blood-Refining Technique, into the battle against Great An’s stronger group of Innate Martial Artists.

An Yuxing and the others fought Lin Fu'an and the Shenyang Sect as the battlefield descended into a chaotic melee. Ding Qiu killed Fei Mingyue and more than a dozen other followers, revealing an extraordinary saber intent, while Yang Chengye continued charging toward Chen Hengchang.

• An Yuxing confronted Lin Fu'an, and the two clashed with tiger-shaped water qi and scarlet blood qi.
• Ding Qiu ignored Fei Mingyue’s seductive attack, cut her in half, and killed more than a dozen Shenyang Sect followers with his saber.
• Daoist Xuan Zhen arrived and learned that Ding Qiu was the commander of Yang Zhengshan’s guards, then wondered how many experts Yang Zhengshan had hidden.
• The fighting became a chaotic melee as the Heavy Armored Cavalry and Heavy Armored Infantry struggled against the Shenyang Sect’s larger force.
• Yang Chengye charged through the enemy with fewer than a thousand cavalry and finally collided with Chen Hengchang.

Yang Chengye defeated Chen Hengchang’s forces, ending the age of chaos and securing the Great An Dynasty. Years later, Yang Zhengshan established the Spirit Source Land as the Lingyuan Yang Clan’s center, expanded its council and population, and continued to oversee its growth.

• Yang Chengye killed Chen Hengchang, while his guards held Ji Feiyu and Yan Huichun in an encirclement; An Yuxing killed Lin Fu'an, and the battle ended with the Great An army victorious.
• Yang Zhengshan received news of Chen Hengchang’s defeat on Shenmu Island and focused instead on supplying and building the Spirit Spring Space.
• In the twenty-second year of Shenmu, Yang Zhengshan renamed Longevity Village as Longevity City, the Spirit Spring Space as Spirit Source Land, and the Yang Family as the Lingyuan Yang Clan, while establishing himself as Family Head.
• Ding Qiu and Yu Tonghai arrived from the Great An New Dynasty in the twenty-fifth year of Lingyuan, formalizing its subordination to the Lingyuan Yang Clan; the Song Family and other allied families later joined the Spirit Source Land.
• Yang Zhengshan barred unrelated noble families from settling on Shenmu Island as migration increased, while the Clan Council expanded to thirty-one families and Zhou Tianci and An Yuxing joined the Elder Council.
• Yang Zhengshan recognized that entering the Dao depended on personal comprehension as well as resources, and reserved the Dao Intent Sacred Lotus seeds for himself and Yu Qingyi for the time being.

By Spirit Source Year 28, Yang Zhengshan saw the thriving Spirit Source Land and prepared to cross the Storm Sea Region to reach the Great Zhao Dynasty. He left the island’s affairs with Jiang He and arranged to depart with Daoist Xuan Zhen and the others, while keeping the Spirit Spring Space and its inhabitants secret from the powerful Daoist.

• Yang Zhengshan surveyed the crowded Spirit Source Land, where the population had surpassed fifty thousand, and scolded Yang Wanqi for riding Tianyun before giving the Flying Slave Eagle another wind-attribute Spirit Attachment Pill.
• Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi examined a young eagle whose bloodline showed promise, as Yu Qingyi continued cultivating Flying Slave Eagles toward becoming true exotic beasts.
• Yang Zhengshan visited Shenmu Island and told Jiang He to prepare the ship for departure in three days.
• Yang Zhengshan decided to cross the dangerous Storm Sea Region to reach the Great Zhao Dynasty, relying on his ability to predict celestial phenomena and the Spirit Spring Space.
• Yang Zhengshan met Daoist Xuan Zhen and prepared to travel with him, An Yuxing, Chen Zhongshu, and Lü Hua, while concealing the Spirit Spring Space from the Wuzhen Dao Palace elder.

Yang Zhengshan and Daoist Xuan Zhen set out from Shenmu Island to cross the Storm Sea Region and reach Great Zhao, stopping at Linfeng Island to wait for calmer weather. They settled into a courtyard for ten days, where Yang Zhengshan recognized both the island’s wealth and the danger posed by its powerful martial artists.

• Yang Zhengshan agreed to leave with Daoist Xuan Zhen, and they departed Shenmu Island with Chen Zhongshu, Lü Hua, Li Chang, Wang Lei, and their sailors.
• The group sailed through the Ninghai Archipelago, where they killed more than a thousand robbers who tried to attack them.
• After more than a month at sea, Yang Zhengshan’s ship arrived at Linfeng Island, where he and Daoist Xuan Zhen sensed many powerful martial artists.
• Yang Zhengshan hired Zhang Hanshan to find a courtyard for the group and learned that Linfeng Island’s accommodations and supplies were costly.
• Yang Zhengshan paid for the courtyard and superior meals, then ordered his party to stay there while they awaited the Storm Sea Region’s Calm Wind Period.