Chapter Summaries

After Jiang Hao’s army routed Liu Chengfeng’s forces, the North Sea Emperor and the Grand Lords debated how to respond and agreed to attack Wuji City while sending troops against Jiang Hao. The Emperor also opened peace talks with the Shenzhou Kingdom, and Chen Song finally left his guesthouse to meet him.

• Wan Huatong and Dan Xiong fled with the surviving Beihai Warriors, while Chubby stopped the pursuit and secured Liu Chengfeng’s camp.
• Wan Huatong and Dan Xiong reported their defeat to the North Sea Emperor and described Jiang Hao and the Self-Defense Army as impossible to kill.
• Violet, Ouyang Long, Sichen, Wang Chongqing, and the other Grand Lords argued over Xiao Lin’s siege of Wuji City and how to deal with Jiang Hao.
• The North Sea Emperor ordered Xiao Lin to attack Wuji City, assigned the Grand Lords to send forces against Jiang Hao, and agreed to receive Shenzhou’s peace negotiators.
• The Grand Lords arranged a force of 170,000 troops led by two Transcendent Masters, with Dan Xiong and Wan Huatong guiding them.
• After nearly a month confined to the guesthouse, Chen Song was summoned to meet the North Sea Emperor and prepared to leave.

Chen Song learned that the North Sea Emperor would only resume peace talks if the two princes disbanded the Shenzhou Self-Defense Army and delivered Jiang Hao to him. Jiang Hao then received Han Su’s decree ordering him to disband the army and return to Shenzhou City for punishment, provoking outrage among his companions.

• Eunuch Hai told Chen Song that Jiang Hao and the Shenzhou Self-Defense Army had disrupted the North Sea Army’s rear.
• The North Sea Emperor questioned whom Chen Song represented and rejected peace talks authorized by the two princes unless they showed sincerity.
• The North Sea Emperor demanded that the princes disband the Self-Defense Army and bring Jiang Hao to him, and Chen Song agreed to relay the demand.
• Jiang Hao monitored the Ant Queen and her growing army while Big Hen remained dormant.
• Han Su sent Jiang Hao a royal decree declaring the Self-Defense Army illegal and ordering him to disband it, bind himself, and return to Shenzhou City.
• Chubby erupted in anger over the decree, while Jiang Hailong warned him to watch his words.

Jiang Hao refused the Eldest Prince’s order to dissolve the Shenzhou Self-Defense Army, and the entire army pledged to stand with him. While his officers planned to secretly move toward Shenzhou City and strike the Northern Barbarians, Jiang Hao caught up with the royal messenger and offered to return in chains.

• Jiang Hao rejected the royal decree, and every member of the Self-Defense Army declared support for him.
• Jiang Hao told the messenger that the army would not disband while the North Sea Army remained, and the messenger agreed to relay his words.
• Qingqing reported that Han Qing supported Jiang Hao and that the Eldest Prince and Second Prince had sent Chen Song to negotiate peace.
• Wen Ruxue proposed that the army pretend to disband and secretly regroup near Shenzhou City, where Jiang Hao planned to attack the Northern Barbarians before dealing with the Cangling Army.
• Jiang Hao left the camp through the Secret Passage with Gongsun Qianxue, then caught up with the messenger and offered to return to Shenzhou City bound.

Jiang Hao submitted to arrest while Jiang Hailong secretly moved the Self-Defense Army toward Ten-Thousand Dragon Mountain. In Shenzhou City, Han Su’s order to disband the army sparked mass protests, and he revealed to Han Min that he had used the order to weaken Han Qing while turning their father against her.

• Jiang Hao let the Messenger bind him and said Gongsun Qianxue was a friend he was taking home.
• Jiang Hailong secretly ordered the Self-Defense Army to leave camp in divided groups and gather at Ten-Thousand Dragon Mountain.
• News that Han Su and Han Min had agreed to disband the Self-Defense Army enraged Shenzhou’s residents, who gathered outside the palace to protest.
• Han Su ordered protesters beaten or imprisoned, but the crowds grew, and he blamed Han Qing for stirring them up.
• Han Su told Han Min that he had exposed their fourth and fifth brothers to their father and used Han Qing’s rescue of their fifth brother to undermine her standing.
• Han Min questioned why Han Su had sent Jiang Hao away instead of recruiting him, and Han Su said preserving the kingdom through peace mattered more.

Jiang Hao traveled through occupied Shenzhou toward Shenzhou City, moved by the suffering of its people, while the Self-Defense Army gathered forces at Ten-Thousand Dragon Mountain. Han Su and Han Min tried to discredit Jiang Hao and suppress public protests, but the people continued to regard him as a hero and the princes as traitors.

