Chapter Summaries

Zeng Anmin took charge of training raw recruits and taught them to execute turns in unison in just one morning, astonishing Wu Qianfeng and Duke Wei, Tian Ji. As Tian Ji raced to find Zeng Anmin, Emperor Jianhong ordered the army trained and dispatched within two months, while Si Zhongxiao left the emperor's presence with his true reaction concealed.

• Duke Wei, Tian Ji, assigned Wu Qianfeng to assist Zeng Anmin in training new recruits, and Zeng Anmin learned that his father had insisted on using fresh soldiers.
• Wu Qianfeng said proper training would take three months, but Zeng Anmin took over and taught the recruits to stand at attention and turn in unison within one morning.
• Emperor Jianhong ordered Si Zhongxiao to tell Tian Ji to train a Mandarin Duck Army and prepare to dispatch troops within two months.
• Zeng Anmin told Wu Qianfeng to continue his training methods before leaving to teach the Mandarin Duck Formation later.
• Tian Ji saw the recruits drilling perfectly and learned from Wu Qianfeng that Zeng Anmin had taught them; he demanded to know where Zeng Anmin was.

After speaking with Nan through the Dragon Survey Map, Zeng Anmin suspected that she was actually the Empress and learned how to cultivate spiritual sense. A mysterious note then summoned him to meet at the Liu Residence the next day, leaving him wondering whether the Princess had arranged a secret rendezvous.

• Zeng Shilin warned Zeng Anmin not to make military connections and explained that Li Zhen had proposed a title for him while blocking an immediate official appointment.
• Zeng Anmin chatted with Nan and Huang, then inferred that Nan suspected his connection to the Black Cat Martial Artist and wanted to befriend him for his knowledge of military formations.
• Nan taught Zeng Anmin how to nourish spiritual sense and advance from the Seventh-rank Visualization Realm toward the Sixth Rank Void Comprehension Realm.
• Zeng Anmin concluded that Nan might be the Empress, though he decided to test the theory later and began cultivating spiritual sense.
• Dachun delivered a note inviting Zeng Anmin to meet at the Liu Residence at noon the next day, and Zeng Anmin wondered if the Princess had arranged a secret rendezvous.

Zeng Anmin was summoned by Tian Ji to explain his modern military training methods, then taught Wu Qianfeng marching drills and the military salute before returning home. He left the soldiers in Wu Qianfeng’s hands and ended the chapter still unable to advance from the Seventh Rank Visualization Realm.

• Zeng Anmin tried to head to the Jiaofang Division, but Wu Qianfeng intercepted him and carried him to the military camp at Tian Ji’s insistence.
• Tian Ji praised Zeng Anmin’s military training methods and embraced his new term, “Confucian General,” while asking him to train five thousand soldiers.
• Zeng Anmin taught Wu Qianfeng marching movements and the military salute, and Wu Qianfeng bowed to him as a master.
• Zeng Anmin left the camp, and Tian Ji wondered who His Majesty would appoint to command the five thousand Mandarin Duck Army soldiers.
• Zeng Anmin tried to cultivate at home but failed again to condense divine consciousness and reach the Sixth Rank Void Comprehension Realm.

Zeng Anmin met Princess at the Liu Residence to discuss the Xi Huang Diagram and the coming campaign against Nan, where he learned she was a Fourth Rank Martial Artist. After Princess caught him staring at her, he improvised a poem about peach blossoms and their first meeting, leaving her quietly moved.

• Zeng Anmin entered the Liu Residence under the excuse of visiting Liu Xian and was led by Liu Sanjiang to meet Princess.
• Princess asked about the Xi Huang Diagram and told Zeng Anmin that Wu Qianfeng might join the campaign against Nan at Mount Bai pass, giving him a chance to seek information.
• Princess revealed that she was a Fourth Rank Martial Artist and confronted Zeng Anmin for staring at her while she played the chime bells.
• Zeng Anmin claimed that he had been composing a poem, and Princess asked him to recite it with her chime bells as accompaniment.
• Zeng Anmin recited a poem about peach blossoms and a vanished beloved, and Princess fell silent, appearing lost in thought.

