Chapter Summaries

Wang Xuanshan and Zhao Changlin planned to promote Li Xuancang to Squad Leader if he earned merit in a raid on a Barbarian grain convoy. The raid turned into a Barbarian ambush at Blackstone Valley, and Li Xuancang fought toward the grain supplies as the border troops were overwhelmed.

• Wang Xuanshan praised Li Xuancang’s record and agreed to consider promoting him after a raid on the Barbarian supply route.
• Zhao Changlin summoned Li Xuancang, ordered him to join the raid, and warned him to keep the plan confidential.
• Zhao Changlin led fifty Battle Soldiers, including Li Xuancang, to ambush a grain convoy in Blackstone Valley.
• Elite Barbarians attacked from the cliffs with arrows, logs, and boulders, trapping the border troops and surrounding Zhao Changlin with three Barbarian officers.
• Li Xuancang fought through the Barbarians toward the grain carts, killed an Early Body Tempering Stage attacker, and continued his advance.

Li Xuancang burned the barbarians’ provisions, then rescued Zhao Changlin from three commanders and carried him back to camp. Wang Xuanshan heard Li Xuancang’s report and recognized his loyalty as both men received treatment.

• Li Xuancang killed a barbarian chieftain and several soldiers, then set the barbarians’ provisions ablaze.
• The surviving Human Race soldiers tried to break through as the barbarian commanders focused on attacking Zhao Changlin.
• Li Xuancang intervened, blocked a commander’s strike, and helped Zhao Changlin escape into the woods.
• Li Xuancang carried the wounded Zhao Changlin back to camp, where soldiers summoned a military physician.
• Wang Xuanshan questioned Li Xuancang about the ambush and, impressed by his loyalty, told him to get his wounds treated.

After recovering from the ambush, Li Xuancang was promoted to Squad Leader for rescuing Zhao Changlin and burning the Barbarians’ grain supplies. He took command of ten soldiers and received new privileges, but a fresh military order ended the camp’s brief stretch of peace.

• Zhao Changlin awoke in camp, learned Li Xuancang had carried him back, and told Wang Xuanshan how the mission had gone wrong and Li Xuancang had burned the Barbarians’ grain supplies.
• Surviving soldiers returned to camp and spread word of Li Xuancang’s feat, while the force’s fifty soldiers were reduced to only a dozen or so survivors.
• After five days of recovery, Li Xuancang received Wang Xuanshan’s order promoting him to Squad Leader and granting him the rank’s benefits and privileges.
• Li Xuancang met his ten soldiers, pledged to reward bravery and punish faults, and sent them out on patrol before inspecting his new quarters and equipment.
• The two sides remained peaceful for half a month after the Barbarians lost their grain supplies, until a new military order arrived and ended the quiet.

Wang Xuanshan received orders to abandon Lakeside Station and retreat to Azure Cloud Ridge after the Barbarians cut off the garrison’s supplies. The Barbarians caught up with the retreating army, and Wang Xuanshan sacrificed the Conscripts' Camp to cover the Battle Soldier Camp’s escape, but the conscripts scattered as the enemy charged after the main force.

• Wang Xuanshan announced that the Barbarians had broken through the border defenses and ordered Lakeside Station’s forces to retreat to Azure Cloud Ridge.
• The army burned supplies it could not carry and set out, but the Barbarians tracked and caught up with them using Shadow Wolf Demonic Beasts.
• Wang Xuanshan ordered the Conscripts' Camp to hold the rear while the Battle Soldier Camp retreated, and Feng Long killed conscripts who protested.
• The conscripts abandoned their formation and fled, while the Barbarian commander ordered his troops to ignore them and pursue the Battle Soldier Camp.

Wang Xuanshan ordered Zhao Changlin and Feng Long to sacrifice their rear guard so the main force could escape the pursuing Barbarians. As the rear guard was surrounded, Li Xuancang charged twelve Barbarian cultivators to protect Zhao Changlin and give his men a chance to survive.

• Wang Xuanshan ordered Zhao Changlin and Feng Long to lead two hundred soldiers in covering the rear while he continued fleeing.
• Zhao Changlin reminded the soldiers that disobeying orders would endanger their families, and the rear guard prepared to fight rather than flee.
• The Barbarians overwhelmed the rear guard, then split their forces, leaving half to kill them while the rest pursued Wang Xuanshan.
• Zhao Changlin told Li Xuancang to stay beside him, then asked him to hold off twelve Barbarian cultivators while he fought two Late Body Tempering Stage enemies.
• Li Xuancang charged the twelve cultivators with his spear as Zhao Changlin attacked the two Late Body Tempering Stage Barbarians.

