Chapter Summaries

Bai Xiaowen arranged a military appointment for Abaddon through Shi Miyuan and brought Shi’s Demon subordinates under control. Abaddon departed for Huai East as Commander of the Huai East Loyal and Brave Camp, while Zhen Dexiu was confined at Black Heaven Peak and two of Shi Miyuan’s political opponents became Bloodkin servants.

• Shi Miyuan proposed appointing Gu Aotian as Commander of the Huai East Loyal and Brave Camp, and Bai Xiaowen ordered him to make the appointment official.
• Shi Miyuan planned to explain Zhen Dexiu’s disappearance by claiming a tiger Demon had devoured him, and Bai Xiaowen agreed to make Zhen Dexiu disappear.
• Bai Xiaowen appeared before Shi Miyuan’s Three Fiends with the Four Heavenly Kings, Snake Princess, and Rageclaw, and subdued the Demons with a display of Intimidation.
• Two days later, Shi Miyuan and Li Zhixiao forged a detailed military record for Gu Long, courtesy name Aotian, and Shi Miyuan gave Abaddon his appointment credentials.
• Abaddon set off for Huai East in armor, while Sigrdrifa took the unconscious Zhen Dexiu to Black Heaven Peak to be held there.
• Bai Xiaowen ordered Vladimir to turn two of Shi Miyuan’s political opponents into Bloodkin servants to monitor Shi Miyuan.

Bai Xiaowen used Vladimir to force two court officials into serving the Eternal Life Sect, then learned that the Southern Song had launched a northern expedition against the Mongols. The Song–Mongol War began, and Abaddon’s presence in Huai East triggered a side quest to eliminate the Loyal Righteous Army.

• Vladimir made the two transformed officials suffer until they agreed to serve the Eternal Life Sect and cooperate with Shi Miyuan.
• Bai Xiaowen learned that the Mongols and Song had captured Caizhou and that Emperor Lizong of Song had ordered a northern expedition to recover the three capitals.
• The Southern Song army launched its second northern expedition, triggering the large-scale historical event Song–Mongol War for Bai Xiaowen.
• The Spirit Realm Rules activated the Hero Tier side quest [Pacify Huai East], tasking Bai Xiaowen with eliminating the Loyal Righteous Army entrenched in Huai'an.
• Bai Xiaowen learned that Li Quan and Yang Miaozhen’s army had become a threat to the Southern Song and stood in the way of advancing north toward Qingzhou.

Abaddon and the Soulkin attacked and destroyed a Northern Army camp, killing its commander and turning their dead into new troops. After Abaddon depleted much of his Spirit Force, Sigrdrifa said they would raid two more camps once he recovered.

• Li Quan led thirty thousand Northern Army troops to seize Taizhou while the Southern Army held its positions under Liu Zhuo’s orders.
• Abaddon and nine Bonefolk knights charged into Li Fu’s burning camp, where Sigrdrifa killed Li Fu and used his Grievance Power to create two Elite Tier Ghosts.
• Abaddon, Sigrdrifa, Butcher Pudge, and Vladimir wiped out the camp’s defenders, while Pudge stitched together four Stitched Monsters from elite corpses.
• Abaddon used Necrosis to raise several hundred template-less Skeleton Soldiers from infected corpses, exhausting most of his Spirit Force.
• Abaddon began restoring his strength with Spirit Crystals, and Sigrdrifa prepared to lead the Soulkin against two more Northern Army camps.

Abaddon narrowly escaped execution after Sigrdrifa produced Li Fu’s head as proof of his victories. Meanwhile, Vladimir secretly used Night Embrace on Liu Zhuo and forced the Military Commissioner to recognize his new dependence on the Eternal Life Sect.

• Liu Zhuo threatened to execute Abaddon for disobeying orders, but Sigrdrifa presented Li Fu’s head and secured a reprieve.
• Vladimir and the others concealed their growing undead army in the Loyal and Brave Camp, where Liu Zhuo’s resentment over its independent supplies was noted.
• Sigrdrifa confronted Vladimir for using Night Embrace on Liu Zhuo without the Master’s permission, but Vladimir defended his decision.
• Liu Zhuo awoke in the crude wooden house and accused Vladimir of rebellion.
• Vladimir used Blood Boiling to make Liu Zhuo suffer, then told him that he was now Vladimir’s servant.