Zeng Anmin tried to speak with Wu Qianfeng before the expedition, but an urgent summons and rumors accusing Zeng Shilin and Zeng Anmin of causing military failures drew them to the parade ground. There, officials blamed Zeng Anmin’s training methods for the Mandarin Duck Army as Emperor Jianhong questioned Duke Wei Tian Ji, leaving Zeng Anmin’s family under threat of being held responsible.

• Zeng Anmin left Liu Residence after realizing the Princess wanted the Xi Huang Diagram and had demonstrated her Fourth Rank martial arts aura to pressure him.
• Wu Qianfeng visited Zeng Anmin to fulfill his promise to take him to the Jiaofang Division, and Zeng Anmin steered their conversation toward his cousin’s husband, Duan Yuheng.
• A messenger summoned Wu Qianfeng to the parade ground, where Emperor Jianhong was watching the drill, and warned that rumors accused Zeng Shilin of tolerating the Demon Race and Zeng Anmin of devising the Mandarin Duck Army’s training method.
• Zeng Anmin and Wu Qianfeng rode to the parade ground as Emperor Jianhong questioned Tian Ji about the army’s training and the claims that his methods had taken an unconventional path.
• Tian Ji defended Zeng Anmin’s methods, while Liu Chengqian redirected blame toward Zeng Anmin and Zeng Shilin pleaded for his son before Liu raised the charge of delaying military affairs.

Zeng Anmin’s military training method impressed Emperor Jianhong, who praised him and proposed that the Princess lead the Mandarin Duck Army. When Liu Chengqian objected, the Princess used Zeng Anmin’s poem “Ode to Willow” to ridicule him publicly.

• Liu Chengqian accused Zeng Shilin and Zeng Anmin of harboring ambitions to defect to the demons, while the Princess defended them before Emperor Jianhong.
• Zeng Anmin and Wu Qianfeng demonstrated the Mandarin Duck Army’s synchronized drills, including a four-step halt that kept five thousand soldiers in formation.
• Emperor Jianhong praised Zeng Anmin’s training method and proposed that the Princess command the Mandarin Duck Army.
• Liu Chengqian objected to the Princess leading the army, and she responded by reciting Zeng Anmin’s satirical poem, “Ode to Willow.”
• Zeng Anmin named the poem, and Liu Chengqian realized it mocked him.

Zeng Anmin questioned Wu Qianfeng about martial arts and his cousin-in-law, the Loyal Far Count, and learned that Wu had been his senior brother’s disciple. Wu named Ji Qing and Li Jian, Duke Ning, as suspects in the old accusation against the Loyal Far Count, leaving Zeng Anmin probing how Wu knew of their connection to Prince Qi.

• Emperor Jianhong ordered the Mandarin Duck Army to master its formation before setting out, praised Zeng Anmin, and returned to the palace.
• At Apricot Blossom Tower, Zeng Anmin summoned Wu Qianfeng and pressed him about his martial rank and the path to advancing from the Seventh Rank to Sixth Grade.
• Zeng Anmin revealed that the Loyal Far Count was his cousin-in-law, prompting Wu to confess that the Count had been his senior brother and to describe the Count’s false accusation by Prince Qi.
• Zeng Anmin urged Wu to share what he knew about Prince Qi’s accomplices, and Wu pledged to serve him if he would avenge his senior brother.
• Wu named Ji Qing, Director of the Imperial City Department, and Li Jian, Duke Ning, as suspicious, and Zeng Anmin asked how he knew they were connected to Prince Qi.

Zeng Anmin connected Duke Ning, Li Jian, to the pressure on his father and the suspicious death of Huang Yuangao, then reported his theory to Zeng Shilin. Zeng Shilin agreed to send him with the Mandarin Duck Army as deputy commander, while warning him to put his safety first.

• Wu Qianfeng told Zeng Anmin that Prince Qi had once served under Duke Ning, Li Jian, and that Duke Ning had erased traces of his past influence in the army.
• Zeng Anmin linked Duke Ning to Liu Chengqian, Consort Xi, and the events surrounding Huang Yuangao's death, concluding that Duke Ning was behind the troubles facing him and his father.
• Zeng Anmin returned to the Minister's Residence and interrupted Zeng Shilin and Concubine Lin before asking to join the southern campaign.
• Zeng Shilin explained that rumors about Two Rivers Prefecture and pressure from court factions meant he could not leave the capital, so Zeng Anmin would go with the Mandarin Duck Army.
• Zeng Anmin shared his suspicions about Duke Ning with Zeng Shilin, who realized he had overlooked Li Jian as a possible enemy.
• Zeng Shilin said he would petition to make Zeng Anmin deputy commander and warned him to hide behind Qin Shouchang or the Princess when facing enemies and to prioritize his life.

