Recaps

The Taluo Dynasty and Shenmu Sect prepared to confront Yang Zhengshan, while Star Moon Island blockaded the eastern shipping route, disrupting trade and overwhelming North Ring Island’s harbor. Sato Ken sought help from Star Moon Island, as Yang Jide struggled to manage the merchants affected by the blockade.

• Hou Fangjin urged Wen Qing to demonstrate force against Star Moon Island, and Wen Qing said he would send twenty thousand naval troops north while revealing that Xiang Anxu was already aboard his ship.
• After the New Year, the Yang Family Trading Firm redirected its eastern fleets south for supplies, and Star Moon Island sent four naval fleets to blockade the waters east of the island.
• The blockade stopped ships from reaching Shenmu Island, cutting off its toll and port revenue and forcing merchants to crowd into North Ring Island’s harbor.
• Sato Ken, a maritime merchant and agent for Shimazu Qishan, went to North Ring Island’s official office to seek answers about the sealed route.
• Yang Jide put Sato Ken on hold while he met representatives of the Xue and Zhu families, whose fleets and business were also affected by the blockade.

Yang Jide arranged for Star Moon Island to buy stranded merchants’ goods, while Yu Tonghai prepared a large force and settlers to support Yang Zhengshan’s campaign against Shenmu Island. At sea, an unidentified handsome old man received a message delivered by a Flying Slave Eagle.

• Yang Jide offered to buy Zhu Zhen’s cargo at a twenty-percent markup and gave other merchants less generous compensation for the blockade.
• Yu Tonghai told Xue Ping that Yang Zhengshan had requested ten thousand naval troops to support the attack on Shenmu Island.
• Yu Tonghai ordered Xue Ping to take twenty-five thousand men to Star Moon Island and discuss relocating some Tenglong Guard households there.
• An old man aboard a ship southeast of Star Moon Island received a message from a Flying Slave Eagle.

Zhang Juhai learned that the Taluo Dynasty’s Giant Whale Naval Force was heading toward Star Moon Island and decided to go there to complicate matters for his rival. As the Taluo fleet neared Shenmu Island, Yang Zhengshan prepared Star Moon Island’s people for battle while waiting for the Tenglong Guard’s naval force.

• Zhang Juhai and Yuan Ke guessed the Taluo Dynasty was targeting Star Moon Island, so Zhang Juhai set out to make an alliance against their shared enemy.
• Zhu Yanshan showed Zhu Changxing the heavy spear he had forged, accidentally smashing the Cyan White Jade floor; Zhu Changxing then ordered him to send the weapon to Yang Zhengshan.
• Yang Mingzhi told Yang Zhengshan that the Taluo Dynasty backed Shenmu Island and that its Giant Whale Naval Force had reached the island’s outer waters.
• Yang Zhengshan told Yang Mingzhi to train Star Moon Island’s people and ready them to fight if the Taluo Dynasty’s forces arrived before the Tenglong Guard.

Yang Zhengshan ordered Star Moon Island to mobilize for a possible invasion by the Taluo Dynasty, hoping the danger would break the islanders’ complacency. The villages prepared their able-bodied residents for battle, while Gao Qinghai and his family readied themselves at home.

• Yang Zhengshan told Yang Mingzhi to recruit martial artists, prepare for battle, and exaggerate the Taluo Dynasty’s strength to make the islanders fear the threat.
• The official office sent officers and soldiers across Star Moon Island to summon young and able-bodied residents, most of whom were martial artists.
• Gao Qinghai heard North River South Village’s urgent bell and hurried to the school square, where the martial dao instructor announced that foreign enemies might invade and placed the village under military control.
• Gao Qinghai received a rattan shield, a waist saber, and four javelins, then refreshed his squad’s Mandarin Duck Formation training.
• Gao Qinghai returned home and gave his wife two long sabers for defense, while she said she still practiced martial skills.

Yang Zhengshan welcomed Zhang Juhai, who offered aid against the Taluo Dynasty, trade between their powers, and sea-eagle training materials. After Yang Zhengshan revealed his Dao Intent insights, Zhang Juhai stayed on Star Moon Island to exchange cultivation knowledge with him.