Vladimir transformed Liu Zhuo into a Bloodkin, but Liu Zhuo’s attempt to attack his master caused him to die. Bai Xiaowen reprimanded Vladimir for disobeying orders, then explained why Liu Zhuo had resisted and why the Southern Song army had held back.

• Liu Zhuo realized Vladimir had transformed him into a monster and attacked him, but died when his Bloodkin blood turned against his master.
• Sigrdrifa blamed Vladimir for Liu Zhuo’s death and warned that the Song army would investigate; Vladimir admitted fault and agreed to accept punishment.
• After receiving the report, Bai Xiaowen confronted Vladimir for disobeying orders and warned that he could strip away Vladimir’s power.
• Bai Xiaowen spared Vladimir because it was his first offense, but warned all four Heavenly Kings that further disobedience would bring no mercy.
• Bai Xiaowen explained that Liu Zhuo’s position and character made him unwilling to become a Bloodkin slave, and that the Southern Song army had strategically chosen to wait for Li Quan’s forces to run out of provisions.

After Liu Zhuo’s death, Bai Xiaowen lured Li Quan’s army into a trap at Tongzhou and destroyed his forces. Li Quan fled with a handful of followers, only to meet Bai Xiaowen, who declared that he had come to kill him.

• Bai Xiaowen told the Four Heavenly Kings to exploit Liu Zhuo’s death by pretending to withdraw and ambushing Li Quan’s army at Tongzhou.
• After Northern Army spies confirmed Liu Zhuo’s death, Li Quan led a night raid on Tongzhou, hoping to seize the city before a new commander arrived.
• Bai Xiaowen had Abaddon take command and set a trap; Song forces split Li Quan’s army, while Butcher’s poisonous gas blocked the city gates.
• Sigrdrifa, Vladimir, and Snake Princess routed Li Quan’s forces, and Bai Xiaowen’s traps at the camp and along the escape route helped the Song Army destroy his thirty thousand soldiers.
• Li Quan fled with a small group of officers, then encountered Bai Xiaowen, who told him he had come to kill him.

Bai Xiaowen defeated Li Quan and used Guo Anyong to open Chuzhou’s gates for the Song Army. Abaddon and Sigrdrifa held off Yang Miaozhen as the city fell, and Yang Miaozhen took her own life rather than surrender.

• Bai Xiaowen rejected Li Quan’s defense of joining the Mongols and sent Rageclaw to attack him and his officers.
• Rageclaw killed Zhang Lin, gravely wounded Guo Anyong, and helped defeat Li Quan while Kitz blocked the fleeing officers.
• Bai Xiaowen used a Heart-Confounding Talisman to control Guo Anyong, and Li Quan died after warning that someone would avenge him.
• Bai Xiaowen ordered the Song Army to march on Chuzhou, and Guo Anyong tricked the city guards into opening its gates.
• Abaddon and Sigrdrifa fought Yang Miaozhen while the Song Army overcame the remaining defenders, and Yang Miaozhen killed herself rather than surrender.

After pacifying Huai East, Bai Xiaowen cultivated and unexpectedly advanced the Scripture of the Grand Void to its third layer, greatly increasing his attributes and Spirit Force Mastery. He then ended his training when Sigrdrifa rushed in with news of a crisis.

• Bai Xiaowen received an Excellent completion evaluation for the Huai East quest and 77 Spirit Crystals, then promoted Abaddon to Commander-in-Chief and told the Four Heavenly Kings to await orders.
• Bai Xiaowen chose to focus on Taigong's Art of War, but his cultivation unexpectedly advanced the Scripture of the Grand Void to its third layer.
• Bai Xiaowen gained 14 points to all attributes, 300 maximum True Essence Force, and Proficient Level 1 Spirit Force Mastery.
• Bai Xiaowen tested his improved control by casting the Dust-Cleansing Technique after reading it once and realized Spirit Force Mastery helped him learn and counter spells.
• After nearly two months in the Shaoding Plane, Sigrdrifa rushed into Bai Xiaowen's room and announced that something terrible had happened.