Qin Wanyue worried about Zeng Anmin joining the southern expedition, and Qin Shouchang agreed to protect him while raising the prospect of their marriage. As the army departed the capital, Qin Wanyue gave Zeng Anmin a safety pouch, and he gave her a firearm for protection.

• Qin Wanyue visited Qin Shouchang and asked him to keep Zeng Anmin safe during the campaign; Qin Shouchang agreed and said he would discuss their marriage after the expedition.
• Zeng Anmin noticed Qin Wanyue acting shyly around him and became an increasingly confident deputy commander as the Mandarin Duck Army completed its training.
• The Princess, Qin Shouchang, Zeng Anmin, and the troops marched out of the capital with Tian Ji leading the larger army.
• At the city gates, Qin Wanyue gave Zeng Anmin a handmade lotus pouch and worriedly urged him to stay safe.
• Zeng Anmin gave Qin Wanyue a firearm made by Master Xu, told her she was more precious than anything, and returned to the ranks as Qin Shouchang glowered at him.

The army reached Guangnan Prefecture, where Tian Ji assigned forces to besiege the city and guard against interference from the Demon Race. The Princess led the Mandarin Duck Army into Mount Bai, and Zeng Anmin volunteered to clear the mountain paths, revealing that he had reached the Fifth Rank Confucian Dharma Aspect Realm.

• Zeng Anmin told the Princess that he regarded Sister Qin as his elder sister after she remarked on their close bond.
• Tian Ji’s army grew from fifteen thousand to eighty thousand as it marched to Mount Bai and camped near Guangnan Prefecture.
• At the war council, Tian Ji assigned Wang Feng to guard a mountain pass and ordered the Princess to lead the Mandarin Duck Army to Bai Deng Pass with Li Le and his Demon Searching Compass.
• The Princess led five thousand Mandarin Duck Army soldiers into Mount Bai and explained that they needed to block the Bi Xuan tribe from reaching Tian Ji’s army.
• When the Princess assigned Qin Shouchang to clear the mountain paths, Zeng Anmin volunteered and revealed his Confucian Dharma Aspect, astonishing the gathered commanders.

Zeng Anmin led a force into Mount Bai to search for demons, but secretly used the Demon Searching Compass to locate three Demon Generals and left his soldiers behind. He confronted the demons alone, and the chapter ended as the terrified Tiger Demon fled while the two Wolf Demons stared at him.

• Princess ordered Zeng Anmin to lead soldiers and Li Le on a three-day demon search through the vital routes.
• At Qianxing Path, Zeng Anmin left Wu Qianfeng and fifty soldiers behind, then secretly used the Demon Searching Compass to detect three Demon Generals nearby.
• Zeng Anmin tricked Li Le into taking the remaining soldiers deeper into the mountains and hurried back alone toward the demons he had located.
• Zeng Anmin found three demons feeding on animal carcasses and released his Vast Righteous Qi, terrifying them.
• The Tiger Demon fled from Zeng Anmin, while the two Wolf Demons remained frozen and stared at him.

Zeng Anmin fought a peak Demon General and two Wolf Demons, breaking through to the Sixth Rank Void Comprehension Realm and killing all three. The chapter ended with him facing a timed choice among three new Martial Arts Entries.

• Zeng Anmin suppressed his Vast Righteous Qi and used his Martial Arts Aura to draw two Wolf Demons into attacking him.
• He dodged the wolves’ coordinated attacks, but a tiger demon intervened and joined them in a three-on-one fight.
• After a Wolf Demon wounded him, Zeng Anmin broke through to the Sixth Rank Void Comprehension Realm and gained divine sense.
• With his enhanced combat power, Zeng Anmin decapitated the Tiger Demon and swiftly killed both Wolf Demons.
• The system presented Zeng Anmin with three Martial Arts Entries and began a countdown for his choice.

