Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary: “Detouring Around Smallpox”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Emperor waits while the Empress receives the Imperial Grandson’s Consort, Ye Buhui, and the Imperial Grandson’s heir apparent.
• Seeing the child—or perhaps recalling him in a dreamlike state—causes the Emperor to remember the Crown Prince, who died years earlier. The heir apparent’s resemblance to the Crown Prince awakens feelings of joy, grief, regret, and guilt.
• Confused by memories of his former life as a prince, the Emperor momentarily imagines himself in the past, speaking of the heir apparent and ordering a valuable gold watch to be given to him.
• Returning to reality, he confronts his sorrow and decides to visit the Empress at the Palace of Eternal Joy, believing it may be his last chance to see her before the Imperial Grandson dies.
• On the way, the Emperor encounters a palace gate sealed because of a smallpox outbreak. The area has been quarantined with white cloth, lime, and guards, forcing him to detour.
• Zhao Bingzhong reminds him that the Imperial Medical Academy is using improved human pox inoculation. The Emperor recalls that the procedure creates immunity by deliberately exposing healthy people to a mild form of smallpox, though it carries a small risk of death.
• Though irritated by the delay, the Emperor continues toward the Palace of Eternal Joy.

Character Developments

• The Emperor: His usual authority is undermined by grief and unresolved memories. He remains deeply affected by the Crown Prince’s death and by the painful transformation from former prince to reigning emperor. His determination to visit the Empress suggests both regret and an awareness that his political plans may soon destroy the Imperial Grandson.
• Ye Buhui: She appears outwardly composed but is consumed by worry over her husband, Su Ziji, who is facing grave danger. Her memories reveal how much she has sacrificed and how profoundly she has changed—from a carefree young girl into a restrained, dignified imperial consort.
• The Empress: She recognizes Ye Buhui’s anxiety and offers her emotional comfort through conversation and chess. Her closeness with Ye Buhui resembles a mother-daughter relationship, giving both women a temporary sense of peace.
• Su Ziji: Although absent, he dominates Ye Buhui’s thoughts. His repeated risks and sacrifices for her have shaped her life and strengthened her devotion to him.
• The heir apparent: His resemblance to the Crown Prince makes him a powerful emotional trigger for the Emperor and connects the current imperial generation to the tragedies of the past.

Significant Themes

• Memory and regret: The Emperor’s memories blur past and present, showing that political power cannot erase personal grief or guilt.
• The cost of power: The Emperor’s rise has required emotional sacrifices, and his current decisions may lead to the death of his own descendant.
• Love amid political danger: Ye Buhui’s relationship with Su Ziji is rooted in loyalty, shared hardship, and sacrifice, but their happiness remains threatened by imperial intrigue.
• Transformation: Ye Buhui’s maturation from an innocent girl into a calm, careful consort parallels the Emperor’s transformation into a ruler who suppresses his former self.
• Mortality and disease: The smallpox outbreak introduces a literal danger that mirrors the wider atmosphere of fear, vulnerability, and impending death.

Character Interactions

• The Emperor consults his attendant and Zhao Bingzhong about the Empress’s visitors and the smallpox quarantine.
• The Emperor’s imagined interaction with the heir apparent reveals his longing for the family and life he lost.
• The Empress and Ye Buhui play chess together, using the game to ease their anxiety.
• The Empress gently teases Ye Buhui about missing her husband, prompting Ye Buhui to confront her fears and painful memories.
• Although no direct meeting occurs between the Emperor and the Empress in this section, the Emperor’s attempted visit and the Empress’s conversation with Ye Buhui create parallel scenes of suppressed emotion and anticipation.

Chapter Summary: “I Don’t Much Like Soup”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Empress comforts Ye Buhui, warning her that tears are useless in the ruthless imperial palace.
• Using a chess analogy, she reveals that Ye Buhui’s husband, Su Ziji, is trapped in a dangerous political situation. His “small game” is being overwhelmed by the Emperor’s far larger and more powerful scheme.
• The Empress demonstrates the situation on a chessboard: Su Ziji’s position is nearly surrounded, and escaping will require an extremely dangerous move. Even if he succeeds, the surrounding forces may still be sacrificed.
• She asks Ye Buhui to remain in the palace for protection, promising to use her own hidden influence and resources to save her and the child if chaos breaks out.
• The Empress warns Ye Buhui about assassins, witchcraft, demonic arts, Daoist techniques, and martial arts—threats that still exist despite being officially forbidden.
• She reveals that she once practiced martial arts and demonstrates the Orchid-Sweeping Finger, explaining that the palace’s restrictions make it difficult for most people to use supernatural or martial power, though she has learned ways around them.
• When the Emperor announces his arrival, Ye Buhui is hidden and told to pretend to be asleep.
• The Empress prepares a private meal and receives the Emperor with proper courtesy.
• Instead of discussing politics directly, the Emperor reminisces about their early marriage, especially the soup she once made for him. His apparent tenderness evokes memories of their former love and harmony.

Character Developments

• Ye Buhui: Reveals her exceptional intelligence and mastery of chess. She quickly understands the Empress’s political metaphor and recognizes the Emperor as the mastermind threatening Su Ziji. Her confidence is tempered by fear as she realizes how dangerous her husband’s position is.
• The Empress: Shows compassion and protectiveness toward Ye Buhui, treating her almost like a daughter. Beneath her composed imperial manner, she remains deeply traumatized by past political purges and understands the Emperor’s ruthlessness. Her hidden martial ability also reveals her resourcefulness and strength.
• The Emperor: Presents himself as gentle, nostalgic, and emotionally vulnerable, recalling intimate memories from his marriage. However, his warmth contrasts sharply with the terrifying political power attributed to him, leaving the Empress suspicious of his intentions.
• Su Ziji: Though absent, he is established as being in extreme political danger, struggling against a vastly more powerful opponent.

Significant Themes

• Politics as chess: The chapter portrays imperial conflict as a strategic game in which lives, alliances, and sacrifices are pieces on a board. Skill alone may not overcome a stronger player.
• The uselessness of tears: The Empress emphasizes that survival in the palace requires understanding, calculation, and action rather than emotional helplessness.
• Protection and maternal care: The Empress’s decision to shelter Ye Buhui reflects both compassion and her desire to prevent another generation from being destroyed by palace intrigue.
• Hidden strength: True power is concealed beneath appearances. The Empress seems merely ceremonial but possesses martial abilities and political resources; the Emperor appears affectionate while remaining potentially dangerous.
• Memory versus betrayal: The Emperor’s nostalgic recollections revive the warmth of their early relationship, contrasting with the violence and destruction that followed. The chapter explores how love and cruelty can coexist in the same person and history.

Character Interactions

• The Empress speaks to Ye Buhui with unusual honesty and affection, using chess to communicate political truths she cannot explain openly.
• Ye Buhui responds intelligently, solving the chess problem and thereby demonstrating that she understands the seriousness of the situation.
• The Empress offers Ye Buhui protection and reveals her martial arts, strengthening their bond and establishing trust.
• When the Emperor arrives, the Empress and Ye Buhui coordinate to conceal Ye Buhui’s presence.
• The Emperor and Empress engage in a seemingly tender exchange about their early marriage. His reminiscence briefly draws her back into the past, though her private suspicion shows that she has not forgotten his ruthlessness.

Chapter Summary: “A Lecher Looks at the Sword”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The chapter opens with a tender memory between the aging emperor and empress. He playfully asks her to repeat the exchange in which he praises her beauty and she teasingly threatens him with a sword gesture, calling him a “lecher.”
• The affectionate memory is shattered by thunder, symbolizing the painful present and the distance that has grown between them.
• The emperor reflects on aging, mortality, and their past relationship. He asks whether the empress resents him and recalls how deeply he once wished to see her.
• The empress nearly responds emotionally, but memories of Fu’er’s death and the emperor’s role in it overwhelm her. She suppresses her feelings and asks only that the Imperial Grandson remain safe.
• Realizing that she will not ask him to abandon his pursuit of immortality, the emperor becomes disappointed and emotionally withdraws. He leaves, claiming he has other matters to attend to.
• The empress watches him depart and recognizes that the man she once loved is truly gone. Their final separation feels like an eternal farewell; even if they meet again, they will be only ruler and subject.
• During the storm, the empress sees a magnificent white dragon in the clouds. She prays to the Dragon Lord for the safety of her grandson, promising seasonal sacrifices and perpetual incense.
• The Young Dragon Lord senses the empress’s prayer and responds by sending down a sign of divine favor, accompanied by rain and cloud aura. She reflects on the immense, overwhelming power represented by the movement of clouds and water.

Character Developments

• The Emperor: He is shown as physically and emotionally old, briefly vulnerable and nostalgic. However, his desire for immortality remains stronger than his love, remorse, or willingness to compromise. He represses his doubts and returns to his ruthless determination to live forever.
• The Empress: She moves from shared tenderness and suppressed hope to clear emotional acceptance. She realizes that the emperor she once knew has died spiritually, though his body remains. Her love has not vanished entirely, but it is now inseparable from grief, resentment, and hatred.
• The Young Dragon Lord: She demonstrates growing awareness of her divine authority and the significance of her connection with “Big Brother.” Her response to the empress’s prayer shows both compassion and the developing majesty of her power.

Significant Themes

• Love destroyed by ambition: The emperor and empress once shared genuine affection, but his pursuit of immortality has consumed his humanity and destroyed their marriage.
• Memory versus reality: Their playful recollection contrasts sharply with the cold present, emphasizing how irretrievably the past has been lost.
• Aging and mortality: Both characters confront the limited span of human life, but they respond differently: the empress accepts the natural limits of life, while the emperor rebels against them.
• Emotional and spiritual death: The empress concludes that the emperor she loved has “truly died completely,” suggesting that moral corruption can destroy a person before physical death.
• Divine protection and fate: The empress’s prayer links the mortal imperial family with the supernatural world. The dragon’s response implies that unseen powers may influence the Imperial Grandson’s journey.
• Power as overwhelming momentum: The Young Dragon Lord associates her cultivation with an unstoppable force that crushes resistance, foreshadowing her growing strength and authority.