Bai Xiaowen learned that Tachar had devastated Quan Zicai’s Song Army and led Abaddon’s forces to rescue the survivors. At Caihezhuang, Bai Xiaowen’s ambush surrounded the Mongol pursuit column, and the battle began.

• Sigrdrifa told Bai Xiaowen that Tachar’s Mongol forces had shattered Quan Zicai’s northern expedition, leaving about ten thousand starving Song soldiers fleeing south.
• Bai Xiaowen persuaded Zhao Fan to authorize Abaddon’s troops to aid Quan Zicai.
• Abaddon led three thousand Skeleton Soldiers to Caizhou, where they gave their rations to Quan Zicai’s surviving troops.
• After Sigrdrifa scouted the Mongols, Bai Xiaowen devised a plan to kill Tachar and surrounded his central column at Caihezhuang with Skeleton Soldiers and Song troops.
• The surrounded Mongol horsemen fought fiercely, displaying powerful Blood Qi and high-ranking commanders.

Bai Xiaowen and Abaddon defeated Tachar’s Mongol cavalry in Caizhou, then persuaded Quan Zicai that the Song should abandon its northern campaign rather than try to reclaim the three capitals. After the army returned south and the court took control of the government, Abaddon was appointed commissioner for the pacification of Northern Huai, completing the Eternal Life Sect’s first phase of its plan.

• Bai Xiaowen empowered his Skeleton Soldiers, and the Song forces and undead defeated Tachar’s Mongol cavalry, killing all two thousand riders and Tachar.
• Quan Zicai proposed marching north to reclaim the three capitals, but Bai Xiaowen argued that the Song could not defend the devastated region or withstand another Mongol invasion.
• Bai Xiaowen led Quan Zicai back to Guang Prefecture, and the remaining Song troops returned to Song territory in December.
• Emperor Lizong punished officials over the defeat and withdrew from state affairs, allowing Shi Miyuan, Zheng Qingzhi, and their allies to control the court.
• Abaddon received credit for rescuing Quan Zicai and defeating Tachar’s forces, then was appointed commissioner for the pacification of Northern Huai with authority to expand his army.

Bai Xiaowen received an urgent warning that Meng Chuan of Heavenly Prefecture had declared war on his territory, forcing him to prepare to return to Earth. Before leaving the Shaoding Plane, he visited Chen Rong, who gave him communication talismans and a new Daoist art.

• Bai Xiaowen learned that Meng Chuan of Heavenly Prefecture had declared war on his territory and resolved to return and confront the threat.
• Bai Xiaowen left three Heavenly Kings in Chuzhou and took Sigrdrifa to the Supreme Clarity Sect to see Chen Rong.
• Bai Xiaowen told Chen Rong that his territory faced a stronger enemy and that its war would be decided within two months.
• Chen Rong offered Bai Xiaowen refuge if his territory fell and gave him Thousand-Li Voice Transmission Talismans and Flying Crane Messages.
• Chen Rong gave Bai Xiaowen a jade slip describing her new first-tier Daoist art, the Sword Seal.

Bai Xiaowen learned Chen Rong’s new Sword Seal and returned to his territory after Heavenly Prefecture Territory declared war. As he investigated the Lords' Group, Xia Feng’s threat to intervene seemed to offer hope of avoiding conflict, but Xia Yan’s warning to Xia Feng revealed a deeper dispute.

• Bai Xiaowen quickly mastered Chen Rong’s Sword Seal, which used less True Essence Force than the Basic Sword Talisman.
• Bai Xiaowen left the Supreme Clarity Sect, gave Sigrdrifa Thousand-Li Voice Transmission Talismans, and returned to his territory.
• Bai Xiaowen asked Han Xu to gather their companions and checked the Lords' Group for information about the declaration of war.
• Bai Xiaowen learned that Heavenly Prefecture Territory claimed it would restore Great Tang Domain through its heir, Li Jin'en, while pursuing a territorial takeover.
• Xia Feng threatened Meng Chuan with retaliation if Heavenly Prefecture Territory attacked, explaining that Lu Wang had saved one of his people.
• Bai Xiaowen discovered that Xia Yan, leader of Great Evolution Territory, had warned Xia Feng not to go too far.