Li Xuancang fought off the Barbarian cultivators long enough to complete the half-hour defense, killing several despite his injuries. When the soldiers were ordered to break through, he helped Zhao Changlin escape and turned back to rescue the Wang Daniu brothers, leaving his own escape uncertain.

• Li Xuancang killed an Early Body Tempering Stage Barbarian with one spear thrust, then fought off the other eleven attackers.
• Surrounded and wounded, Li Xuancang traded injuries for kills until his ferocious fighting frightened the Barbarians.
• Li Xuancang killed a Mid Body Tempering Stage Barbarian and held his ground until a soldier announced that half an hour had passed and everyone should break through.
• Li Xuancang drove back the Barbarians surrounding Zhao Changlin and helped him escape.
• Li Xuancang abandoned his own chance to flee, carved a path to the Wang Daniu brothers, and urged them to escape.

Li Xuancang and Zhao Changlin fought their way out of a barbarian encirclement and escaped into Blackwind Ridge, both severely wounded. After treating their injuries, they set out through the dangerous mountains toward Azure Cloud Ridge to rejoin the main army.

• Zhao Changlin joined Li Xuancang, and the two fought together against the barbarian soldiers and cultivators surrounding them.
• Zhao Changlin held off the two barbarian leaders while Li Xuancang protected his flank, and they forced their way toward Blackwind Ridge despite suffering severe wounds.
• Li Xuancang used his senses and the mountain terrain to guide them away from Demonic Beast lairs and evade the pursuing barbarians.
• After the pursuit faded, Zhao Changlin shared his last half-bottle of Golden Wound Medicine with Li Xuancang, and they bandaged their injuries.
• Zhao Changlin and Li Xuancang decided to travel southeast through Blackwind Ridge toward Azure Cloud Ridge and began their journey through the forest.

Li Xuancang and Zhao Changlin fought their way through the forest and evaded Barbarian scouts to reach Azure Cloud Ridge Camp. After the guards verified their identities, both men collapsed from their injuries.

• Li Xuancang and Zhao Changlin killed a Fanged Demon, and Zhao Changlin was nearly fatally wounded saving Li Xuancang.
• Li Xuancang fed Zhao Changlin the Fanged Demon's blood and heart, then carried him out of the forest.
• Zhao Changlin warned Li Xuancang about Barbarian scouts surrounding Azure Cloud Ridge Camp and directed him toward a hidden western entrance.
• Li Xuancang timed the patrol shift, slipped past the scouts, and carried Zhao Changlin up the western cliff path to the hidden sentry post.
• The guards verified Zhao Changlin's Identity Token and escorted both men into camp, where they collapsed unconscious.

After recovering from his wounds, Li Xuancang was restored as Squad Leader and placed under Wang Xuanshan’s command, receiving ten veteran soldiers. As the Barbarian army advanced on Azure Cloud Ridge, Li Xuancang prepared for the coming battle, his strength nearing the Late Body Tempering Stage.

• Li Xuancang recovered enough to move within five days, while Zhao Changlin was sent to the rear for treatment.
• Wang Xuanshan and a messenger informed Li Xuancang that the Lakeside Station remnants had joined the Xuanyang Commandery Army and restored him as Squad Leader over ten Battle Soldiers.
• Wang Xuanshan promised to seek Li Xuancang’s promotion to Hundred-Man Commander if he broke through to the Late Body Tempering Stage and earned merit.
• Li Xuancang settled in with the Lakeside Station remnants and established rules for the ten veteran soldiers assigned to him.
• Li Xuancang trained with his men for more than half a month, growing strong enough to challenge Late Body Tempering Stage opponents.
• As more than three thousand troops gathered and the Barbarians advanced toward Azure Cloud Ridge, Li Xuancang welcomed the prospect of battle.

After Li Xuancang became a squad leader, news of his success reached the Li Clan, whose elders regretted abandoning his family and hurried to Azure Creek Village to seek reconciliation. They arrived at the Li Family’s home with gifts and flattery, where Father Li faced the relatives who had once cast them out.

• News that Li Xuancang had become a squad leader and secured benefits for his family spread through the region and reached the Li Clan of Black Stone Town.
• The Li Clan elders and relatives regretted refusing to help the Li Family and decided to visit them with generous gifts.
• Dozens of Li Clan members traveled to Azure Creek Village, where villagers recognized their attempt to curry favor and guided them to the Li Family.
• Father Li saw the Li Clan arriving and turned away, but Li Changfeng called him over.
• Li Changfeng and the relatives praised Li Xuancang, apologized to Father Li and Mother Li, and urged them to accept the gifts.

