Chapter Summaries

Feng Shuo explained that he was content to leave the battle’s leading credit to Xu Zifeng and handle smaller duties. The Heavenly Strategy Army ambushed and crushed Sergei’s cavalry, but Sergei escaped with help from a powerful Shaman phantom, whose intervention Zhou Meng and Xu Zifeng concealed by blaming a Great Luo Shaman.

• Feng Shuo told Batu that he knew his limits and preferred to handle minor tasks rather than interfere with Commandant Cheng’s plans.
• Sergei ordered his cavalry to charge Cold Iron Pass despite a warning that the Heavenly Strategy Army had spotted them.
• Heavenly Strategy’s formations and Xu Zifeng’s ambush devastated the Great Luo cavalry, leaving more than seven thousand dead and about twelve thousand to surrender.
• Sergei activated the Spirit Talisman from Master Urge, and a Shaman phantom blasted open a passage that let Sergei and a few dozen guards escape.
• Zhou Meng wondered whether Commandant Cheng had made the strike, but Xu Zifeng insisted they describe the rescuer as a Great Luo Shaman.

Li Chen, disguised as Master Urge, found Sergei after his defeat and turned the general’s guilt into renewed ambition for power. Sergei ended the chapter convinced that his failure came from lacking authority and resources, while Li Chen urged him to pursue his ambitions without fear.

• Zhou Meng accidentally spoke disrespectfully of Li Chen, then worried that the nearby soldiers had heard him.
• Sergei’s surviving soldiers blamed him for the failed attack on Cold Iron Pass, and Sergei silently accepted responsibility for the disastrous defeat.
• Li Chen appeared in the enemy camp as Master Urge, and Sergei thanked him for rescuing him and confessed his regrets.
• Li Chen argued that Sergei had failed because he lacked sufficient troops, support, and authority, rather than because his plans were poor.
• Li Chen urged Sergei to seek power and promised to support him, rekindling Sergei’s ambition.

After Li Chen restored Sergei’s confidence, Sergei withdrew his defeated troops to Winterhold and enlisted his mother’s support by blaming Tuoba Zhen for the loss. His father, Grand Duke Andrei, returned that evening, leaving Sergei’s account of the defeat yet to be heard by him.

• Li Chen left after urging Sergei to cultivate and call on him when needed, and Sergei resolved that he had done nothing wrong.
• Sergei ordered his remaining troops to return to his father’s fief and threatened a deputy general who questioned the order.
• Sergei planned to blame Tuoba Zhen and disobedient officers for the defeat, then arrived at Winterhold several days later.
• Sergei went to his mother, Yekaterina, and falsely accused Tuoba Zhen of sabotaging him and giving him weak troops.
• Yekaterina promised to defend Sergei to Grand Duke Andrei, who returned to Winterhold that evening.

Andrei blamed Sergei for the loss of twenty thousand soldiers, confined him, and began considering another heir. Angry and convinced he needed more power, Sergei summoned Master Urge, whose arrival persuaded Lady Yekaterina that he was a genuine great shaman.

• Andrei identified Sergei’s unauthorized reconnaissance change and reckless attack as the cause of the ambush and the soldiers’ deaths.
• Andrei rejected Sergei’s excuses, ordered him confined, and considered choosing his younger son as heir.
• Sergei learned his younger brother had been sent to serve under Tuoba Zhen and noticed a bruise on Yekaterina’s wrist, deepening his resentment toward Andrei.
• Sergei decided to seek help from Master Urge and activated the Sensing Talisman.
• Li Chen arrived at Winterhold disguised as Master Urge, and the defending general admitted him into the city.
• Sergei welcomed Master Urge at the residence, where Yekaterina’s doubts vanished when she felt his imposing presence.

Li Chen urged Sergei to secretly build popular support and loyal forces so he could seize the grand duke’s seat while his father and brother focused on the Southern Expedition. He claimed he knew the Emperor of Heavenly Strategy and told Sergei to offer double or triple the ransom for captured soldiers, leaving Sergei confused about why he should pay more.

• Sergei told Li Chen that his father had berated him, confined him, and might name his younger brother heir.
• Li Chen advised Sergei to spread opposition to the war, win the fief’s support, and ransom captured soldiers to build a loyal power base.
• Sergei agreed to pursue the grand duke’s seat and asked how he could negotiate with Heavenly Strategy during wartime.
• Li Chen claimed he knew the Emperor of Heavenly Strategy, the Sea Emperor, and the Pope of the Eternal Day Empire.
• Sergei asked Li Chen to secure a discount on the ransom, but Li Chen told him to offer double or triple instead.