• Red Cloud told Yang Zhengshan that Zhang Juhai had arrived, and Yang Zhengshan welcomed the famed Eagle of the Cloud Sea at the official office.
• Zhang Juhai said he had come to make trouble for the Taluo Dynasty and offered to escort Yang Family Trading Firm ships to Zhang Dynasty ports.
• Yang Zhengshan proposed trade and possible cooperation against the Taluo Dynasty, while Zhang Juhai agreed to trade but said destroying the dynasty required more consideration.
• Zhang Juhai gave Yang Zhengshan four sea-eagle fledglings and a booklet detailing how to tame Flying Slave Eagles and understand their calls.
• Yang Zhengshan offered Zhang Juhai his notes on Dao Intent, revealed that he had entered the Dao, and invited him to stay on Star Moon Island.
• Yang Zhengshan and Zhang Juhai exchanged Martial Dao insights, and Zhang Juhai spent several days with him in the Library Building.

Yang Zhengshan received a massive spear forged for him by Zhu Yanshan and named it the Black Iron Heavy Spear, then celebrated with Zhu Yanshan and Zhang Juhai. On Shenlin Island, Wen Qing and Hou Fangjin grew frustrated that Yang Zhengshan had not appeared, unaware that he was waiting for the Tenglong Guard’s naval force before moving against Shenmu Island.

• Yang Zhengshan showed Zhang Juhai the Library Building’s extensive collection of Cultivation Methods and Cultivation Experience, including an incomplete record of Yan Daojun’s saber techniques.
• Li Chang announced that Zhu Yanshan had come to meet Yang Zhengshan, who introduced him to Zhang Juhai.
• Zhu Yanshan presented Yang Zhengshan with a 2,482-catty spear, and Yang tested it before naming it the Black Iron Heavy Spear.
• Yang Zhengshan hosted Zhu Yanshan and Zhang Juhai for wine, and the three drank together until they were thoroughly drunk.
• Wen Qing complained to Hou Fangjin that Yang Zhengshan had failed to appear after more than half a month of waiting on Shenlin Island.

The Shenmu Island and Taluo Dynasty forces sailed toward Star Moon Island, prompting the Yang Family to prepare for battle and clear the harbor. As the island settled into a tense night, Wang Mingzhe reassured his family while privately worrying about facing his first real combat.

• Wen Qing and Hou Fangjin agreed to attack Star Moon Island, and their joined forces set out with nearly a thousand warships.
• Luo Jinsong received word of the fleet, ordered a fast ship to warn Yang Zhengshan, and withdrew the Star Moon Navy into the Wan Reef Sea Region.
• Yang Mingzhi, Yang Minghao, and Jiang He organized Star Moon Island's defenses while awaiting the Tenglong Guard navy.
• Yang Zhengshan and Zhang Juhai prepared to face Xiang Anxu, whose arrival Zhang Juhai cautioned would demand care.
• The island's people prepared for the attack as Wang Mingzhe's family gathered at home, and Wang Mingzhe promised his sons he would prove his strength despite fearing his first real battle.

Yang Zhengshan prepared Star Moon Island to meet the Giant Whale Naval Force and Shenmu Sect, who landed in force to intimidate the island into submission. As the attackers came ashore, Yang Qinwu led the island’s young martial artists into battle, where their superior individual strength began to turn the fighting in their favor.

• Yang Zhengshan gathered his allies and sons, then led them to wait near the southern docks while island residents prepared to repel landings along the coasts.
• Chang Lin and Xiang Anxu split their forces, sending the Giant Whale Naval Force toward the southern dock and Shenmu Sect boats toward the island’s north.
• Wen Qing ordered the Giant Whale Naval Force to land after its commanders saw Yang Zhengshan and Zhang Juhai waiting on shore.
• The Giant Whale Naval Force landed hundreds of soldiers at the docks and sent small boats to the island’s southern coast, where fighting broke out near the sentry posts.
• Yang Qinwu steadied the islanders and organized them into defensive formations, and their martial skill let them kill many attackers despite disorder and casualties.
• Yang Qinwu stopped trying to control the islanders’ movements closely and let their squad leaders direct the chaotic counterattack.

Yang Zhengshan and the Yang family fought the Giant Whale Naval Force and the Shenmu Sect at Star Moon City, revealing overwhelming strength as the invaders struggled to advance. Yang Zhengshan’s guards and other Innate Martial Artists watched from the rooftops, ready to stop enemy experts and prevent fires.