Character Interactions

• The emperor and empress begin with playful intimacy, recalling their youthful relationship through flirtatious dialogue.
• Their conversation turns into a painful confrontation when the emperor asks whether she resents him. The empress avoids direct accusation, asking only for their grandson’s safety, which reveals the depth of her distrust.
• The emperor interprets her restraint as a refusal to reconcile and leaves with wounded pride, while the empress silently mourns the end of their bond.
• The empress then interacts indirectly with the Young Dragon Lord through prayer. The dragon hears and answers, creating a supernatural connection between the mortal empress’s desperate hope and the dragon’s emerging power.

Chapter Summary: “Preparing for a Rainy Day”

Key Plot Points and Events

• During a stormy night in the capital, Su Ziji meets with Wild Daoist in a pavilion to discuss the Emperor’s preparations against them.
• The Emperor has secretly mobilized 16,500 soldiers from the Qimen, Imperial Feather, and Eagle Yang Guards, while Su Ziji has only about 2,000 men. The imperial forces are fully equipped and ready to surround them.
• Su Ziji acknowledges the Emperor’s formidable strategic ability, comparing their military talents as roughly six to four in the Emperor’s favor. However, he believes the Emperor’s age and reputation for ruthlessness have created a weakness: people assume he is old and may underestimate him.
• Su Ziji reveals that he began preparing for armed resistance long before he was named Imperial Grandson, including secretly training soldiers overseas. His hidden preparations are the “darkness beneath the lamp” that may allow him to surprise the Emperor.
• Wild Daoist realizes that without Su Ziji’s years of preparation, even exceptional talent would not be enough to challenge the imperial forces. They can only wait for Prince Qi to begin his move.
• At Prince Qi’s residence, Prince Qi prepares for action in full armor while reflecting on the Emperor’s past destruction of the Crown Prince and his household.
• Prince Qi concludes that the Emperor is capable of killing even his own legitimate heir without evidence or mercy. This convinces him that obedience and traditional filial morality cannot protect him.
• Prince Qi reveals that he once sought the Demon Race and the lost records of the Divine Strategy Army in order to discover a means of survival. He views his current actions as a final gamble for power and believes that only by following the Founding Emperor’s example can he remain alive.

Character Developments

• Su Ziji: Demonstrates strategic foresight, realism, and distrust of conventional political morality. He understands that survival depends on preparing for the Emperor’s worst behavior rather than assuming the ruler will respect political norms or the “overall situation.”
• Wild Daoist: Moves from admiration to deeper understanding of Su Ziji’s plans. He recognizes that Su Ziji’s secret preparations are the foundation of their chance against overwhelming imperial forces.
• The Emperor: Although absent, he is portrayed as an exceptionally capable and ruthless ruler. His strength lies not only in military organization but also in his willingness to eliminate anyone, even family members, without hesitation.
• Prince Qi: Gains greater psychological depth. His apparent recklessness is shown to have developed from fear and trauma after witnessing the Crown Prince’s unjust execution. He rejects the teachings of his former tutor and traditional filial ideals, believing the Emperor has forfeited the natural bond between father and son.
• The Crown Prince: Though dead, he remains central to Prince Qi’s worldview. His destruction serves as proof that virtue, loyalty, and legitimate status offer no protection against the Emperor.

Significant Themes

• Preparation and hidden strength: Su Ziji’s secret military preparations show that survival depends on planning before danger becomes visible.
• Power versus morality: Both Su Ziji and Prince Qi reject the assumption that rulers will honor ethical or political restraints. Real power, rather than legitimacy or virtue, determines survival.
• Betrayal of family and tradition: The Emperor’s killing of the Crown Prince destroys Prince Qi’s faith in filial piety, the teachings of the sages, and the presumed duties between father and son.
• Fear as a political force: The Emperor rules through terror, while Prince Qi’s ambition grows from fear of being killed rather than simple greed for the throne.
• Perception and miscalculation: Su Ziji relies on the Emperor’s blind spot regarding hidden preparations, while the Emperor’s age and confidence may cause others to underestimate or overestimate him.
• The struggle between survival and righteousness: The chapter questions whether moral obedience remains meaningful when authority itself becomes cruel and lawless.

Character Interactions

• Su Ziji and Wild Daoist: Their conversation establishes mutual trust and strategic understanding. Wild Daoist recognizes Su Ziji’s superior preparation, while Su Ziji explains the Emperor’s strengths and vulnerabilities.
• Prince Qi and his former tutor: Though the tutor is absent, Prince Qi conducts an imagined reckoning with him. He accuses the tutor and the sages of teaching only obedience while ignoring the possibility that a father might become a tyrant.
• Prince Qi and the Emperor: Their relationship is defined by fear, resentment, and mutual hostility. Prince Qi no longer sees the Emperor as a father but as an enemy who may destroy him at any moment.
• Prince Qi and the Crown Prince: Prince Qi remembers his elder brother with a mixture of envy, grief, and terror. The Crown Prince’s fate becomes the justification for Prince Qi’s decision to seek power through any means necessary.

Chapter Summary: “Utterly Deranged”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Prince Qi reflects on the imperial family’s long history of fear and hostility toward the Demon Race. The Founding Emperor once used demons before exterminating the Divine Strategy Army, while the current Emperor has continued persecuting demons for generations.
• He justifies his own alliance with the Demon Race as a desperate response to the Emperor’s oppressive rule. Though he recognizes the alliance as taboo and dangerous, he believes he has no other means of survival.
• Prince Qi prepares to launch his rebellion, having privately raised troops and contacted the Divine Strategy Army. His advisers can offer no further strategies; the conflict must now be decided through battle.
• He reveals that he has long believed the rumor that the Emperor consumes his sons’ hearts to prolong his life. This belief, intensified by the Crown Prince’s death, has convinced him that the Emperor may eventually kill him or the other princes as well.
• Prince Qi vows to confront the Emperor, expose him as a heartless tyrant, and leave a terrible reputation for him in history—even if he dies in the attempt.
• His Princess Consort, Lingyun, arrives during the storm. Prince Qi confides in her, apologizing for the danger he has brought upon her and their family.
• He instructs her that if the rebellion fails, she must escape by water and sail overseas with their young son, where the child can live safely as the lord of an island.
• He warns her to distrust the Demon Race, even though he himself relies upon them, and promises to sacrifice himself—possibly by taking the Demon King down with him—to buy her time to flee.
• Prince Qi gives her a rare jade pendant that once belonged to his deceased elder brother, the former Crown Prince. If she is cornered, she is to show it to the Imperial Grandson, Prince Qi’s young nephew, in the hope that the connection to his father will move him to help her.
• The chapter ends with the Princess Consort kneeling and wishing Prince Qi victory as he prepares to face the coming crisis.

Character Developments

• Prince Qi is shown as desperate, bitter, and psychologically fractured. He recognizes that his actions—raising troops and allying with demons—are extreme, but believes the imperial system has forced him into madness. His resolve hardens from fear into open defiance.
• He also reveals a more vulnerable side: he mourns his elder brother, fears for his wife and child, and admits that he never wanted the confrontation to happen. Despite his ruthlessness, he still plans to protect his family and even spare the Imperial Grandson if victorious by granting him a dukedom.
• The Princess Consort shifts from grieving wife to someone entrusted with a survival plan. Her tears show her fear and love, but she listens carefully and accepts her responsibilities.
• The Emperor is portrayed through Prince Qi’s memories and suspicions as a terrifying, isolated ruler. Whether the rumors about him are true remains uncertain, but Prince Qi’s belief in them drives much of his rebellion.
• The Imperial Grandson emerges as an unpredictable figure with unusual potential. Prince Qi suspects he may possess Heaven’s Mandate, though he insists that human effort matters more than destiny.
• The deceased Crown Prince becomes a powerful emotional presence. Prince Qi remembers his kindness and sees parallels between his brother’s death and his own impending danger.

Significant Themes

• Desperation and moral compromise: Prince Qi knows colluding with demons violates fundamental imperial laws, but he views it as the only avenue left to resist the Emperor.
• Fear within the imperial family: The princes’ obedience and cruelty are shown as products of terror. Even the Emperor’s favoritism toward Xinping is linked to the other princes’ fear of him.
• Family, betrayal, and survival: Blood relations offer little security in the imperial household, yet Prince Qi’s attachment to his brother, wife, son, and nephew remains central to his choices.
• Fate versus human effort: Prince Qi mocks the idea of Heaven’s Mandate but still wonders whether the Imperial Grandson is chosen by destiny. His reliance on the jade pendant shows that, despite his skepticism, he cannot entirely abandon hope.
• Legacy and historical judgment: Prince Qi wants not merely to survive but to expose the Emperor’s alleged crimes and ensure that his name is condemned by history.
• The cycle of tyranny: The chapter suggests that the imperial succession repeatedly forces rulers and princes into paranoia, violence, and betrayal.

Character Interactions

• Prince Qi and the Princess Consort share an intimate farewell in which he confesses his fears and regrets while she silently weeps and supports him.
• He entrusts her with their son’s future, escape instructions, and the jade pendant, demonstrating deep trust despite the impending rebellion.
• Prince Qi’s relationship with his deceased elder brother is revisited through memories of childhood affection and the pendant. The object becomes a potential bridge between the Princess Consort and the Imperial Grandson.
• His attitude toward the Imperial Grandson is unusually cautious and hopeful: although he would depose him if victorious, he also believes the boy may be the only prince capable of restoring the imperial line if Prince Qi fails.