Li Chen manipulated Sergei into raising an exorbitant ransom and arranged for the Northern Army to release the captured Daluo soldiers, while remaining in Winterhold to support Sergei’s bid for power. After healing Lady Yekaterina’s neck, Li Chen heard Sergei boast to his mother that his master was allied with the continent’s greatest rulers.

• Li Chen persuaded Sergei that paying an enormous ransom would win the soldiers’ loyalty, then urged him to raise the money by any means necessary.
• Sergei agreed to find the funds and asked Li Chen to negotiate with the Emperor of Heavenly Strategy on his behalf.
• Li Chen secretly instructed Han Wu to charge Sergei a high ransom and release the captured Daluo soldiers.
• Li Chen stayed in Sergei’s household, where Lady Yekaterina brought him pastries and wine; he healed a mark on her neck.
• Sergei returned excited about raising funds and told Yekaterina that his powerful master was friends with the Emperor of Heavenly Strategy, the Sea Emperor, and the Pope.

Sergei's mother Yekaterina warned him to repay Master Urge's support and helped him search for ways to please him. Sergei's attempts with treasures and women failed to reveal his master's preferences, and the chapter ended as Master Urge's pressure frightened a group of noblewomen.

• Yekaterina reminded Sergei that Master Urge had saved and supported him, and urged him to show gratitude before his master took another disciple.
• Sergei invited Master Urge into the Lineage's Treasure Repository, but Master Urge showed little interest in its treasures.
• Sergei arranged a lavish banquet, and Master Urge enjoyed the music and wine but dismissed the dancing girls as noisy.
• Yekaterina suggested that Master Urge might prefer women of exceptional beauty and status, so she helped Sergei assemble groups of young noblewomen and widows.
• Master Urge's expression darkened as the women approached, and an invisible pressure left them pale and trembling.

Li Chen learned that Sergei had arranged negotiations with Heavenly Strategy to ransom the prisoners and heard Yekaterina's warning about Grand Duke Andrei's strategist, Vasily. Yekaterina then asked Li Chen to examine her, and he began treating her supposed old injuries.

• Li Chen reprimanded Sergei for neglecting his duties, and Sergei reported that Heavenly Strategy had agreed to release the prisoners for a large ransom.
• Yekaterina brought Li Chen wine and pastries, apologized for Sergei, and told him that Andrei relied heavily on Vasily, whom she distrusted.
• Yekaterina explained that Sergei's younger brother Alexei was backed by a powerful count's family and criticized him as a wastrel.
• Li Chen asked about Yekaterina's wound, and she showed him that it had healed.
• Yekaterina revealed more of herself and asked Li Chen to examine other old injuries, so he began treating her.

Sergei strengthened his standing by ransoming and organizing captive veterans, while Li Chen uncovered Emperor Ivan’s scheme and considered how to use Vasily to bring down the Great Luo Dynasty from within. Li Chen’s plan was to make Sergei emperor as his puppet, and the chapter left the story at Grand Duke Andrei’s camp near the front lines.

• Sergei paid Han Wu an enormous ransom for nearly twenty thousand captured soldiers, who became loyal to him after returning home.
• Sergei secretly settled and trained the veterans as a force loyal only to him, while telling Yekaterina he believed Master Urge favored his diligent efforts.
• Li Chen infiltrated one of Vasily’s secret bases and intercepted communications revealing that Vasily was Emperor Ivan’s long-planted spy beside Grand Duke Andrei.
• Li Chen learned that Ivan had pushed Andrei to support Tuoba Zhen so he could claim victory if the plan succeeded or blame Andrei and Tuoba Zhen if it failed.
• Li Chen decided to use Vasily to advance his goal of placing Sergei on Daluo’s throne and controlling the dynasty through him.

Grand Duke Andrei let Sergei build his strength, mistaking his ambitions for a bid to regain favor. Vasily tried to exploit Yekaterina, but after she rejected him, Li Chen returned and offered to help her vent her anger.

• A spy reported Sergei's peace campaign, prisoner ransoms, and troop training to Grand Duke Andrei, who chose not to restrain him.
• Vasily secretly returned to Winterhold and offered Yekaterina help with Sergei's affairs while making his lustful intentions clear.
• Yekaterina coldly dismissed Vasily, who left furious and plotted to seize control of her after Andrei's downfall.
• Li Chen returned, learned about Vasily's visit, and asked Yekaterina if she wanted to vent her anger.

Li Chen carried out a plan with Yekaterina to punish Vasily by cursing him with a demon ape attack, leaving him unconscious and near death. Grand Duke Andrei returned to Winterhold to see Vasily, disrupting Li Chen’s plan to enter the residence disguised as a healer.