• The Giant Whale Naval Force’s landing force collapsed into chaos as Star Moon Island’s martial artists attacked, while the main force pushed from the docks toward Star Moon City.
• Yang Zhengshan charged Xiang Anxu and knocked him down with a thunder-infused spear strike, stunning the enemy leaders and their allies.
• Yang Mingcheng, Yang Mingzhi, and Yang Minghao engaged Chang Lin, Hou Fangjin, and a Shenmu Sect priest, with Yang Mingcheng holding his own against Chang Lin.
• Ding Qiu killed a Shenmu Sect priest in a few moves, while Wang Mingzhe and other Star Moon Island fighters battled the invading soldiers.
• Zhang Juhai realized that many people he had considered ordinary were powerful martial artists, as Yang Zhengshan’s Innate Martial Artist guards watched from the rooftops to keep enemy experts out of the city and prevent fires.

Yang Zhengshan defeated Xiang Anxu as Star Moon Island’s forces drove back the Giant Whale Naval Force. The battle turned further in Star Moon Island’s favor when Xue Ping’s fleet arrived, and Xiang Anxu died after realizing that his sword strikes had already carried Dao Intent.

• Yang Zhengshan and Xiang Anxu fought fiercely, and Yang Zhengshan recognized that Xiang Anxu had a faint sword Dao Intent.
• Zhang Juhai tried to recruit Wen Qing with promises of rank and a Sea Dragon Pill while the island’s fighters overcame their opponents.
• Wen Qing saw that his side had lost and tried to order a retreat, but Star Moon Island’s counterattack was already driving the Giant Whale Naval Force toward its ships.
• Xue Ping arrived from the southwest with a fleet and prepared to intercept the withdrawing ships.
• Yang Zhengshan struck Xiang Anxu down and explained that his sword had embodied Dao Intent, after which Xiang Anxu died.

After Star Moon Island annihilated Shenmu Sect’s navy and nearly destroyed the Taluo Dynasty’s Giant Whale Naval Force, Yang Zhengshan prepared to occupy Shenmu Seven Islands and relocate people there. He ordered the wounded treated and the dead honored, while the battle’s heavy casualties revealed the threat of Shenmu Sect’s strongbow archers.

• Xue Ping arrived with Tenglong Guard’s navy after the fighting ended, and he and Yang Mingzhi discussed the Imperial Court’s decline and the Yang Family’s ties to Da Rong.
• Zhang Juhai urged Yang Zhengshan to attack the weakened Taluo Dynasty, but Yang Zhengshan postponed a decision and called the heads of each family to a meeting.
• Yang Zhengshan agreed to Yu Tonghai’s plan to relocate Tenglong Guard military households to Shenmu Seven Islands and ordered Xue Ping to begin occupying the islands the next day.
• Luo Jinsong and Yang Minghao reported the battle’s prisoners, captured ships, and casualties, with Shenmu Sect’s strongbows causing especially heavy losses on the northern shore.
• Yang Zhengshan ordered Fruit Wine and medical care for the wounded and equal pensions, rewards, and benefits for the young men who had fought.

Yang Zhengshan told the family leaders that he planned to move most of Star Moon Island’s people to Shenmu Island and join Zhang Juhai in destroying the Taluo Dynasty. Since he expected to claim territory there, he considered establishing a small dynasty and left the choice of its ruler for the next day’s discussion.

• Yang Zhengshan gathered the family leaders and announced that most of Star Moon Island’s people would move to Shenmu Island while Star Moon Island continued to receive settlers from Da Rong.
• Yang Zhengshan explained that Zhang Juhai wanted to ally with them against the Taluo Dynasty and proposed claiming territory there and establishing a dynasty for one of his descendants.
• Luo Shang, Zhen Yang Shi, Luo Jinsong, and others suggested pursuing a larger territory, but Yang Zhengshan said he would not rule and asked each family to send suitable juniors.
• Yang Zhengshan told the family leaders to select candidates and said he would assess the children the next morning, then returned home to Yu Qingyi and the family.
• Yang Chengan declared that he wanted to be king, but Yang Zhengshan dismissed him and discussed possible candidates with Yu Qingyi, who named Yang Qinyuan, Chengmao, Chengxian, Chengyou, and Chengzhang.

Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi decided to begin bringing trusted people into the expanding Spirit Spring Space, despite its changing terrain and uncertain waterways. Yang Zhengshan revealed the space to Yang Mingcheng, Yang Mingzhi, and Yang Minghao, leaving them stunned as he showed them its spirit fruits and spring.

• Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi discussed letting family members live in the Spirit Spring Space and agreed to bring in about a hundred trusted people gradually.
• Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi discovered a new spring eye on a mountain at the space’s northern boundary and considered how its water might reshape the land.
• Yang Zhengshan summoned Yang Mingcheng, Yang Mingzhi, and Yang Minghao to his tea room and took them into the Spirit Spring Space.
• Yang Zhengshan explained how the space worked and showed his sons its spirit fruits, spring, and sacred lotuses.
• Yang Mingcheng recognized the Spirit Spring Water as the divine water he had seen Yang Zhengshan give to the children years earlier.

Yang Zhengshan showed Yang Mingcheng, Yang Mingzhi, and Yang Minghao the Spirit Spring Space and proposed establishing a Yang Family village there, declaring that the world would endure and grow into an eternal realm. Meanwhile, Yang Chengmou’s brothers discussed who would become king, with Yang Chengyou’s ambition prompting his brothers to demand benefits before agreeing to let him take the role.

• Yang Zhengshan revealed the Spirit Spring Space to his three sons and explained that its resources could support the Yang Family for generations.
• Yang Zhengshan proposed settling thirty or forty households in the space, and Yang Mingzhi questioned whether the world would survive Yang Zhengshan’s death.
• Yang Zhengshan assured his sons that the world would endure, and he felt a strange sensation as if the world were drawing close to him.
• Yang Mingcheng asked to live in the space, while Yang Minghao and Yang Mingzhi preferred to visit occasionally; Yang Zhengshan assigned Yang Mingcheng to become the new village’s chief.
• Yang Zhengshan instructed Yang Mingcheng to select families and prepare supplies, while Yang Chengmou’s brothers debated the kingship and Yang Chengyou’s desire to become king became apparent.
• Yang Chengzhang and the other brothers demanded benefits before allowing Yang Chengyou to take the throne.

Yang Zhengshan arranged the campaign against the Taluo Dynasty, dividing its territory with Zhang Juhai and preparing the Tenglong Guard navy to sail for Shenmu Island. Back at home, he learned that Yu Qingyi had found a Bird Taming Technique to train the young eagles.

• Yang Chengyou agreed to give his brothers wine, tea leaves, and honey after they bargained over the rewards for his becoming king, and Yang Zhengshan confirmed him as the candidate.
• Yang Zhengshan offered land to soldiers joining the campaign and instructed Xue Ping to target Shenmu Sect believers while sparing ordinary Taluo people where possible.
• Yang Zhengshan and Zhang Juhai agreed to divide the Taluo Dynasty, with the Zhang Dynasty taking the west and the Yang Family taking the east in exchange for the Sea Dragon Pill recipe.
• Yang Zhengshan and Zhang Juhai finalized their agreement, and the Tenglong Guard navy sailed for Shenmu Island after resting for three days.
• Yang Zhengshan returned home, where Yu Qingyi showed him the Bird Taming Technique she had found in the Library Building.

Madam Yu sought reassurance that Yang Chengyou would not take consorts if he became king, and Yang Zhengshan reaffirmed that the Yang Family's rules applied to him and his descendants. Meanwhile, Yang Zhengshan arrived at Shenmu Island after the Yang forces captured the Shenmu Seven Islands, where he learned that hundreds of thousands of Shenmu Sect followers had been killed.

• Madam Yu wept to Liang because she feared Yang Chengyou would take consorts as a king, and Liang brought her to Yu Qingyi and Yang Zhengshan for reassurance.
• Yang Zhengshan declared that Yang Chengyou and his sons and grandsons had to obey the Yang Family rules unless they changed their surname.
• The Tenglong Guard and Star Moon Navy captured all seven Shenmu Islands within six or seven days, meeting little resistance on most of them.
• Yang Zhengshan arrived at Shenmu Island and asked Yang Mingzhi, Yang Minghao, and Xue Ping about the fighting and casualties.
• Xue Ping reported that about 110,000 people remained on the other six islands and that the Tenglong Guard had killed the Shenmu Sect followers left on Shenmu Island.

Yang Zhengshan planned the settlement and development of Shenmu Island while his officials took control of the Shenmu Seven Islands. The joint Yang Family and Zhang Dynasty campaign quickly brought down the Taluo Dynasty, whose capital surrendered without a fight at the urging of Sword Sovereign Sui Qingmo.