Summary

1. Key Plot Points and Events

• Prince Qi reveals that he has long suspected the Emperor’s true purpose: the Emperor may be using members of the imperial family as “rations” to gain longevity through a method involving the eating of dragons.
• After the Crown Prince’s death, Prince Qi initially considered competing for succession, but his growing suspicions—reinforced by his nephew’s return, Xie Zhenqing, and the Divine Strategy Army—convince him that ordinary succession is impossible.
• He decides to rebel and “flip the table,” planning to act while the capital’s defenses are weakened by torrential rain. The storm disrupts Dragon Aura, Daoist Arts, and other supernatural methods of surveillance or suppression.
• Prince Qi prepares an escape plan for his wife, the Princess Consort Lingyun, and their son. He tells her to flee through the capital’s extensive waterways, pass through the disorderly Three Adjacent Regions, and eventually sail overseas.
• He gives her:
  • A list of corrupt officials under his influence, whose crimes can be exposed if she is endangered.
  • Information about three estates containing silver—roughly one hundred thousand taels at each location—since banknotes could be invalidated by imperial order.
• Prince Qi urges her not to hesitate or seek death, emphasizing that their son must survive. He believes surrender may be safer than resistance if escape becomes impossible.
• He confesses that his violent temperament and years of sleeping separately from her were caused by the psychological damage of learning the truth about the Crown Prince’s death and the imperial succession.
• When the rain and thunder reach their peak, an armored soldier reports that the supernatural warning signs have been disrupted long enough to act. Prince Qi sends the Princess Consort away, orders his forces to arm themselves, and launches the rebellion.
• He rallies his followers with the declaration that they will “purge the ruler’s side,” “hold up the falling heavens,” and remake heaven and earth that very night.

2. Character Developments

• Prince Qi shifts from a suspicious, ruthless, and seemingly unstable prince into a tragic figure driven by desperation and protective love. His years of fear have hardened him, but he remains deeply concerned for his wife and child.
• He accepts that he cannot win through normal political means and embraces open rebellion, showing both strategic intelligence and fatalistic resolve.
• His confession reveals that his cruelty and isolation were symptoms of grief, fear, and a worsening heart ailment rather than simple inborn brutality.
• The Princess Consort moves from bewilderment and fear to profound grief and loyalty. She is overwhelmed by the possibility of losing her husband but accepts the responsibility of preserving their son and carrying on his bloodline.
• She gains a clearer understanding of Prince Qi’s hidden suffering and realizes that his behavior toward her was motivated partly by a desire to protect her from his mental deterioration.
• The Emperor remains physically absent but becomes the central threat: an apparently benevolent ruler whose pursuit of immortality may involve sacrificing his own family.

3. Significant Themes

• Family loyalty versus political survival: Prince Qi’s rebellion is political, but his preparations are primarily focused on ensuring his wife and son survive.
• The corrupting nature of power and immortality: The Emperor’s suspected pursuit of eternal life turns imperial succession into a system of predation, making relatives potential victims rather than heirs.
• Hidden suffering behind public cruelty: Prince Qi’s violent reputation conceals grief, fear, insomnia, and psychological collapse.
• Desperation and irreversible choices: The characters are forced to choose between rebellion, escape, surrender, or death, with hesitation likely to mean destruction.
• The collapse and remaking of order: The storm symbolizes a moment when the established political and supernatural order is temporarily weakened, allowing Prince Qi to attempt a complete transformation of the realm.
• Love expressed through sacrifice: Prince Qi separates from his wife and sends her away not because he has abandoned her, but because he believes distance offers her and their child the best chance of survival.

4. Character Interactions

• Prince Qi comforts the terrified Princess Consort, explaining the escape routes and giving her practical resources rather than allowing her to remain with him.
• The Princess Consort weeps and promises to preserve his bloodline, while Prince Qi repeatedly urges her to live rather than die with him.
• He admits that he has wronged her by keeping his distance, explaining that his nightmares, violent impulses, and deteriorating health made him afraid to remain close to his family.
• Her perception of him changes as she recognizes that the man others see as cruel was also a grieving elder brother and a frightened husband trying to protect his household.
• Their tender farewell is abruptly ended by the arrival of the armored messenger and the worsening storm. Prince Qi releases her hand, turns from private emotion to public command, and leads his forces into open revolt.

Chapter Summary: “Three Days to Enlightenment”

1. Key Plot Points and Events

• During a violent storm, Prince Qi and his followers secretly leave through an ancient underground passage known as the Well-Dragon Route.
• The route was constructed during the Former Wei dynasty under Emperor Shizu, linking the capital’s wells through underground waterways. Though largely forgotten and deteriorated, part of it remains usable.
• Xie Zhenqing reveals the passage and leads the group through it. The rain, water veins, and geomantic formations conceal their presence from the Imperial City Office and the Black-Armored Guards.
• Guards stationed underground have already eliminated several groups of spies, allowing Prince Qi’s party to proceed safely.
• As they travel, Xie recalls the history of his relationship with the Former Wei founding emperor and the Dragon Lord. He remembers how the emperor once used the Demon Race’s power, then betrayed the alliance.
• Xie reveals that the wine he gave Prince Qi was Karmic Sin Wine, containing the accumulated grievances and blood-debts of demons persecuted by the Zheng Dynasty.
• Because Prince Qi willingly drank it, those sins have merged with the Zheng Dynasty’s dragon aura, making him a bearer of the Demon Race’s karmic burden.
• Xie intends to exploit this connection. If he can win even once within the next three days, he believes he will achieve enlightenment and become impossible to control.

2. Character Developments

• Xie Zhenqing is shown to be deeply suspicious, calculating, and driven by long-term revenge. He no longer trusts Prince Qi after recalling the Former Wei emperor’s betrayal.
• His memories of the Dragon Lord and his own past death reveal inner conflict: he experiences sorrow and hesitation but suppresses them in favor of his ideological mission.
• Xie’s goal is broader than personal power. He believes that raising the Demon Race accords with Heaven’s Will and seeks to prove that Heaven does not favor humanity alone.
• Prince Qi demonstrates strategic ability and composure by using the secret route, but Xie considers him inexperienced compared with his ancestor. Despite cooperating with Xie, Prince Qi secretly harbors murderous intent.
• Prince Qi’s acceptance of the Karmic Sin Wine places him in a dangerous position, binding him spiritually and politically to the sins of the Zheng Dynasty’s persecution of demons.
• Xie views Prince Qi as similar to the founding emperor: talented and ambitious, but potentially capable of betraying allies once his goals are achieved.

3. Significant Themes

• Betrayal and broken alliances: Xie’s hatred is rooted in the Former Wei emperor’s betrayal of the Demon Race, and he fears Prince Qi may repeat the same pattern.
• Karma and inherited guilt: The Karmic Sin Wine transfers the Demon Race’s accumulated suffering into Prince Qi and the dynasty’s dragon aura, suggesting that past violence inevitably demands repayment.
• History and decay: The once-grand Well-Dragon system symbolizes the decline of former dynasties, forgotten traditions, and the passage of time.
• Heaven’s Will and competing legitimacy: Xie challenges the human-centered belief that Heaven favors humanity, arguing that demons also possess Heavenly Favor.
• Power through deception and preparation: Xie has spent years building hidden plans and using Prince Qi as part of a larger scheme, while Prince Qi’s own ambitions remain potentially dangerous.
• Enlightenment through victory: Xie believes that a single decisive success, maintained for three days, will allow him to transcend all restraints.

4. Character Interactions

• Xie leads Prince Qi and his followers through the passage while explaining its history and strategic value.
• Prince Qi questions Xie indirectly through his suspicion, recognizing that Xie’s knowledge suggests an extraordinary origin connected to the Former Wei era.
• Xie compares Prince Qi to his ancestor, praising his talent while warning himself not to trust him.
• Their cooperation is outwardly practical but inwardly hostile: Prince Qi may intend to eliminate Xie after using him, while Xie has already arranged the Karmic Sin Wine as a trap.
• The chapter ends with Xie silently challenging both Prince Qi and the Dragon Lord, confident that his plan will soon free him from all control.

Prince Qi led his men through an underground water passage to Duke of Lu’s residence, then marched through the storm toward Lin'an Gate after learning the gate had been seized. He entered with Xie Zhenqing and his soldiers, who killed the guards as thunder drowned out the fighting.

• Prince Qi and his men rested in the underground passage before climbing out through an old well in Duke of Lu’s residence.
• Zhang Bolai reported that Duke of Lu had moved out and that Prince Qi’s preparations were complete.
• A messenger reported that his Commanding Officer had taken control of the gate, and Prince Qi ordered his men to march to Lin'an Gate.
• Zhao Buwei told Prince Qi that the gate was open, and Xie Zhenqing entered first to confirm it was safe.
• Prince Qi’s soldiers entered Lin'an Gate and killed the guards while thunder masked the sounds of the fight.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Commander Jiang Qifeng, commander of Lin’an Guard, kneels before Prince Qi and presents the severed heads of Cao Long and Xiao Yi, proving that he has defected to Qi’s cause. Xiao Yi’s death is especially significant because he was the son of the powerful Yin’an Marquis and a palace Imperial Guard.
• Prince Qi praises Jiang as a loyal minister and publicly celebrates Xiao Yi’s death, remembering that Xiao had previously rejected his attempts to recruit him.
• Having captured Lin’an Gate, Prince Qi orders his troops to secure it and then advances toward the palace. His forces disguise themselves in official robes and use command tokens to appear legitimate.
• The army reaches Cloud Dragon Gate, the final major barrier before the palace city. A soldier climbs the wall, and hidden sympathizers inside begin fighting the gate’s defenders and eventually open the gates.
• Prince Qi’s troops storm through. The Divine Strategy Army, commanded by Xu Feng, demonstrates superior discipline and battlefield coordination. Their spear formations, archers, and blade-and-shield soldiers overwhelm the Imperial Guard Corps.
• Prince Qi believes victory is nearly complete and confidently imagines confronting the Emperor, declaring that Heaven’s Mandate belongs to him.
• Just as more than half his army has entered, Xie Zhenqing senses that something is wrong. A mysterious voice contradicts Prince Qi, torches suddenly flare on both sides, and the palace gates slam shut behind the invading army—revealing that they have likely entered a trap.