Li Dahai rejected Li Clan relatives who sought favors from Li Xuancang, while at the border Li Xuancang prepared to face a joint Barbarian and Demonic Beast assault. The defenders assembled at the pass as the enemy advanced, leaving the battle about to begin.

• Li Clan relatives pressured Li Dahai to use Li Xuancang's rank to win the clan protection and tax relief, but Li Dahai told them to leave and threatened to report them to the authorities.
• After fleeing, the Li Clan relatives cursed Li Xuancang and hoped he would die on the battlefield.
• Li Xuancang and the soldiers gathered at the Drill Ground when the Assembly Drum sounded, and Zhou Xingzhan ordered the army to prepare to defend the pass.
• Wang Xuanshan led Lakeside Station's Battle Soldiers to the defensive line as the Barbarians advanced with Demonic Beasts among their ranks.
• Zhou Xingzhan and the commanders deployed their forces along the pass, while the frightened conscripts struggled to hold their weapons.

The Barbarians launched a full assault on Azure Cloud Ridge, and Zhou Xingzhan’s spear strike steadied the Human Race defenders’ morale. Li Xuancang fought fiercely at the main point of attack, holding the line and killing numerous Barbarians as the battle raged.

• The Barbarians charged with hundreds of Demonic Beasts, causing panic among the Human Race troops.
• Zhou Xingzhan killed a demon tiger from several hundred meters away, restoring the defenders’ morale and making Li Xuancang wary of his own weakness.
• The Human Race defenders rained arrows, logs, and boulders on the attackers, but the Barbarians forced their way to the walls and began close-quarters combat.
• Wang Xuanshan shouted for the soldiers to hold the front pass as the defensive line neared collapse.
• Li Xuancang held his position, killed more than twenty Barbarians, then slew four Body Tempering Realm attackers who surrounded him.
• Li Xuancang charged through the Barbarian ranks, inspiring his soldiers to keep fighting and hold the defensive line.

After the Human Race’s defenses at Azure Cloud Ridge collapsed, Li Xuancang and Wang Xuanshan fought their way through the pursuing Barbarians and Demonic Beasts. They reached Jade Sun City with a handful of survivors, where Li Xuancang recovered after eating.

• The western pass fell after Thousand-Man Commander Liu was killed, and Zhou Xingzhan ordered the defenders to retreat east toward Jade Sun City.
• Li Xuancang joined Wang Xuanshan’s group and fought through the Barbarian pursuit as the Human Race’s forces fled Azure Cloud Ridge.
• Li Xuancang and the surviving soldiers escaped the battlefield, regrouped, and continued toward Jade Sun City while the Barbarians pursued them.
• Wang Xiaoniu thanked Li Xuancang for saving him and grieved for his brother Wang Daniu, who had died in battle.
• Wang Xuanshan led the exhausted survivors to Jade Sun City, where officials carried the unconscious into the city and supplied the soldiers with food.
• Li Xuancang ate his meal and regained some strength, while the conscripts received a simpler ration without meat.

After the defeat at Azure Cloud Ridge, Li Xuancang explored Jade Sun City and saw the stark contrast between starving refugees and the wealthy elite. He returned to camp resolved to grow stronger and protect his family as the Barbarian threat loomed.

• The defeated troops from Azure Cloud Ridge gathered in Jade Sun City, where Zhou Xingzhan took command and Li Xuancang continued serving as a Squad Leader.
• Li Xuancang walked through the slums and saw refugees suffering from hunger, cold, and harsh taxes, which made him fear for his family in Azure Creek Village.
• Li Xuancang entered the city center and witnessed the wealthy feasting and thriving while the poor were driven away from their district.
• Li Xuancang vowed to become stronger so he could protect his family and survive the turmoil.
• Yamen runners stopped Li Xuancang, but they panicked and begged forgiveness after he showed them his Squad Leader's token.
• Li Xuancang returned to camp, where his strength continued to increase by 1% each day as the Barbarian pursuers remained a threat.

As the Great Flame Dynasty reeled from defeats at Azure Cloud Ridge, the Imperial Court imposed triple taxes, driving frightened civilians into hunger and despair. Tax collectors descended on Azure Creek Village, where families were robbed, displaced, and separated as residents struggled to pay.