Bai Xiaowen reviewed the Lords’ dispute over the Great Tang Domain and rejected Meng Chuan’s proposed duel terms, demanding a vassal territory as equal stakes. Xia Feng backed Bai Xiaowen, while Meng Chuan refused and received no support from Xia Yan.

• Xia Feng declared war on Meng Chuan’s Heavenly Prefecture Territory after Xia Yan addressed him, and Xia Yan later praised Xia Feng’s drive.
• Meng Chuan proposed a duel between Heavenly Prefecture and the White Phoenix Fief, with the Great Tang Domain at stake if Heavenly Prefecture won.
• Bai Xiaowen consulted Queen Bee and Candice, learning that Meng Chuan was a level 17 fighting-type Lord.
• Bai Xiaowen called Meng Chuan’s wager unfair and demanded the right to claim one of Heavenly Prefecture’s vassal territories if he won.
• Xia Feng agreed that the stakes should be balanced, while Meng Chuan rejected Bai Xiaowen’s terms.

Bai Xiaowen secured a wagered duel with Meng Chuan to settle the conflict between the White Phoenix Fief and the Heavenly Prefecture Territory. After preparing his companions and cultivating Sword Seals, he trained to reach level 15, still unable to break through.

• Meng Chuan accepted Bai Xiaowen's duel proposal, wagering suzerain authority over one of three vassal territories against restoration of the Great Tang Domain and Li Jin'en's Boundary Stele authority; the duel was set for one week later.
• Bai Xiaowen thanked Xia Feng for supporting him, and Xia Feng said his dispute with Xia Yan was already longstanding before ending their chat.
• Bai Xiaowen showed his companions the three Sword Seals Chen Rong had improved for him and explained how maintaining them trained his Spirit Force control.
• Bai Xiaowen told his companions about the duel, reassured them that he was certain to win, and urged them to focus on cultivation.
• Bai Xiaowen cultivated Taigong's Art of War in his quiet chamber as he tried to reach level 15, but he could not cross the final barrier.

Bai Xiaowen prepared for his duel with Meng Chuan by training battle formations, then faced him at the Blue Star Evolver Platform as both territories’ supporters watched. The duel began with both lords summoning projections of their military buildings.

• Bai Xiaowen gave up on an immediate breakthrough and focused on drilling formations with the Five Elements Banner and coordinating with Snake Ji and the other lords.
• Bai Xiaowen met Meng Chuan at the arena, where Meng Chuan presented Li Jin'en and accused Bai Xiaowen of seizing his territory.
• Bai Xiaowen dismissed Meng Chuan’s vassal rulers’ taunts and agreed to settle the dispute through the duel.
• Bai Xiaowen and Meng Chuan entered the arena and summoned their military-building projections as the duel began.

Meng Chuan opened the duel by summoning Lesser Imps, while Bai Xiaowen used his forces to stop their attack and discovered that the demons’ deaths fueled a black spire. Bai Xiaowen launched an assault before the spire could finish forming, and Meng Chuan met his manifested attack head-on.

• Meng Chuan summoned nearly a hundred Lesser Imps and three Lesser Imp Priests, prompting Bai Xiaowen to hold back his strongest troops.
• Bai Xiaowen’s Bone Archers killed Lesser Imps, but the priests revived some and then attacked his forming Thick Earth Banner Barracks with Chaos Missiles.
• Snake Princess intercepted the missiles, killed all three priests, and helped Bai Xiaowen’s troops defeat the remaining Lesser Imps.
• Meng Chuan’s black spire absorbed blood-tinged mist from the fallen demons, rapidly advancing its construction as their corpses dried into bones.
• Bai Xiaowen deployed a Giant Wood Banner Barracks projection and led the Thick Earth Banner Warriors in an attack, forming a Golden Armored Giant with Spirit Force Manifestation.
• Meng Chuan transformed into a bronze-skinned giant and raised a bronze-lit arm to face the Golden Armored Giant’s strike.

Meng Chuan’s Dark Mummies overwhelmed the Thick Earth Banner with a barrage of spells, but Bai Xiaowen rallied his troops and summoned the Four Heavenly Kings as Meng Chuan began summoning the Dark Pharaohs. The four Lord Tier beings emerged from a black vortex while the battle remained undecided.