Character Developments

• Prince Qi becomes increasingly confident and aggressive after successfully capturing Lin’an Gate and advancing through Cloud Dragon Gate. His decisiveness contrasts with the hesitation he associates with Prince Shu, but his triumphal certainty begins to resemble overconfidence.
• Jiang Qifeng decisively commits himself to Prince Qi by executing Cao Long and Xiao Yi. His actions show both political calculation and a willingness to eliminate powerful opponents.
• Xie Zhenqing remains observant and strategically perceptive. Although he admires Prince Qi’s courage, he also notices the deeper changes occurring in martial ability and senses the danger in the apparent victory.
• Xu Feng proves himself an effective commander. He maintains formation discipline and adapts tactics—using spear ranks, archers, and flank protection—to defeat the less organized Imperial Guard.
• Prince Qi recognizes the exceptional strength of the Divine Strategy Army, whose soldiers were formed from Demon Generals. His admiration is mixed with fear, since such troops could threaten the balance of power if their numbers were greater.
• Prince Qi notices that the young martial artist beside him—implicitly associated with the Demon Race—appears to understand the mysterious changes in the world but refuses to explain them, reinforcing their mutual distrust.

Significant Themes

• Ambition and the pursuit of power: Prince Qi interprets his early victories as proof that Heaven supports his attempt to seize the throne.
• Loyalty and betrayal: Jiang Qifeng’s defection demonstrates how political allegiance can shift during a crisis, while the defenders’ determination reflects loyalty enforced by duty and fear of punishment.
• The difference between appearance and reality: The smooth capture of the gates creates the illusion of inevitable victory, but the sudden closure of the palace gates suggests that the invasion may have been anticipated.
• Heaven’s Mandate versus human arrogance: Prince Qi repeatedly invokes Heaven’s favor, yet his boast immediately precedes the apparent ambush, hinting that confidence may become hubris.
• Military discipline and elite power: The Divine Strategy Army’s coordination contrasts sharply with the Imperial Guard’s disorder, emphasizing the decisive importance of training, formation, and command.
• A changing world: Prince Qi senses that martial artists have been advancing unusually quickly, suggesting broader supernatural or cosmic changes affecting the world.

Character Interactions

• Prince Qi and Jiang Qifeng: Qi rewards Jiang’s apparent loyalty and publicly validates his role in the coup. Jiang responds with humility, presenting his betrayal as a subject’s duty rather than personal ambition.
• Prince Qi and Xiao Yi: Though Xiao is dead, Qi’s reaction reveals their hostile history. Xiao’s earlier refusal to submit has turned his execution into a personal victory for Qi.
• Prince Qi and Xie Zhenqing: Xie admires Qi’s decisiveness but remains intellectually and emotionally guarded, recognizing both his courage and his potential recklessness.
• Prince Qi and the Demon-associated young man: Qi suspects the young man knows the cause of the world’s martial transformation, but racial hostility and political distrust prevent an open exchange.
• Xu Feng and the opposing soldiers: Xu commands his troops with absolute efficiency, while the Imperial Guard fights desperately but loses cohesion under the Divine Strategy Army’s coordinated assault.
• The chapter ends with an unknown speaker directly challenging Prince Qi’s claim that victory is assured, creating a sharp reversal and cliffhanger.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Prince Qi, Xie Zhenqing, and the Divine Strategy Army enter Cloud Dragon Gate, only for a massive stone gate to suddenly seal their retreat. They realize they have walked into a carefully prepared ambush.
• Torches reveal armed soldiers, archers, and crossbowmen positioned on the walls and towers. Wang Qianjun’s severed head is thrown down, confirming that he has either betrayed Prince Qi or been eliminated by the enemy.
• Hu Huai’An, a chief eunuch serving the Emperor, reveals himself as the leader of the ambush. Prince Qi accuses him and the Eunuch Faction of manipulating the ailing Emperor and seizing military power.
• Prince Qi publicly declares that he is acting to rescue the Emperor, eliminate the traitorous eunuchs, and preserve the rightful succession. His speech briefly causes hesitation among the soldiers, since many do not know the true circumstances behind his military movement.
• Hu Huai’An counters by proclaiming that Prince Qi has been corrupted by demons and ordered the soldiers to attack him while sparing his life for the Emperor’s interrogation.
• The palace forces unleash a devastating volley of arrows. Prince Qi realizes that the Emperor’s wish to see him alive may mean there is still a possibility of changing the situation.
• Xie Zhenqing rallies the Divine Strategy Army, causing their collective blood and qi to surge with tremendous force despite the Imperial Palace Law Ban. They raise shields, endure the arrow storm, and charge the walls.
• Prince Qi notices that the defending force is much smaller than expected—only roughly six hundred men. He deduces that the main imperial army has been moved elsewhere and that Hu Huai’An is using an “Empty Fort Strategy” to delay them until reinforcements arrive.
• Jiang Qifeng understands the danger as well and urges the army to attack immediately. The Divine Strategy Army launches an assault, leading to intense close-quarters combat and heavy casualties on both sides.
• Just as Prince Qi believes victory may be possible, hidden archers target him directly. His guards shield him, but several men are killed. He realizes that the eunuchs may have ordered his assassination despite the Emperor’s decree to keep him alive.

Character Developments

• Prince Qi: Demonstrates composure, political intelligence, and rhetorical skill under extreme pressure. He manipulates the soldiers’ uncertainty by portraying himself as the Emperor’s protector and the eunuchs as traitors. He also quickly analyzes the enemy’s troop strength and strategy. By the end, however, he becomes deeply distrustful of the imperial forces and concludes that the Emperor’s authority has decayed.
• Xie Zhenqing: Initially shocked by the ambush, he quickly regains confidence and recognizes Prince Qi’s leadership. He rallies the Divine Strategy Army and reveals its extraordinary unity and combat power.
• Hu Huai’An: Shifts from a seemingly courteous court eunuch into an openly ruthless political operator. He attempts to reverse Prince Qi’s accusations, invoking imperial law and the Emperor’s supposed decree. His anger at being framed shows his pride and hostility, while his willingness to target Prince Qi suggests that he may be acting beyond the Emperor’s orders.
• Jiang Qifeng: Begins frightened by the ambush but regains courage after recognizing the defenders’ weakness. He becomes an active battlefield leader, encouraging the assault and accepting that retreat is no longer possible.
• The Emperor: Though physically absent, he remains central to the conflict. His illness, dependence on eunuchs, and possible loss of control raise doubts about whether he still governs the empire.
• Wang Qianjun: His severed head serves as proof that the original plan has been compromised and that betrayal or suppression has already occurred within Prince Qi’s network.

Significant Themes

• Political manipulation and competing narratives: Both sides claim to be acting in the Emperor’s name. Prince Qi labels the eunuchs traitors, while Hu Huai’An brands Prince Qi a demon-controlled rebel.
• The decline of imperial authority: The Emperor’s weakness allows eunuchs and rival factions to control military forces and issue contradictory commands.
• Loyalty and betrayal: Wang Qianjun’s death, the ambush, and the apparent disobedience of the imperial guards reveal how unstable political loyalty has become.
• Strategy versus brute force: Prince Qi succeeds by reading the battlefield and recognizing the defenders’ small numbers, while Hu Huai’An relies on terrain, delay, deception, and overwhelming ranged attacks.
• Collective military power: The Divine Strategy Army’s unified blood and qi represent the strength created by discipline, shared purpose, and mutual trust.
• The uncertainty of rightful succession: Prince Qi claims to defend the legitimate succession, but the involvement of multiple princes and factions suggests that the empire is approaching a succession crisis.

Character Interactions

• Prince Qi and Xie Zhenqing work together under pressure, with Prince Qi providing political and strategic judgment while Xie supplies military leadership.
• Prince Qi directly confronts Hu Huai’An in a battle of rhetoric, each attempting to define the other as the true traitor.
• Hu Huai’An uses the soldiers’ obedience to the Emperor against Prince Qi, while Prince Qi tries to win them over by invoking loyalty to the realm and the imperial succession.
• Jiang Qifeng initially follows Prince Qi’s lead but then independently identifies the weakness of the defensive position and helps drive the assault.
• The apparent attempt on Prince Qi’s life reveals a breakdown between the Emperor’s stated orders and the actions of the palace forces, intensifying Prince Qi’s suspicion that the eunuchs—and possibly rival princes—have seized control.

Chapter Summary: “Alchemy Thunder”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Prince Qi’s forces reach Cloud Dragon Gate through a surprise “well-dragon” route, but encounter fierce resistance at the fortified wall.
• Realizing ordinary assault methods will not work, Prince Qi decides to use Alchemy Thunder, an alchemical explosive developed from thunder- and fire-based materials.
• Xie Zhenqing confirms that the rainy weather will amplify the explosives’ power and explains that his Pine Mountain Thunder can destroy several feet of solid rock.
• Dozens of thunder pellets are carried beneath the wall while soldiers advance under shield cover despite falling arrows, stones, and boiling water.
• Hu Huai’an orders the defenders to resist with rocks and scalding liquid. The boiling water causes horrific casualties, melting the flesh of several attackers, but Prince Qi’s troops continue advancing.
• The army withdraws from the wall, allowing the explosives to detonate. The blast creates a massive explosion, shakes the entire gate tower, temporarily deafens the defenders, and fractures the wall.
• Prince Qi’s soldiers immediately rush the damaged section, widen the breach with their shields, and engage the Imperial Guards in close combat.
• Additional Alchemy Thunder charges destroy further sections of the wall, creating multiple breaches and overwhelming the defenders.
• Hu Huai’an refuses to retreat, believing that abandoning Cloud Dragon Gate would bring the Emperor’s wrath. Despite recognizing the worsening situation, he resolves to die defending it.
• As the defensive formation thins and casualties mount, Hu Huai’an fears that he will be killed before achieving his political ambitions.

Character Developments

• Prince Qi demonstrates decisiveness and tactical creativity by abandoning conventional siege methods and employing Alchemy Thunder to break through the wall.
• Xie Zhenqing shows technical expertise and composure, calculating the explosives’ effectiveness and explaining their alchemical construction.
• Hu Huai’an shifts from wary confidence to panic and despair. His inability to understand Prince Qi’s tactics leaves him increasingly helpless.
• Although terrified, Hu Huai’an displays stubborn determination by refusing to flee. His resolve is motivated less by loyalty than by fear of imperial punishment and concern for his own ambitions.
• Hu Huai’an’s private thoughts reveal his resentment toward Prince Qi, other officials, military commanders, and the absent Daoist officials whom he blames for his predicament.