After choosing Last Reserve, Zeng Anmin returned to Biyu Path and found Li Le and the Mandarin Duck Army soldiers dead, with the Great Demon Bi Xuan waiting among them. Facing an overwhelming enemy, he exhausted his martial aura to shout for help, and Qin Shouchang and the Princess recognized his signal and rushed to respond.

• Zeng Anmin chose Last Reserve, erased the three Demon Race corpses with Vast Righteous Qi, and hurried back toward Biyu Path.
• Finding the cleanup taking too long, Zeng Anmin entered Biyu Path and discovered the Mandarin Duck Army corpses, including Li Le, beside a shaking Demon Searching Compass.
• Zeng Anmin recognized Bi Xuan, a Third Rank Great Demon, and realized he could neither flee nor defeat it in a fight.
• As Bi Xuan sent black aura toward him, Zeng Anmin forced down his fear and spent all his Martial Arts Aura shouting for help.
• Qin Shouchang and the Princess heard Zeng Anmin's call, recognized that he was in danger, and rushed toward its source.

Zeng Anmin fought Bi Xuan with his martial and Confucian powers but was captured after exhausting his strength. Qin Shouchang and the Princess arrived in time to free him, and Qin Shouchang raised his power against Bi Xuan as the demon tried to flee.

• Qin Shouchang recognized the danger and hurried the Princess toward Biyu Path while she split the troops to guard Qianxing Path and Qiuming Path.
• Zeng Anmin destroyed Bi Xuan's black qi with his Confucian Dharma Aspect, then used the Golden Tablet to resist the demon's giant hand.
• Bi Xuan's attack overcame Zeng Anmin, who was captured and prepared himself to fight back after his expected breakthrough.
• The Princess carried Qin Shouchang to the clearing, where his azure Dharma Aspect blasted apart the hand holding Zeng Anmin.
• Bi Xuan recognized Qin Shouchang as a Fourth Rank Confucian and tried to flee, but Qin Shouchang raised his arm and offered the Princess a stroke of fortune.

Qin Shouchang confronted Bi Xuan and used his Extreme Confucian power to suppress the Third Rank Great Demon, while Zeng Anmin realized that choosing the same path might greatly strengthen his own restraint over demons. Bi Xuan burned his ancestral blood to gain power, and his killing intent turned toward Zeng Anmin and the Princess.

• Qin Shouchang summoned his Confucian Dharma Aspect and struck Bi Xuan with a massive Suppress character, forcing the demon to turn and fight.
• Bi Xuan unleashed his overwhelming demonic pressure, and the Princess pulled Zeng Anmin to safety as the shockwave shattered trees around them.
• Qin Shouchang explained that his Extreme Confucian path made him a particular threat to demons, while Zeng Anmin realized that Qin's Heart Inquiry choice had focused his power against the Demon Race.
• Bi Xuan burned his ancestral blood and transformed, but Qin Shouchang's stronger Suppress character pinned him down and began eroding his body.
• The Princess explained that burning ancestral blood temporarily strengthened Bi Xuan at the cost of his cultivation, while Bi Xuan glanced toward her and Zeng Anmin with killing intent.

Qin Shouchang sacrificed his cultivation to defeat Bi Xuan, who died after summoning the demon soldiers waiting nearby. With the Princess and Qin Shouchang badly injured and the demons closing in, Zeng Anmin activated his system ability and stood alone at the narrow mountain path with his axe.

• Qin Shouchang raised a Righteous Qi barrier around Zeng Anmin, while Bi Xuan blasted the Princess through trees and attacked the barrier.
• Bi Xuan transformed and began swelling to unleash a deadly explosion, so Qin Shouchang used his secret technique and spent his cultivation to trap and weaken him.
• Qin Shouchang declared that Bi Xuan would die, and Bi Xuan disintegrated into ash after warning that three thousand demon soldiers were approaching.
• The Princess regained consciousness, and Qin Shouchang collapsed as the demon soldiers arrived; Zeng Anmin refused to abandon them.
• Zeng Anmin activated Fight to Your Heart's Content, took up his Short Axe, and walked to the narrow path to face the approaching demons alone.