• Meng Chuan endured the Golden Armored Giant’s strike long enough to summon a hundred Dark Mummies from the Black Spire.
• Bai Xiaowen used Fortified Wall Formation to defend the Thick Earth Banner against the Dark Mummies’ deadly spell barrage.
• Snake Princess failed to break through the Dark Mummy Legion after Meng Chuan countered her Seven Flashes with a Spatial Shockwave.
• Bai Xiaowen activated Military Prestige and advanced under the Shield Wall, weakening the Dark Mummies’ assault.
• Meng Chuan sacrificed the Dark Mummies to summon the Dark Pharaohs, and Bai Xiaowen called the Four Heavenly Kings across realms.
• Four towering Lord Tier figures emerged from a black vortex as Meng Chuan’s Dark Pharaoh summoning passed halfway.

Bai Xiaowen defeated Meng Chuan in the Lord duel and enforced their wager by taking control of Jinyuan Territory. The Spirit Realm Rules then gave Bai Xiaowen twenty-four hours to transfer one of his two territories to another Evolver.

• Bai Xiaowen's Four Heavenly Kings and banner forces overwhelmed Meng Chuan's army, forcing Meng Chuan to admit defeat.
• Bai Xiaowen reminded Meng Chuan of their wager, and Meng Chuan agreed to let him choose one of Heavenly Prefecture Territory's three vassal territories.
• Bai Xiaowen chose Jinyuan Territory because its inhabitants came mostly from the Ancient China Plane and suited White Phoenix Fief.
• Jiang Zhiru transferred Jinyuan Territory's Lord authority to Bai Xiaowen while Horace and Arlo watched in fear.
• The Spirit Realm Rules notified Bai Xiaowen that he had to dispose of one territory within twenty-four hours, and the wager required him to transfer it by inheritance.

After defeating Meng Chuan, Bai Xiaowen transferred Jinyuan Territory’s authority to Qiao Rui, who renamed it White Stone Fief and began securing its borders. As the Lords considered Heavenly Prefecture Territory’s growing strength, Bai Xiaowen recognized that the duel had only begun a lasting rivalry.

• The Lords recognized that Meng Chuan’s defeat did not diminish his standing, while Bai Xiaowen’s five Lord-tier summons made other Lords unlikely to challenge him in a duel.
• Bai Xiaowen gave Jinyuan Territory’s Territory Authority to Qiao Rui, who proposed Snow Li Fief before changing its name to White Stone Fief at Bai Xiaowen’s request.
• Qiao Rui closed White Stone Fief’s Territory Portal, voided its Mutual Trust Protocols, and froze entry and exit permissions while she began checking who remained inside.
• Bai Xiaowen asked after Lord Xia Feng and learned he had skipped the duel to cultivate, then privately discussed Meng Chuan’s strength with Candice and Queen Bee.
• Bai Xiaowen warned that Heavenly Prefecture Territory could threaten White Phoenix Fief in a real war, while Candice worried that Meng Chuan’s demon army might keep growing and Queen Bee insisted Wuzhou Territory would not be bullied.

Bai Xiaowen agreed to enter the Dark Age Plane to curb Meng Chuan’s expansion, securing supplies from Candice and Queen Bee. After returning to White Phoenix Fief, he advanced Taigong’s Art of War, reached level 15, and gained the Flag Sacrifice skill.

• Candice proposed that Bai Xiaowen attack Heavenly Prefecture Territory’s foothold in the Dark Age Plane, and Queen Bee warned him that this could provoke a full-scale war with Meng Chuan.
• Bai Xiaowen accepted the plan, and Candice promised intelligence and Resonance Array materials while Queen Bee offered three Dragonfire Scrolls and a Source of Spirit Force.
• Candice and Queen Bee declined to form a defensive alliance with Bai Xiaowen but agreed to lend war resources if White Phoenix Fief faced a threat while he was away.
• Bai Xiaowen returned to White Phoenix Fief and entered seclusion to cultivate after his victory over Meng Chuan.
• After one night, Bai Xiaowen advanced the middle volume of Taigong’s Art of War, reached level 15, strengthened his forces, and learned Flag Sacrifice.