Significant Themes

• Innovation versus traditional defense: Advanced alchemical weaponry renders the supposedly impregnable wall vulnerable.
• The unpredictability of warfare: Surprise, timing, and strategy allow Prince Qi’s smaller force to penetrate a heavily defended position.
• Duty versus self-preservation: Hu Huai’an chooses to remain at the gate despite recognizing that the battle may be lost.
• Political ambition and fear: His determination is driven by the Emperor’s orders and his desire to become Grand Chancellor, exposing the self-interested motives beneath his apparent courage.
• The collapse of certainty: The explosion physically shatters the wall while also destroying Hu Huai’an’s confidence in the defensive position.

Character Interactions

• Prince Qi consults Xie Zhenqing about whether Alchemy Thunder can breach the wall, relying on his knowledge.
• Prince Qi’s soldiers cooperate closely, carrying explosives under shields, replacing fallen troops, and charging through the breaches in coordinated waves.
• Hu Huai’an commands the Imperial Guards and repeatedly urges them to intensify their defense.
• A young eunuch advises Hu Huai’an to retreat, but Hu Huai’an rejects the suggestion and insists on staying.
• The two armies collide as Prince Qi’s forces widen the breaches, while Hu Huai’an watches the defenses collapse and mentally blames everyone around him.

Chapter Summary: “There Will Surely Be a Great Calamity”

Key Plot Points and Events

• A violent battle erupts on the city walls between the Divine Strategy Army and the Imperial Guard Corps. The Divine Strategy Army, empowered by Demonic Fortune, overwhelms the guards, leaving the battlefield soaked in blood.
• The Young Dragon Lord summons terrifying weather—dark clouds, thunder, rain, hail, and snow. Although the storm appears to aid the rebels, Huo Wuyong explains that the Dragon Lord is being used and is not deliberately supporting the Human Path.
• Xue Ming activates the Heavenly Dipper Prayer-Banishing Formation under imperial authority. Liu Zhan establishes the formation, creating a pillar of light that connects with the heavens and draws the Young Dragon Lord’s attention.
• As fighting spreads through the palace city, the Capital falls into fearful silence. Troops move through the streets while civilians hide in darkness.
• At Su Ziji’s residence, Zeng Nianzhen, Cen Rubai, and the Wild Daoist report that preparations are complete. Su Ziji remains calm, insisting that they wait until the Emperor and Prince Qi’s momentum has weakened before making their move.
• The formation releases Heavenly Thunder onto Prince Qi’s forces. It kills many Divine Strategy Army soldiers while leaving nearby Imperial Guards unharmed.
• Cavalry reinforcements arrive and charge into Prince Qi’s formation, killing or injuring more than a hundred soldiers and briefly restoring hope to the desperate Imperial Guards.
• Liu Zhan uses the formation’s bell and incantations to expose the supernatural forms hidden within the Divine Strategy Army—snakes, fish, birds, rocks, pangolins, and other transformed beings. Their blood energy weakens, and their advance falters.
• Prince Qi angrily threatens Liu Zhan and the Yin Temple Sect for interfering. Liu Zhan refuses to respond, choosing instead to continue obstructing him.
• Xie Zhenqing recognizes that the Dragon-Aura White Jade formation is defective and has been strengthened through the Prayer-Banishing technique. He condemns the Yin Temple Sect and calls for its extermination.

Character Developments

• Liu Zhan demonstrates great resolve and accepts the enormous risks of interfering in the struggle for the throne. He knows that success may still earn the Emperor’s suspicion and failure could lead to the destruction of his sect, but he believes Prince Qi’s alliance with the Demon Race poses a threat to both the Yin Temple Sect and humanity.
• Su Ziji is portrayed as strategically disciplined and emotionally controlled. While others are anxious, he waits patiently for the correct moment to act, following the principle of allowing the enemy’s momentum to exhaust itself.
• The Wild Daoist recognizes his own impatience and gains renewed admiration for Su Ziji’s composure.
• Prince Qi becomes increasingly furious and threatening as Liu Zhan’s formation weakens his army. His willingness to threaten an entire sect reveals his ruthlessness and growing desperation.
• Xie Zhenqing emerges as a knowledgeable Daoist expert capable of immediately identifying the formation’s weakness and the technique used to compensate for it.
• Yu Qianzhi remains troubled by the Emperor’s distrust and watches the Dragon Lord’s actions cautiously, reflecting the political uncertainty surrounding the conflict.

Significant Themes

• The cost of political intervention: Liu Zhan understands that interfering in imperial succession creates lasting karmic and political consequences, regardless of victory or defeat.
• Duty versus self-preservation: Liu Zhan chooses to protect the Human Race and prevent Prince Qi’s rise even though doing so may destroy his own sect.
• Strategy and patience: Su Ziji’s refusal to act prematurely emphasizes the importance of timing and conserving strength until an enemy’s momentum fades.
• Humanity versus demonic influence: Prince Qi’s connection to the Demon Race transforms the succession struggle into a larger battle over the fate of humanity.
• Hidden identities and supernatural power: The Divine Strategy Army’s apparent military strength is revealed to depend on transformed demonic or nonhuman entities concealed within its ranks.
• Calamity and moral consequence: The chapter repeatedly suggests that the political and spiritual choices being made will lead to widespread disaster.

Important Character Interactions

• Huo Wuyong and Yu Qianzhi discuss the Young Dragon Lord’s apparent influence on the battle, clarifying that his actions are being exploited rather than intentionally favoring the rebels.
• Xue Ming and Liu Zhan cooperate in activating the Heavenly Dipper Prayer-Banishing Formation under imperial authority.
• Su Ziji, Zeng Nianzhen, Cen Rubai, and the Wild Daoist coordinate their preparations, with Su Ziji restraining the others from acting too soon.
• Prince Qi confronts Liu Zhan verbally, threatening his sect, but Liu Zhan ignores him and continues operating the formation.
• Xie Zhenqing denounces Liu Zhan and the Yin Temple Sect, turning the conflict into a personal and sectarian vendetta as well as a political struggle.

Chapter Summary: “A Heart Neither Subservient nor Conciliatory”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xie Zhenqing reveals himself to be a powerful Demon King when he effortlessly dispels Liu Zhan’s attacks.
• Liu Zhan becomes ecstatic, believing that defeating or refining Xie will allow him to reach the True Lord realm, dominate the Daoist sects, and become the world’s first immortal of longevity.
• Using the imperial decree, Liu Zhan activates the Great Five-Element Divine Prohibition and draws Xie into the Yin Temple Sect’s rudimentary Dao Realm.
• Within the Dao Realm, Xie discovers that the entire domain is effectively a gigantic Demon Refining Furnace. It tortures and refines demons, extracting spiritual energy from their bodies, cores, and souls—even those being punished in hell.
• Outraged by the suffering of at least ten thousand demons, Xie declares that the Yin Temple Sect must be destroyed.
• He uses a rainbow bridge to invade the Dao Realm’s Heavenly Palace. There, he kills the sect’s Grandmaster with a string of seemingly ordinary shooting stars.
• Xie then storms through the Dao Realm, killing numerous Daoists and extinguishing seventeen or eighteen powerful auras in moments.
• Finally, he tears open the Dao Realm’s sky, causing its spiritual energy to leak away. He declares that this destruction is only “the interest” owed for the sect’s crimes against the Demon Race.

Character Developments

• Xie Zhenqing is shown to be vastly more powerful than Liu Zhan expects. He remains calm under attack and sees through the Dao Realm’s structure almost immediately.
• His initial composure turns into righteous fury when he learns that the Yin Temple Sect has built its power on the torment and refinement of demons. However, his rage quickly becomes cold, deliberate resolve.
• Xie’s confidence and independence embody the idea of a Daoist who submits to neither authority nor master. He treats the imperial decree, Liu Zhan’s commands, and the sect’s defenses with contempt.
• Liu Zhan becomes increasingly delusional and ambitious. He views Xie not as a person or opponent but as the opportunity that will fulfill his dreams of immortality and supremacy.
• His confidence collapses when Xie breaks through the Dao Realm, kills the Grandmaster, and destroys the sect’s defenses. Liu’s frantic pursuit highlights his helplessness.
• The Yin Temple Grandmaster, initially presented as a formidable Daoist master, is killed almost instantly, demonstrating the overwhelming gap between his techniques and Xie’s direct power.

Significant Themes

• Independence versus submission: The chapter emphasizes that true attainment of the Dao produces a will that submits to neither monarch nor master. The Yin Temple Sect’s apparent loyalty is revealed as forced obedience rather than genuine devotion.
• Exploitation and oppression: The sect’s Dao Realm is built upon the bodies and souls of demons, exposing the hidden cruelty beneath its prosperity and spiritual power.
• Retributive justice: Xie’s destruction of the Dao Realm is framed as punishment for generations of suffering inflicted on the Demon Race.
• Ambition and hubris: Liu Zhan’s desire for immortality blinds him to the danger before him. His belief that he can refine a Demon King becomes the source of his downfall.
• Power versus empty form: Xie dismisses elaborate formations, talismans, and thunder techniques as superficial compared with straightforward, overwhelming strength.
• The collapse of false order: The Yin Temple Sect’s luxurious palaces, heavenly hierarchy, and imperial authority are revealed as fragile structures sustained by violence.

Character Interactions

• Xie Zhenqing and Liu Zhan: Liu repeatedly commands and attacks Xie, but Xie responds with disdain, breaking through every restriction and refusing to acknowledge Liu’s authority.
• Xie and the Yin Temple Sect: Xie judges the entire sect collectively for its treatment of demons and launches a direct assault on its Dao Realm, killing its leaders and destroying its spiritual foundation.
• Liu Zhan and the Grandmaster: Liu relies on his master’s protection, but Xie kills the Grandmaster before Liu can intervene. This moment exposes Liu’s powerlessness and shatters his confidence.
• Xie and the imprisoned demons: Though the demons do not directly speak with him, their suffering motivates Xie’s rage. He takes responsibility as a Demon King to avenge them and eradicate the sect’s “great scourge.”