• Yang Zhengshan inspected Shenmu Island, ordered the altar beneath the Ten-Thousand-Year Banyan dismantled and its bones buried, and outlined plans for settlements, farmland, roads, and a harbor.
• Yang Zhengshan assigned Jiang He to oversee the islands, and Jiang He began establishing official offices, distributing farmland, and organizing the move from Star Moon Island.
• The Zhang Dynasty assembled thirty thousand naval troops and twenty thousand laborers to join the Tenglong Guard in its campaign against the Taluo Dynasty.
• The Taluo Dynasty's remaining fleet fled, its ministers surrendered their cities, and its royal capital opened its gates after the allied army arrived.
• Yang Mingzhi asked why the Taluo Dynasty had surrendered so quickly, and Sui Qingmo appeared and said she had ordered them to surrender.
• Sui Qingmo revealed that she had long opposed the Taluo Dynasty's rulers and ministers, and that she had chosen to surrender now that her enemies and the dynasty were defeated.

Yang Chengyou established the Dajing Dynasty after taking the Taluo capital, while Sui Qingmo agreed to serve the new state and later met Yang Zhengshan. Yang Zhengshan sought to recruit her into the Yang Family, and Yu Qingyi welcomed her as Little Qi'er played with the sea eagles.

• Yang Mingzhi spared the surrendered ministers and asked Sui Qingmo to assist Yang Chengyou for five years; she agreed.
• Yang Chengyou took control of the Taluo capital, founded the Dajing Dynasty, and began reorganizing its army and navy.
• Sui Qingmo went to Star Moon Island as a Dajing consecrated expert, while Yang Minghao reported that Yang Chengyou had stabilized the new dynasty.
• Yang Zhengshan urged Sui Qingmo to join the Yang Family and arranged for her to receive a year's Cultivation Salary.
• Yu Qingyi welcomed Sui Qingmo in the rear courtyard as Little Qi'er fed and played with the six young sea eagles.

Sui Qingmo became Yu Qingyi’s disciple and received a generous cultivation allowance as she settled into the Yang Family. Meanwhile, the Yang Family relocated to Shenmu Island, where Yang Zhengshan welcomed the first group of young families sent to establish new homes.

• Yu Qingyi and Sui Qingmo grew close, and Yang Minghao suggested that Yu Qingyi take Sui Qingmo as her disciple so he could keep calling her Senior Sister.
• Green Mist presented Sui Qingmo with the annual cultivation salary for Innate Martial Artists, and Sui Qingmo eagerly bowed to Yu Qingyi as her master.
• Yu Qingyi gave Sui Qingmo two I Ching Pills as a meeting gift, while Yang Zhengshan allowed her to remain on Star Moon Island for the time being.
• The Yang Family and the people and supplies of Star Moon Island moved to Shenmu Island, and Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi settled into their new courtyard in late June.
• Yang Zhengshan met roughly a hundred and twenty young couples and children sent from the Tenglong Guard to begin building homes and villages on Shenmu Island.

Yang Zhengshan established Longevity Village in the Spirit Spring Space and the Yang family became busy developing Shenmu Island and supporting the new Dajing Dynasty. As his fame as the North Sea Thunder Lord spread, he learned that Yang Mingzhao was somewhere in Yungui or Bashu and sent Li Chang to seek help finding him.

• Yang Zhengshan brought trusted Yang family households into the Spirit Spring Space, where they began building Longevity Village with supplies and protection from powerful horses.
• Yang Zhengshan chose Yang Chengyu and Yang Qinming to settle in the space, while Yang Mingzhi expanded and trained the Star Moon Navy and Yang Minghao supported the Dajing Dynasty.
• After killing Xiang Anxu, Yang Zhengshan gained the title North Sea Thunder Lord, which Zhang Juhai promoted to deter other forces from contesting Taluo territory.
• Yang Zhengshan joked that his title was too modest but declined Yang Minghao's offer to promote a grander one, then asked about Yang Mingzhao's whereabouts.
• Yang Minghao reported that Yang Mingzhao had apparently traveled to Yungui and Bashu, so Yang Zhengshan sent Li Chang with four attendants and a letter asking the Yangtian Sect to help find him.

Yang Mingzhao halted the Taiping Army’s expansion to organize its administration and military as rival forces carved up Bashu. Elsewhere, Chen Hengchang advanced toward Jiangnan while Da Rong’s efforts to stop him faltered, and Qu Changkong and Qu Shaogong considered the imperial court’s decline.

• Ma Yan, Li Dagui, and Li Wenchun urged Yang Mingzhao to stop expanding and focus on training troops and developing officials.
• Yang Mingzhao established a central administration based on the Three Judicial Offices, assigning himself leadership of civil and military affairs and appointing officials to oversee government, the army, and supervision.
• Chen Hengchang expanded across eastern Yungui with Shenyang Sect support as Jiangnan merchants supplied his forces and local authorities failed to mount an effective resistance.
• Qu Changkong’s six-thousand-man expedition stalled at the Southern Frontier Town–Yungui border after supplies ran short.
• Qu Shaogong warned Qu Changkong that Da Rong’s imperial court might not last much longer, as rebellions spread and the frontier towns failed to restore order.