• Yekaterina agreed to help Li Chen take revenge on Vasily, and Li Chen explained his plan to her.
• Li Chen subdued a snowy mountain demon ape, planted a curse in it, and lured it onto Vasily’s travel route.
• The cursed demon ape attacked Vasily’s convoy, killed or injured many guards, and left Vasily gravely wounded and cursed.
• Shamans failed to treat Vasily, whose curse continued to weaken him while he remained unconscious.
• Grand Duke Andrei left the front lines and returned to Winterhold to visit Vasily, disrupting Li Chen’s plan to enter the residence as Master Urge and treat him.

After Andrei fell into the same coma as Vasily, Sergei took temporary control of Winterhold and purged his opponents while Alexei was trapped at the front. Li Chen directed Sergei’s consolidation of power and turned his attention to Vasily’s wives and concubines, especially Katrian, whose heart he said he did not need to win.

• Yekaterina told Li Chen that Andrei had returned and visited Vasily, and Li Chen decided to adapt his plan.
• News spread that Andrei had fallen into a coma after contracting Vasily’s curse, and Sergei assumed his father’s duties.
• Sergei’s veterans crushed opposition to his rule, while the Heavenly Strategy Army’s counterattack prevented Alexei from returning to Winterhold.
• Sergei placed Andrei and Vasily under guard in the manor’s rear courtyard and moved Vasily’s wives and concubines into adjoining quarters.
• Li Chen examined Anastasia, Darya, and Katrian, then told Yekaterina that he did not need to conquer Katrian’s heart.

Anastasia and Darya realized they were confined in Grand Duke Andrei’s estate and suspected Sergei was using the appearance of saving his father to strengthen his hold on power. They decided to appeal directly to Master Urge to spare Vasily once Sergei had secured his position.

• Anastasia and Darya discussed their confinement, and Darya revealed that Vasily had secretly served the Emperor as an agent at Grand Duke Andrei’s side.
• Anastasia and Darya saw Katrian warmly conversing with the shaman Master Urge and suspected she was currying favor with Sergei’s powerful new ally.
• Madam Yekaterina told them that Sergei had invited Master Urge to use his powers to save Grand Duke Andrei.
• Darya reported that Master Urge had briefly awakened Grand Duke Andrei with a healing spell, but Anastasia reasoned that Sergei would not allow his father to recover and reclaim power.
• Anastasia concluded that Sergei’s show of seeking a Saint was meant to impress his father’s loyal retainers and protect his own rule, so she and Darya planned to ask Master Urge to spare Vasily.

Li Chen, posing as Master Urge, learned about the Northern Elf Shaman tradition from Katrian while Anastasia and Darya struggled to find a way to win his help for Vasily. After learning that Li Chen wanted to visit Katrian’s tribe, the three women began planning the journey, unaware that it could bring him an unexpected reward.

• Anastasia told Darya that their beauty was the only asset they could use to persuade someone important to help them.
• Katrian approached Li Chen, sensed the nature spirits around him, and respectfully spoke with him about Shamanism.
• Li Chen questioned Katrian about Northern Elf traditions, her diluted bloodline, and her ancestors’ journey from the stars.
• Yekaterina, Anastasia, and Darya saw Li Chen and Katrian discussing Shaman lore and mistook his scholarly interest for proof of his lofty character.
• Katrian told Anastasia and Darya that Li Chen wanted to visit her tribe, prompting the three women to plan how to accompany him.
• Li Chen considered whether Katrian’s heritage could help him reach the world of the Myriad Races, unaware the trip would bring an unexpected reward.

As Sergei cut off Tuoba Zhen’s supplies on Li Chen’s orders, the Heavenly Strategy Dynasty launched a massive invasion of the Great Luo Dynasty. In the Imperial Capital, Emperor Ivan weighed the cost of war as ministers urged him to blame Grand Duke Andrei and seek peace.

• Sergei halted provisions and weapons for Tuoba Zhen’s army and withdrew Grand Duke Andrei’s troops from a vital supply corridor.
• Tuoba Zhen considered retaliating against Sergei, sent urgent requests for supplies and punishment to Emperor Ivan, and refrained from marching north.
• Li Chen’s reassurance that Tuoba Zhen could not reach Sergei proved true when the Heavenly Strategy Dynasty launched a full-scale invasion with one and a half million troops.
• The invasion overwhelmed the Great Luo Southern Army’s already strained defenses, prompting urgent appeals for reinforcements to reach the Imperial Capital.
• Emperor Ivan asked his ministers how to respond to the invasion, and the pro-peace faction urged him to strip Grand Duke Andrei of his title and order the southern troops to withdraw.