Chapter Summary: “Twofold Dust Formation!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Liu Zhan activates the Twofold Dust Formation, filling the Yin Temple Sect’s Dao Realm with dense, obscuring mist and attempting to repair and reposition its damaged areas.
• Xie Zhenqing effortlessly sees through the formation, identifies its weaknesses, and uses his power to worsen the cracks already spreading across the Dao Realm.
• Liu Zhan recognizes that Xie is no ordinary Demon King: he possesses Former-Dynasty Dragon Aura, suggesting a connection to imperial authority and the Dragon Lord.
• The two argue over the conflict between humans and demons. Liu Zhan defends the Yin Temple Sect’s slaughter of demons as necessary to protect humanity and spread the Dharma, while Xie condemns the sect’s cruelty and exposes the hypocrisy of treating demons as mere resources.
• Xie summons a massive Red Dragon and tears open the Dao Realm’s barrier. Beyond the rupture lies the Dragon Palace, which begins dragging the entire Demon-Refining Dao Realm into a destructive black storm.
• Liu Zhan realizes that Xie has seized or inherited the Dragon Lord’s authority. He bitterly understands that the Yin Temple Sect’s long-term plot against the Dragon Lord ultimately benefited Xie instead.
• As the Dao Realm collapses, Xie disappears, and a young Dragon Maiden enters amid the wind and rain. She absorbs the Dao Realm’s spiritual essence, declaring the imprisoned Daoists “bad people” who cannot be saved.
• The Dragon Maiden destroys the palace’s protective formation. When Liu Zhan weakly attempts to stop her, she dismisses him with the accusation, “You are lying!”
• The Shell Maiden and Dragon Palace forces arrive. The Dragon Maiden orders them to kill the guilty, salvage anything useful, and leave nothing valuable behind, intending to consume the remaining spiritual essence later.

Character Developments

• Xie Zhenqing is revealed to possess powerful Dragon Aura and significant authority connected to the Dragon Lord and Dragon Palace. He shifts from calmly analyzing the sect’s Dao Realm to decisively destroying it, showing both overwhelming power and moral condemnation of the sect’s practices.
• Liu Zhan begins confidently, believing his formation and sect’s ideology can resist Xie. He becomes increasingly shocked and desperate upon discovering Xie’s Dragon Aura and the Dragon Palace’s intervention. His certainty gives way to resentment and helplessness.
• The Dragon Maiden is introduced as innocent, playful, and childlike, yet immensely powerful. She treats the Dao Realm as a source of “delicious” spiritual energy, but also instinctively judges the Daoists as irredeemably evil.
• The Shell Maiden appears as a loyal subordinate who responds immediately to the Dragon Maiden’s command and leads the Dragon Palace forces into the collapsing realm.

Significant Themes

• Moral justification and hypocrisy: Liu Zhan frames genocide and soul-refining as necessary for humanity’s survival, while Xie exposes how easily such reasoning can justify atrocities against any race.
• The cycle of racial hatred: Both sides’ historical grievances are invoked to defend violence, suggesting that claims of civilization and protection often conceal struggles for power and resources.
• Power and legitimacy: Dragon Aura, imperial investiture, Incense Offerings, and the Dragon Palace represent competing sources of authority. The chapter suggests that true power belongs not merely to institutions, but to whoever controls these deeper forces.
• The collapse of false order: The Yin Temple Sect’s carefully constructed Dao Realm—symbolizing its ideology, power, and supposed righteousness—is physically and morally dismantled.
• Innocence amid destruction: The Dragon Maiden’s cheerful behavior contrasts sharply with the devastation around her, making her both endearing and frightening. Her simple judgment that the Daoists are “bad people” cuts through their elaborate justifications.

Character Interactions

• Xie Zhenqing and Liu Zhan engage in a philosophical confrontation over human supremacy, demon persecution, and the meaning of the Great Dao. Their debate ends when Xie rejects further discussion and attacks.
• Xie and the Yin Temple Sect are positioned as enemies: he condemns their treatment of demons and destroys the Dao Realm they built through demon slaughter.
• Liu Zhan and the Dragon Palace have a relationship rooted in betrayal and resentment. He realizes the sect’s efforts to eliminate the Dragon Lord inadvertently enabled Xie’s rise.
• The Dragon Maiden and Liu Zhan briefly interact during the Dao Realm’s destruction. His attempt to plead with her fails, and she dismisses his words as lies.
• The Dragon Maiden and Shell Maiden display a commander-subordinate relationship. The Dragon Maiden gives casual but absolute orders, and the Shell Maiden mobilizes the Dragon Palace’s forces to carry them out.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• The mist clears after Xie Zhenqing’s confrontation with Liu Zhan. Liu has disappeared, and Xie concludes that the Dragon Palace will likely contain or destroy the shattered Yin Temple Dao Realm.
• Xie orders the complete extermination of the Yin Temple Sect. He is enraged after discovering that the sect imprisoned a Demon Race Dao Realm, tortured Demon Souls, and used them to cultivate spiritual aura and create a fledgling minor Dao Realm.
• Because Xie understands Dao Realms better than anyone else, he was able to use the Dragon Palace to destroy Yin Temple’s Demon-Refining Dao Realm in a single decisive strike.
• The destruction cripples the Yin Temple Sect. Its talismans, spells, formations, divine invocations, and roughly seventy percent of its Daoist arts depended on the Dao Realm and its patriarchs. Without it, the sect will inevitably decline unless it can somehow create or find another Dao Realm.
• Xie realizes that his use of the Dragon Palace’s authority and the Rainbow Bridge may have alerted Little Dragon Girl. Although this could create future conflict, he does not regret intervening against Yin Temple.
• He wishes he could personally kill the remaining sect members, but Prince Qi’s importance prevents him from leaving the battlefield.
• The narrative returns to the ongoing battle at the city gate. The Divine Strategy Army surrounds and overwhelms the Imperial Guards, killing their general despite his fierce resistance.
• Xie assesses the battle and predicts that the Imperial Guards will collapse within minutes. The Divine Strategy Army, composed largely of trained half-demons, vastly outmatches the smaller Imperial force.
• However, their progress is slower than expected because the Zheng Dynasty’s legal prohibitions and Daoist arts suppress the army’s full strength.
• With enemy forces converging from every direction and the time bought by Well-Walking Dragon running out, Xie realizes they must seize and fortify the city gate before the encirclement closes.
• The earlier use of Alchemy Thunder opened the city gate, but it also created a dangerous breach in their defenses.

Character Developments

• Xie Zhenqing displays greater confidence in his understanding of Dao Realms and the Dragon Palace. His destruction of Yin Temple’s Dao Realm confirms his strategic and supernatural expertise.
• His attitude toward the Yin Temple Sect shifts from cautious tolerance to uncompromising vengeance. He now views their actions as a life-and-death conflict requiring total annihilation.
• Xie’s identity and morality as a Demon King become clearer: although he is calculating and politically aware, witnessing the torture of Demon Souls compels him to act.
• He remains alert to the consequences of using the Dragon Lord’s authority, particularly the possibility that Little Dragon Girl may recognize what he has done.
• Prince Qi is praised for leading a successful charge and reinforcing the battle, though Xie worries that his troops are taking too long to defeat the Imperial Guards.
• The Divine Strategy Army is shown to be elite but diminished from its former glory. Its historical power is contrasted with its current limitations under Zheng Dynasty restrictions.
• Little Dragon Girl does not appear directly, but her possible awareness of Xie’s actions introduces future tension.
• Liu Zhan’s fate remains uncertain, though his absence allows Xie to focus on the larger conflict.

Significant Themes

• Retribution and moral outrage: Xie’s decision to destroy Yin Temple comes from the sect’s exploitation and torture of the Demon Race, framing his violence as punishment rather than mere political opportunism.
• The collapse of power: A sect’s authority, techniques, and reputation can depend entirely on a foundational resource such as a Dao Realm. Once that foundation is destroyed, even a historically dominant organization can rapidly decline.
• The cost of power: Xie’s use of the Dragon Palace’s authority is effective but risks exposing his actions and provoking Little Dragon Girl.
• War’s indifference to morality: The death of the general demonstrates that battlefield heroism does not guarantee survival. Merit and courage coexist with sudden, meaningless death.
• Decline from former greatness: The Divine Strategy Army’s present struggles contrast with its legendary victories during the fall of the Wei Dynasty, emphasizing how political conditions and restrictions can weaken even elite forces.
• Strategy and time pressure: The chapter repeatedly stresses the importance of timing—containing Yin Temple, preserving Prince Qi, defeating the Imperial Guards, and securing the gate before reinforcements arrive.

Character Interactions

• Xie’s conflict with Liu Zhan ends without a confirmed death, but Xie treats his disappearance as strategically sufficient.
• Xie’s actions directly oppose the Yin Temple Sect, transforming their relationship into an explicit war of extermination.
• His connection to Little Dragon Girl becomes strained because he used the Dragon Palace’s authority without fully controlling or concealing the consequences.
• Xie observes and evaluates Prince Qi’s battlefield actions, approving of his courage while criticizing the slow progress of his forces.
• The Divine Strategy Army clashes directly with the Imperial Guards, culminating in the death of their general and the likely collapse of the Imperial defense.