Li Chang went to the Yangtian Sect to ask for help finding Yang Mingzhao, but learned that the Taiping Army leader Yang Zhao was Fourth Master in disguise. After sending word back to Yang Zhengshan, Li Chang reached Baoning Prefecture and hesitated outside the city, unsure how the old Marquis would respond to Fourth Master's rebellion.

• Li Chang presented Yang Zhengshan's letter and Yang Mingzhao's portrait to Du Qiandao, who agreed to organize a search.
• A Yangtian Sect disciple reported that Yang Zhao, leader of the Taiping Army, matched the portrait and was likely Fourth Master.
• Li Chang asked Du Qiandao to keep the discovery confidential, sent two companions back with the news, and set out for Baoning Prefecture with Yangtian Sect disciples.
• After a difficult twenty-day journey, Li Chang reached Baoning Prefecture City and worried about how Yang Zhengshan would react to Fourth Master's rebellion.
• Xiao Wu asked Li Chang whether they should enter the city.

Li Chang found Yang Mingzhao in Baoning Prefecture and persuaded him to return home after Yang Mingzhao panicked at the prospect of facing Yang Zhengshan. The chapter ended with Yang Mingzhao setting out with Li Chang while Yang Zhengshan continued overseeing the growing settlements on Shenmu Island.

• Li Dagui spotted Li Chang entering the city and fled to warn Yang Mingzhao, who briefly tried to escape before agreeing to meet him.
• Wu Zheng led Li Chang and his party into the government office, while Li Dagui and Ma Yan worried that Yang Zhengshan would punish them.
• Li Chang told Yang Mingzhao that he had sent a letter to Yang Zhengshan twenty days earlier and advised him to return home.
• Yang Mingzhao arranged for Wu Zheng to remain in Baoning Prefecture and then left with Li Chang for home.
• Yang Zhengshan continued developing Shenmu Island, where Shenmu City, four towns, and sixteen villages housed a population of more than forty-three thousand.

Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi oversaw the growth of Longevity Village before learning that Yang Mingzhao was involved in a rebellion. Yang Zhengshan waited for his son to return before deciding whether the Yang Family would support him, while weighing the family’s irreconcilable conflicts with Da Rong and the need for a legitimate cause to rebel.

• Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi toured Longevity Village, where Yang Mingcheng, Wang, and the other residents were building homes and reclaiming farmland.
• Yang Zhengshan promised to help Yang Mingcheng move tea trees after the fields were finished, then returned with Yu Qingyi to Shenmu Island.
• Green Mist told Yang Zhengshan that the two personal attendants sent with Li Chang had returned with information about Yang Mingzhao.
• The attendants reported that the news of Yang Mingzhao’s rebellion had come from the Yangtian Sect, and Yang Zhengshan decided to wait for Li Chang and Yang Mingzhao to return before acting.
• Yang Zhengshan explained to Yu Qingyi that the Yang Family’s conflicts with the court and the question of a legitimate cause made supporting Yang Mingzhao a serious decision.

Jian Chengfeng fled Three Mountain Valley with all of its Three-Yellow Plums, prompting the other Innate Martial Artists to leave as Da Rong’s dynasty neared collapse. Ji Zhen returned to Hengdao Sect and discussed the shifting balance of power with Ji Hai, especially the Yang Family’s growing strength.

• Jian Chengfeng defected from Three Mountain Valley and took all forty-odd Three-Yellow Plums, leading An Yuxing, Yue Gu, and Xun Shanshui to leave as well.
• Chen Mingxi remained in Three Mountain Valley until the emperor summoned her to the Capital.
• Ji Zhen returned to Hengdao Sect and told Ji Hai that Three Mountain Valley and Cuixia Valley no longer had Innate Martial Artists stationed there.
• Ji Hai listed the Innate Martial Artists serving Chongshan Town, Beiyuan Town, and Tenglong Guard, and Ji Zhen realized how many strong fighters stood with the Yang Family.
• Ji Hai described rising Yang Clan figures Yang Qinhu and Yang Qinfu, while Ji Zhen reflected on Hengdao Sect’s path amid the coming chaos.