Zeng Anmin held off a vast Demon Race force on a narrow mountain path, killing so many soldiers that the survivors broke and fled. After the battle, the Demon King Mengya appeared, retrieved a compass containing the Rakshasa Bone, and prepared to attack Zeng Anmin, the Princess, and Qin Shouchang.

• Zeng Anmin used his Short Axe to slaughter wave after wave of demon soldiers while the Princess and Qin Shouchang watched in disbelief.
• The demon soldiers panicked and fled, and General Goat abandoned them, leaving Zeng Anmin to finish off the remaining troops blocking the path.
• Zeng Anmin returned toward the Princess and Qin Shouchang, but leaped away when a powerful demon struck the ground where he had stood.
• Mengya introduced himself as a Demon King, picked up the compass beside Li Le's corpse, and recognized it as holding the Rakshasa Bone.
• Mengya noticed the injured humans and vanished from his spot, intent on eating Zeng Anmin, the Princess, and Qin Shouchang.

Zeng Anmin fought Mengya Demon King to protect the Princess and Qin Shouchang, while Qin Shouchang died and an azure butterfly revived the sheep demon with another man's memories. Badly injured and facing Mengya’s final attack, Zeng Anmin comprehended the second slash of Eternal Night Three Slashes and cut the Demon King in two.

• Zeng Anmin transformed with dragon scales and horns, then repeatedly struck Mengya with the first slash of Eternal Night Three Slashes.
• Qin Shouchang asked the Princess to tell Zeng Anmin to care for his daughter, recalled his regrets, and died; an azure butterfly flew away from him.
• The azure butterfly entered a sheep demon bound for the Myriad Demon Mountain Range, restoring its weathered memories, and it set out toward Xiangliu and the Dragon Survey Map.
• Mengya battered Zeng Anmin and moved to attack the helpless Princess, but Zeng Anmin stood between them despite his severe injuries.
• As Mengya thrust its blade at him, Zeng Anmin comprehended the second slash and killed Mengya with a blood-red axe strike, collapsing beside the Princess.

After surviving the battle with Mengya, Zeng Anmin found Qin Shouchang dead and questioned whether his sacrifice had been part of a scheme. He and Princess then resolved to lead five thousand Mandarin Duck Army soldiers into the Mount Bai Range and destroy the remnants of the Bi Xuan tribe despite being outnumbered and lacking supplies.

• Zeng Anmin woke among the battlefield’s corpses, confirmed he still had his combat strength, and retrieved a black compass from Mengya’s remains.
• Zeng Anmin found Qin Shouchang dead and wondered whether his father and Master Xu had used the old man as part of a plan.
• Princess awoke, recalled Zeng Anmin’s hidden abilities, and told him Qin Shouchang had asked him to look after his only daughter.
• Zeng Anmin and Princess agreed to claim the military merit by sweeping through the Mount Bai Range with five thousand Mandarin Duck Army soldiers.
• Princess warned that the army would lack supplies and face at least fifty thousand demon soldiers, so Zeng Anmin proposed a lightning campaign fueled by spoils of war.

Zeng Anmin and the Princess recovered enough to continue the campaign, but a clue involving incense led Zeng Anmin to suspect that the Demon Searching Compass had been altered to lure the Mengya Demon King. He connected the plot to Duke Ning and a Profound Formation Division disciple, and vowed to kill them when he returned to the capital.

• The Princess took a Hundred Herbs Pill and said she would recover within two hours, while Zeng Anmin pressed her for another pill and nearly exposed his strength.
• Zeng Anmin and the Princess reached Qiuming Path, where Zeng Anmin covered Qin Shouchang’s remains and the Princess summoned Wu Qianfeng and his three thousand soldiers.
• After lighting incense, Zeng Anmin realized that the Spirit-Cleansing Incense might explain why Mengya had targeted the Demon Searching Compass and suspected a Profound Formation Division disciple had tampered with it.
• Zeng Anmin reasoned that Master Xu and his father had arranged events surrounding Bi Xuan and Qin Shouchang, while Duke Ning had used Prince Qi to connect with the disciple plotting against him.
• Zeng Anmin vowed to kill Duke Ning and the Profound Formation Division disciple when he returned to the capital, while the Princess promised that Qin Shouchang would not have died in vain.