Chapter Summary: “God and Form Both Extinguished”

Key Plot Points and Events

• During a violent storm in the Capital City, True Person Liu Zhan suddenly suffers catastrophic injuries while traveling by carriage. Blood pours from his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose, and invisible wounds appear across his body.
• Huo Wuyong realizes that Liu Zhan’s physical body has become separated from his Primordial Spirit, which is trapped in a remote battle involving Daoist Arts. He attempts to pull Liu Zhan’s spirit back using his whisk and the phantom of a Jade Purifying Bottle, but the resistance is overwhelming.
• The imperial eunuch who could have authorized or assisted their spellwork is absent, having gone to summon military reinforcements. This leaves Huo Wuyong unable to act fully under the restrictions imposed by the imperial decree.
• Liu Zhan briefly regains consciousness and confesses that he has betrayed his sect, the realm, and humanity. He warns Huo Wuyong to “beware of the dragon,” but before he can explain, his body erupts into red flames and disintegrates into sparks.
• Liu Zhan’s death shocks the Daoists of the Yin Temple Sect. His physical body and divine spirit are both destroyed, making his death final and demonstrating the extreme danger of the struggle for Dragon Aura.
• Huo Wuyong and Kou Qianzhi debate the meaning of Liu Zhan’s final warning. The “dragon” could refer to the Dragon Lord, imperial descendants, or the emperor himself.
• Military reinforcements rush through the city as battle erupts elsewhere. Although shaken and considering withdrawal, Huo Wuyong and Kou Qianzhi are ordered to continue fighting because the demon army is approaching.
• The True Persons establish new ritual altars and join Daoists across the Capital City in chanting the Divine Praise Scripture Mantra. Temples strike Zhong bells, creating a vast ritual network and a luminous protective net that suppresses the Demon Race.
• Through the ritual’s enhanced perception, Huo Wuyong glimpses a terrifying crimson force accompanied by dragon-like cries and the clash of weapons. He realizes Liu Zhan had personally entered the conflict and died because of his overconfidence.

Character Developments

• Liu Zhan: His final moments reveal guilt, regret, and awareness that he has committed grave wrongs against his sect, the realm, and humanity. His decision to personally rely on his own cultivation rather than safer state-supported methods proves fatal.
• Huo Wuyong: He shifts from confidence in his ability to rescue Liu Zhan to horror and caution. Liu Zhan’s death deeply shakes his faith in cultivation and makes him consider retreating from the Dragon Aura conflict.
• Kou Qianzhi: He responds pragmatically, helping interpret Liu Zhan’s warning and continuing the defensive ritual despite the danger. His cooperation with Huo Wuyong reflects their shared understanding of the crisis.
• The Daoists: Liu Zhan’s death terrifies and demoralizes them, but they regain purpose when ordered to participate in the citywide suppression ritual.
• The Imperial Authorities: The eunuch and military forces emphasize the empire’s control over magical power and the priority of the military emergency, even at the cost of individual cultivators’ lives.

Significant Themes

• The danger of pride and overconfidence: Liu Zhan’s powerful cultivation cannot protect him when he abandons safer, indirect methods and enters the battle personally.
• Individual power versus collective authority: The realm’s sacred vessels and ritual formations allow cultivators to borrow imperial and institutional power, reducing personal risk. Liu Zhan’s refusal to rely on this system leads to his destruction.
• The cost of political and supernatural conflict: The struggle for Dragon Aura affects cultivators, armies, demons, the imperial government, and the entire city.
• Uncertainty and hidden threats: Liu Zhan’s cryptic warning about the dragon suggests that the true enemy or danger may be more complicated than the visible demon army.
• Mortality and the limits of cultivation: Even a highly accomplished True Person can be annihilated instantly, showing that profound Daoist attainment does not guarantee survival.
• Duty over fear: Despite Liu Zhan’s death and their own doubts, Huo Wuyong and Kou Qianzhi continue defending the Capital City because the larger crisis leaves them no immediate choice.

Character Interactions

• Huo Wuyong attempts to rescue Liu Zhan and stays beside him as Liu confesses his sins and delivers his warning.
• Liu Zhan’s cryptic final words create tension between Huo Wuyong and Kou Qianzhi, who must determine what “the dragon” means.
• The eunuch pressures the True Persons to resume their duties, reinforcing the conflict between personal survival and imperial obligation.
• Huo Wuyong and Kou Qianzhi silently reach an agreement to continue the defense, then cooperate in constructing the ritual altars.
• The chapter closes with the Daoists acting collectively, contrasting the destructive consequences of Liu Zhan’s solitary action with the protective strength of coordinated, institutional power.

Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Prince Qi confronts the oppressive Cloud Aura surrounding the Imperial City. A powerful yellow dragon-shaped aura, created by Great Zheng’s imperial arrangements, presses down on a wounded red flood-dragon aura representing Prince Qi and the demonic power supporting him.
• Xie Zhenqing realizes that Prince Qi is bearing the backlash of borrowed demonic power. The conflict is part of Xie’s larger scheme to destroy Great Zheng’s remaining Heaven’s Mandate and prevent the rise of a future “second Zheng.”
• Xie reveals that Prince Qi inherited part of the Crown Prince’s vital essence after the Crown Prince’s death. By manipulating Prince Qi into attacking the second-generation emperor, he hopes to make Great Zheng’s descendants destroy one another.
• Outside the palace, heavily equipped reinforcements arrive, including elite cavalry, iron-armored infantry, six-stone Great Yellow Crossbows, and shield-and-crossbow formations. Prince Qi recognizes that the enemy’s growing numbers make delay dangerous.
• The Divine Strategy Army hesitates and weakens as Prince Qi’s vitality declines, while the Demon Generals show signs that they do not truly obey him.
• The enemy unexpectedly launches an aggressive charge instead of waiting for reinforcements. Prince Qi interprets this as arrogance and decides to exploit their mistake.
• Prince Qi personally beats a war drum, playing an altered version of “Zheng King’s Battle-Breaking Music.” The music inspires his troops and evokes the spirit of the dynasty’s founder.
• Moved by Prince Qi’s determination, Xie Zhenqing gives him all the Demonic Fortune he possesses. This strengthens Prince Qi, disrupts the oppressive Cloud Aura, and creates an opening in the enemy’s formation.
• Prince Qi’s archers fire first, followed by a brutal collision between both armies. The battle becomes a bloody struggle of shields, spears, halberds, bows, and crossbows, with enormous casualties on both sides.

Character Developments

• Prince Qi shifts from anxiety and fear of ill omens to aggressive resolve. Though weakened by the backlash of demonic power and the loss of vitality, he remains determined to press forward rather than retreat.
• Xie Zhenqing is revealed as a calculating manipulator who despises Great Zheng and seeks its destruction. However, he also develops admiration for Prince Qi’s courage and recognizes in him the spirit of Zheng Taizu.
• The Demon Generals display divided loyalty. Their hesitation suggests that Prince Qi’s authority over the demonic forces is fragile and dependent on Xie’s support.
• Great Zheng’s soldiers are portrayed as disciplined and fiercely loyal, resisting the demon troops despite severe losses.

Significant Themes

• Heaven’s Mandate and political decline: The chapter emphasizes that Heaven’s Mandate is finite. Every use of imperial power weakens the dynasty’s future, and Great Zheng’s past decisions have already mortgaged decades of its fortune.
• Retribution and self-destruction: Xie’s schemes turn Great Zheng’s own descendants against one another, presenting the dynasty’s collapse as punishment for its past actions.
• Borrowed power and its cost: Prince Qi’s alliance with the Demon Race grants him strength but also exacts a physical and spiritual price.
• Courage against overwhelming odds: Prince Qi’s decision to attack despite dwindling strength reflects the chapter’s focus on resolve, sacrifice, and refusing retreat.
• The legacy of the founder: The battle music connects Prince Qi to Zheng Taizu, suggesting that the dynasty’s original fighting spirit still survives in him.

Character Interactions

• Prince Qi and Xie Zhenqing remain allies of convenience: Xie supports Prince Qi because his victory serves Xie’s larger plan, while Prince Qi depends on Xie’s demonic power to continue the assault.
• Xie’s admiration for Prince Qi grows when Prince Qi beats the battle drum and embraces a desperate, all-or-nothing strategy.
• Prince Qi observes the Demon Generals’ hesitation and recognizes the limits of their loyalty.
• The opposing commanders interact indirectly through their battlefield decisions: the enemy’s bold charge initially appears careless, but it gives Prince Qi the opportunity to counterattack and break the oppressive formation.

Chapter Summary: “Weapons of War Are Ominous Things”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Prince Qi’s Divine Strategy Army, joined by Jiang Qifeng and the Lin’an Guard, launches a violent assault on the palace city during a thunderstorm.
• The Imperial Guard Corps suffers heavy losses and is eventually routed. Prince Qi orders Jiang Qifeng to retake and hold Cloud Dragon Gate, recognizing that the army must secure its rear while the main force advances.
• At the final palace gate, Hu Huai’an commands the defenders to fire volleys of arrows into the advancing army. The attack is halted, with many soldiers from both sides killed or wounded.
• Hu Huai’an rapidly organizes the palace’s remaining guards, eunuchs, laborers, and officials to build barricades and reinforce the gate. He intends to defend it to the death.
• Prince Qi orders his exhausted forces to rest for fifteen minutes before launching another assault.
• Inside the palace, the old Emperor receives news of the rebellion and erupts in anger. He is horrified that Prince Qi deceived the court, infiltrated the capital, won over the Lin’an Guard, and brought the powerful Divine Strategy Army with him.
• Zhao Bingzhong reports that although Cloud Dragon Gate has fallen, Hu Huai’an has withdrawn to the palace gate and is strengthening its defenses. If the gate can hold for half an hour, a loyalist army may surround and crush Prince Qi’s forces.

Character Developments

• Prince Qi becomes increasingly grim and determined. Although his army has won the first stage of the battle, he understands that time is running out and that every delay threatens the rebellion. He shows practical military judgment by securing Cloud Dragon Gate and allowing his exhausted troops a brief recovery.
• Jiang Qifeng demonstrates obedience and resolve, immediately accepting the dangerous task of holding Cloud Dragon Gate and organizing its defenses.
• Hu Huai’an undergoes the clearest transformation. Initially confident in imperial authority and certain that Prince Qi’s rebellion could be easily suppressed, he is shaken by the scale and brutality of the fighting. He realizes that formal authority means little once war begins and becomes resolute, prepared to die defending the palace.
• The old Emperor shifts from disbelief and rage to anxiety. His anger exposes his dependence on officials and military commanders whom he had assumed were loyal, while his repeated insults reveal his fear that his authority is collapsing.
• Zhao Bingzhong remains controlled and diplomatic, delivering bad news carefully and attempting to preserve the Emperor’s morale.