• Rumors of the Barbarian army's advance spread panic across Jade Sun Commandery, and residents hoarded scarce food as prices soared.
• The Imperial Court ordered all shops and farming households to pay triple taxes within a month or face confiscation and conscription.
• Tax collectors and government runners terrorized civilians across the dynasty, seizing property and forcing impoverished families to sell belongings and children.
• Tax collectors arrived in Azure Creek Village and ransacked homes for food and clothing.
• Government runners dragged away Old Man Wang's only son for military service despite his parents' desperate pleas.
• Farmer Wang tried to sell his young children to raise tax money, while other villagers surrendered their fields and became homeless.

After a crushing defeat at the front, officials demanded new taxes in Azure Creek Village, alarming the Li family because Li Xuancang was stationed at the border. The tax clerk exempted the Li family because of Li Xuancang’s military status, leaving the villagers to watch their own families suffer while the officials treated the Lis with deference.

• Father Li learned that the defeated army needed supplies, so the authorities were collecting taxes again and taking villagers for military service.
• Mother Li feared Li Xuancang was in danger, and Father Li reassured her while hiding his own worry.
• The tax clerk recognized the Li family as relatives of Squad Leader Li Xuancang and announced that their military registration exempted them from taxes and labor service.
• The officials respectfully left the Li family’s courtyard, while the villagers watched in shock and envied the protection Li Xuancang had earned for his family.

Father Li intervened when Qian the Tycoon tried to take Zhang Cuier, whom her parents had sold, and rescued her with help from the local officials. He brought Zhang Cuier home, while she left her birth parents behind.

• Zhang Ergou and his wife sold Zhang Cuier to Qian the Tycoon, who ordered his servants to take her away.
• Father Li stopped Qian the Tycoon and offered to buy Zhang Cuier, but Qian refused to release her.
• Father Li returned with Sun Yun and constables, who surrounded Qian the Tycoon and forced him to give Zhang Cuier up.
• Father Li declined to pursue further punishment, and Qian the Tycoon’s servants released Zhang Cuier.
• Zhang Cuier thanked Father Li and followed him home without looking back at her parents.

After officials imposed the tripled taxes on Zhang Family Village, Li Xiu’s household received preferential treatment because of her brother Li Xuancang’s military service. The Zhang family embraced Li Xiu as their benefactor, while she hoped her brother would return safely from the border.

• Constables and tax collectors stripped villagers of their food and tools and seized able-bodied men who could not pay the tripled taxes.
• The tax collector told Li Xiu that her household owed only half its taxes and was exempt from corvée labor and military service because of Officer Li’s merits.
• Villagers envied the Zhang family’s treatment and recognized that Li Xuancang’s service had protected his sister’s household.
• Yang Cuihua, Zhang Erzhu, and Zhang Chunhua warmly fussed over Li Xiu and promised to treat her well.
• Li Xiu reflected that her family’s good fortune came at her brother’s expense and hoped he would stay safe and return victorious.

The Li Clan faced ruthless tax collection after Li Xuancang refused to claim them as relatives, while the border camp mobilized against the Yellow Wind Bandits for stealing military supplies. Li Xuancang joined Zhou Xiong’s expedition, and the troops set out for the Yellow Wind Mountains.

• County tax collectors raided the Li Clan, seized valuables, and dragged away clansmen who could not pay after confirming Li Xuancang had not registered them for protection.
• The Li Clan elders regretted expelling Li Xuancang’s family, but the clan fell into despair as the officials enforced the taxes.
• Zhou Xingzhan ordered Zhou Xiong to lead five hundred elite troops against Lin Xuan and the Yellow Wind Bandits after they seized a military supply convoy.
• Li Xuancang received orders to join the expedition and assembled his soldiers with the other troops.
• Zhou Xiong addressed the assembled force, and the five hundred soldiers set out for the Yellow Wind Mountains.

Zhou Xiong led five hundred border troops into Yellow Wind Ridge, where Lin Xuan’s bandits ambushed them with arrows and boulders. Li Xuancang scaled a cliff and broke the bandits’ formation, turning the battle in the troops’ favor as Lin Xuan tried to retreat.

• Zhou Xiong led the border troops into the mountains, where Lin Xuan’s bandits launched a prepared ambush.
• Zhou Xiong ordered the soldiers to form a shield wall and charge, but the bandits held the pass with arrows and falling stones.
• Li Xuancang climbed a cliff with several soldiers, reached the bandits’ rear, and fought off their attackers.
• Zhou Xiong sent more troops up the cliff, and the border soldiers’ attack from both sides shattered the bandits’ formation.
• Lin Xuan ordered a retreat into the mountains, but Zhou Xiong engaged him while the soldiers pursued the fleeing bandits for military merits.