After Ivan ordered Grand Duke Andrei sacrificed to end the war, Li Chen urged Sergei to expose the emperor’s secret role and turn the decree against him. The chapter ended with Sergei preparing to publicly accuse Ivan.

• Ivan ordered Andrei’s crimes blamed on him alone and sent him to the Heavenly Strategy Army as a gesture of peace, while threatening to fight if they refused.
• Li Chen discussed Katrian’s northern tribe with Anastasia, Darya, and other noblewomen when Sergei arrived with news of Ivan’s decree.
• The women panicked over Andrei’s fate and feared for their husbands, but Li Chen calmed them by suggesting Andrei must have prepared a fallback.
• Li Chen led Sergei to the Council Hall and told him to publicly reveal that Ivan had secretly incited and approved Andrei’s actions.

Li Chen persuaded Sergei to turn Emperor Ivan’s demand to surrender Grand Duke Andrei into an open rebellion, promising support and a chance at the throne. Sergei rallied Andrei’s former retainers and prepared to seek neutrality from neighboring lords as he committed himself to the campaign.

• Li Chen reassured Sergei that he could seek help from the Emperor of Heavenly Strategy and tempted him with the prospect of becoming emperor of the Great Luo Dynasty.
• Sergei rallied his generals and officials by denouncing Emperor Ivan and warning that Andrei’s former retainers would be purged, prompting them to vow their loyalty and call for the emperor’s overthrow.
• Li Chen instructed Sergei to send envoys with gifts and his token to neighboring lords and Ivan’s rivals, asking them to remain neutral or delay their forces.
• Sergei worried that openly rebelling would invite attacks and recalled his defeat at Cold Iron Pass, but Li Chen urged him to act and promised to protect his life.
• Sergei overcame his hesitation, trusted Li Chen, and resolved to follow his master’s plan.

Li Chen taught Sergei how to build support for his rebellion against Emperor Ivan and exploit rival princes to claim the Great Luo throne. As Li Chen left Sergei’s quarters, he sensed assassins nearby and silently killed them before they could strike.

• Sergei swore to repay Li Chen by either conquering the Holy Capital or dying in battle.
• Li Chen advised Sergei to use Andrei’s mistreatment as a righteous cause and rally nobles and generals against Ivan.
• Li Chen urged Sergei to secretly enlist ambitious princes, promising to support one as emperor before arranging for him to die or abdicate.
• Li Chen warned Sergei to project confidence so his commanders would keep faith in the rebellion.
• Li Chen detected assassins lurking near Sergei’s quarters and killed them from the shadows.

After Tuoba Zhen’s assassination squad was wiped out and his forces suffered heavy defeats, he chose to abandon the southern front and retreat west with his loyal troops. Meanwhile, Sergei marched north with a quarter million soldiers toward the Holy Capital, leaving Ivan trapped between the Heavenly Strategy Army and a rebellion in his rear.

• Tuoba Zhen learned that his Death Squad had been destroyed and that Heavenly Strategy had captured two fortresses and broken through his defenses.
• Tuoba Zhen blamed Ivan’s indecision and ordered his loyal troops to leave the battlefield under the pretext of a flanking attack, then conquer western territories to rebuild their strength.
• Tuoba Zhen did not realize that Master Urge was actually Li Chen, and Ivan remained unaware that Tuoba Zhen was abandoning the southern line.
• Tuoba Zhen’s withdrawal opened a major gap in Daluo’s defenses, allowing the Heavenly Strategy Army to advance rapidly.
• Sergei led a quarter million troops north toward the Holy Capital, while many local lords and generals let his force pass or secretly aided it.

Ivan’s efforts to mobilize troops against the rebels were obstructed, while Li Chen left the political turmoil behind and traveled north with his companions. When a blizzard trapped the party in an ice cave, Anastasia joined Li Chen in his tent to warm up.

• Ivan issued urgent orders to encircle the rebels, but interference and delays kept the troops from advancing.
• Li Chen led Yekaterina, Anastasia, Darya, and Katrian north toward Katrian’s tribe to investigate its unusual bloodline.
• Katrian guided the party across the snowfields on Snow Camel Beasts and found them shelter in an ice cave when a sudden storm struck.
• After their heating devices ran out of energy, Yekaterina went into Li Chen’s tent, and Anastasia later followed to warm herself with him.
• The blizzard continued through the night as Anastasia fell asleep exhausted in Li Chen’s tent.