Significant Themes

• The destructive nature of warfare: The battlefield is portrayed through rain, blood, corpses, and shattered formations, emphasizing that victory comes at a terrible human cost.
• The fragility of imperial authority: Hu Huai’an realizes that titles, ritual, and royal prestige cannot stop an army once violence begins. Military power, not ceremony, determines control.
• Loyalty versus survival: Both sides fight because defeat means death. Their actions are driven less by ideals than by the necessity of surviving the rebellion.
• The dangers of military power: The title reflects the chapter’s central realization that weapons overturn political order. Once armies are mobilized, even emperors and established hierarchies become vulnerable.
• Time as a strategic weapon: Prince Qi must break through quickly, while Hu Huai’an only needs to delay him long enough for reinforcements to arrive.

Character Interactions

• Prince Qi and Zhang Bolai briefly acknowledge the victory, but Prince Qi immediately dismisses celebration as premature and redirects attention toward the next objective.
• Prince Qi commands Jiang Qifeng to defend Cloud Dragon Gate, entrusting him with a mission that may determine whether the rebellion succeeds.
• Prince Qi and Hu Huai’an confront one another indirectly across the palace gate. Despite their hostility, Hu Huai’an continues to address him formally as “Prince Qi,” illustrating the lingering importance of ritual and rank.
• Hu Huai’an rallies eunuchs, laborers, and officials, turning palace workers into emergency defenders and builders.
• The old Emperor lashes out at the eunuchs and Imperial City Office for failing to detect the rebellion, while Zhao Bingzhong cautiously presents the latest reports and tries to reassure him that the palace defenses may still hold.

Chapter Summary: “A Fine Opportunity to Sweep Away the Foul Winds”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The emperor learns that Pan Taidou, a descendant of the renowned Pan waterworks clan, is helping defend the palace by managing the rising waters of the Imperial Golden River.
• Zhao Bingzhong explains that Pan Taidou’s expertise could be used offensively: by diverting the Three Rivers into the palace city, they could flood and destroy the rebel army.
• Although this would also damage the palace, the emperor approves the plan, showing that he is willing to sacrifice the imperial compound to eliminate the rebellion.
• The emperor decides that the crisis offers an opportunity to purge not only Prince Qi’s forces but also the Divine Strategy Army, the Lin’an Guard, and any other groups secretly allied with them.
• He orders half of the Donghua Guards, Imperial Feather Guards, Divine Martial Guards, and Jianzhang Guards to surround and suppress the rebels.
• He also summons the Eight Corps of the Capital City—including cavalry, infantry, archers, and elite troops—to rescue the emperor and reinforce the palace.
• Zhao Bingzhong distributes the decrees through a group of eunuchs, who leave the palace carrying military tokens and orders.
• One eunuch assigned to summon the Jianzhang Guards deliberately changes course after seeing smoke and hearing fighting near the palace. His decision implies that he has chosen loyalty to Zhao Bingzhong—or to the faction opposing the emperor’s orders—over carrying out the decree.
• Hidden attackers ambush the eunuch’s escort in an alley. Three guards are killed immediately, while the fourth is riddled with arrows after attempting to escape.
• The attackers disguise themselves as palace guards, take the dead men’s identification tokens, and prepare to infiltrate or manipulate the military response.

Character Developments

• The old emperor: His physical and mental decline becomes more apparent; he suffers worsening memory loss, exhaustion, coughing, and weakness. Nevertheless, he remains ruthless and politically calculating. He views the rebellion as a chance to destroy long-standing threats to his authority.
• Zhao Bingzhong: He acts as the emperor’s trusted intermediary, writing the decree and personally dispatching the messengers. He is surprised by the emperor’s decisiveness but carries out the orders efficiently.
• Pan Taidou: Though largely offstage, his reputation as a master of river management is emphasized. His technical knowledge becomes central to the emperor’s plan to flood the rebels.
• The eunuch messenger: His backstory reveals extreme hardship, including famine, family loss, and brutal punishment in the palace. Gratitude toward Zhao Bingzhong leads him to betray his mission and redirect the military order.
• The ambushing forces: Their disciplined coordination, use of concealed archers, and seizure of military tokens suggest a well-organized faction capable of infiltrating the imperial command structure.

Significant Themes

• Political ruthlessness and sacrifice: The emperor is willing to flood the palace and endanger his own forces to eliminate his enemies.
• Crisis as opportunity: The rebellion is treated not merely as a threat but as a chance to remove multiple political and military rivals at once.
• Heaven’s Will versus human calculation: The emperor interprets Pan Taidou’s timely assistance as proof that Heaven favors him, even though the outcome depends on deliberate engineering and military strategy.
• Loyalty and personal obligation: The eunuch’s decision is driven by gratitude and patronage rather than official duty, showing how personal bonds compete with institutional loyalty.
• Decay of imperial power: The emperor’s failing health and memory contrast with the large-scale military orders he issues, suggesting that his authority remains formidable but increasingly fragile.
• Deception and control of information: The silent dispatch of troops, stolen tokens, disguises, and ambushes demonstrate that the conflict is being fought through secrecy and manipulation as much as open battle.

Character Interactions

• The emperor and Zhao Bingzhong discuss Pan Taidou’s origins and the possible use of his waterworks expertise, with Zhao guiding the emperor toward the flooding strategy.
• The emperor initially hesitates over the destruction the plan would cause but ultimately commands Zhao Bingzhong to proceed.
• Zhao Bingzhong receives the emperor’s approval to mobilize nearly every major military force around the capital.
• The grateful eunuch’s internal conflict culminates in his betrayal of the official mission; he orders the guards killed after leading them into an ambush.
• The disguised attackers then take the guards’ tokens, setting up a likely false mobilization and deepening the struggle over who truly controls the imperial armies.

Chapter Summary: Jianzhang Guards

Key Plot Points and Events

• In the middle of a stormy night, Eunuch Gao Ze arrives at a secluded estate with four identical guards. He is brought before Su Ziji, the Imperial Grandson, who has clearly been expecting him.
• Gao Ze delivers an urgent imperial decree from the Emperor, along with a command token and the two-part Tiger Tally. The Emperor has ordered all military camps and guard units to mobilize in defense of the throne.
• Su Ziji examines the silver command token, engraved “Jianzhang,” and realizes it is not the supreme “As If the Emperor Were Present” token. He therefore cannot immediately command the Jianzhang Guards and must wait for the Imperial Feather Guards.
• Gao Ze also conveys the Empress’s oral decree: Su Ziji’s consort is being kept safely in the Palace of Eternal Joy. He secretly delivers a detailed map of the palace city, including troop positions, checkpoints, schedules, and routes.
• Su Ziji dismisses Xie Hongdao and orders him to visit Prime Minister Zhao Xu. His purpose is not to request assistance, but to monitor Zhao Xu and prevent him from making a dangerous move or becoming entangled with the Demon Race during the unrest.
• At his residence, Zhao Xu senses that something serious has happened in the palace. He reasons that either Prince Qi or Su Ziji may be involved, and worries that the Emperor’s actions are part of a larger succession struggle.
• Zhao Xu concludes that Prince Qi may be in danger and that Su Ziji’s position is equally uncertain. Believing this may be his final chance to see the Emperor, he orders an ox cart, household guards, rain gear, and his command token, then sets out through the storm.

Character Developments

• Su Ziji remains calm, calculating, and confident despite the palace crisis. His careful examination of the imperial instruments shows his awareness of military authority and its limitations. He is already directing events rather than merely reacting to them.
• Gao Ze begins frightened and uncertain but regains composure while delivering the Emperor’s orders. His secret transport of the palace map demonstrates the Empress’s trust and the high stakes of the situation.
• Xie Hongdao is uneasy about being sent to meet the powerful Prime Minister, but Su Ziji reassures him and clarifies his limited mission. He begins to function as Su Ziji’s trusted agent.
• Zhao Xu displays his political experience and intuition. Although he lacks proof, he correctly senses that the palace crisis is connected to the struggle among the Emperor, Prince Qi, and Su Ziji. His decision to act marks a shift from anxious observation to direct involvement.

Significant Themes

• Political intrigue and succession: The chapter centers on a possible coup, imperial succession, and the conflicting interests of the Emperor, Prince Qi, and Imperial Grandson.
• Authority and legitimacy: The imperial decree, command token, Tiger Tally, and different levels of military authorization emphasize that power depends not only on ambition but also on recognized symbols of command.
• Calm amid chaos: The violent rain mirrors the turmoil in the palace, while Su Ziji’s composure contrasts with the uncertainty and panic surrounding him.
• Fate versus strategy: Characters struggle to determine whether events are accidental or the result of long-laid plans. Zhao Xu especially wonders whether the night’s crisis fulfills a destiny already prepared by political tensions.
• Family conflict and moral burden: Zhao Xu is horrified by the possibility of a grandfather, son, and grandson turning against one another, highlighting the personal cost of imperial power struggles.

Character Interactions

• Su Ziji and Gao Ze: Gao Ze submits to Su Ziji and delivers the Emperor’s order, while Su Ziji questions him directly and evaluates the authority he carries.
• Su Ziji and Xie Hongdao: Su Ziji gives Xie a diplomatic surveillance mission and reassures him that he is not being asked to confront Zhao Xu.
• Su Ziji and the Empress: Though they do not meet directly, the Empress supports Su Ziji by protecting his consort and supplying the palace map.
• Zhao Xu and the absent imperial figures: Zhao Xu mentally reconstructs the crisis by considering the Emperor, Prince Qi, and Su Ziji, revealing his uncertainty and concern for all three.
• Zhao Xu and his household: Once he decides to act, he commands his servants and guards decisively, demonstrating his authority and determination to enter the unfolding crisis.