• Han Su told Han Min to spread rumors that Jiang Hao was a traitor to calm the crowds, then assaulted a palace maid.
• Jiang Hao’s messenger party traveled safely through enemy territory, and Shenzhou residents welcomed him despite his chains.
• In Hanzhong City, Jiang Hao saw the suffering of elderly people and children and decided that the people of Shenzhou needed truth and hope.
• Zhang Jun brought the Ordinary Battalion and Logistics Department to Ten-Thousand Dragon Mountain, while the Beast Tamer Battalion arrived with more than ten thousand followers.
• Jiang Hailong and Chubby accepted the arriving Beast Tamers into the Self-Defense Army and organized them among the camps.
• Han Min’s rumors failed to disperse the crowds, who praised Jiang Hao’s victories and condemned Han Su’s push for peace negotiations and the army’s disbandment.

Jiang Hao reached Shenzhou City in a prison cart as the Northern Barbarian army advanced to demand his surrender. The Shenzhou Self-Defense Army arrived to confront them, and Jiang Hao broke free and rode Big Hen toward the city.

• Han Su persuaded King Han to give Han Qing three days to consider marrying Xiao Lin in exchange for the Northern Barbarians’ withdrawal.
• Jiang Hao’s return became known in Shenzhou City, and citizens gathered at the north gate as He Qin’s men pursued his prison cart.
• Chief Secretary Wei Chun and City Lord Cai watched from the gate tower as He Qin led a hundred thousand Northern Barbarian troops toward the city.
• Jiang Hao’s thirty-thousand-strong Ordinary Battalion, five-thousand Reserve Force, and forty-thousand-strong Beast Tamer Battalion arrived and faced the Northern Barbarians.
• Jiang Hao freed Big Hen from the prison cart and chains, thanked the Messenger, and rode toward the gate tower as he met Wei Chun’s gaze.

Jiang Hao reunited with the Self-Defense Army and faced He Qin as the battle for Shenzhou began. The Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation devastated the Northern Barbarians while Jiang Hao led a charge into their ranks.

• Jiang Hao reunited with Jiang Hailong, Chubby, Wen Ruxue, and Song Jie, then confronted He Qin before the armies clashed.
• He Qin ordered his hundred-thousand-strong army to advance, while Zhang Jun arranged the Self-Defense Army’s ordinary soldiers into the Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation.
• The formation trapped and slaughtered thousands of Northern Barbarians, astonishing the defenders watching from the City Wall.
• Jiang Hao charged at the enemy on Big Hen with Chubby and the others following, using Fire Whirlwind and Wind Orb to kill Northern Barbarians in his path.

Jiang Hao and the Shenzhou forces battled He Qin’s Northern Barbarian army as City Lord Cai Tianming joined the fight and challenged He Qin. Jiang Hao and Cai wounded and repeatedly disabled He Qin, but the battle remained unresolved as He Qin was stunned again.

• Jiang Hao’s Beast Tamer Battalion overwhelmed the Northern Barbarians, then focused its attacks on their Frost Snow Wolves after discovering their Absolute Ice Seal skill could kill soldiers.
• Jiang Hao unleashed hundreds of thousands of Army Ants, forcing He Qin to enter Fusion and attack him; City Lord Cai Tianming led twenty thousand Beast Tamers out from Shenzhou City.
• Cai Tianming struck He Qin with his Lion-Tiger Beast and fought him in the air, but He Qin wounded Cai and knocked him into a crater before preparing to use Absolute Ice Seal.
• Jiang Hao paralyzed He Qin with Thunderbolt Spell and trapped him in midair with Lure, then attacked him with a barrage of skills while Cai recovered.
• He Qin’s Absolute Ice Seal defeated Big Hen’s Nine Heavens Phoenix Dance, but Cai wounded He Qin with Wind Blades and called on Jiang Hao to hold him still.
• Jiang Hao struck He Qin with Thunderbolt Spell and Electrocution Spell, leaving him dazed and unable to move.

Jiang Hao and the Self-Defense Army routed the Northern Barbarians, and Jiang Hao killed He Qin after the wounded commander was caught in his spell. As the Self-Defense Army prepared to attack the enemy camp, Han Su tried to lure Jiang Hao into Shenzhou City, but Jiang Hao refused.

• Gongsun Qianxue saved He Qin from Cai Tianming’s Flying Dragon Slash, and Jiang Hao shouted after her as the Northern Barbarians began to retreat.
• Jiang Hao’s spells shattered He Qin’s ice defense and burned him to ashes, earning cheers from the Self-Defense Army and Shenzhou Army.
• Jiang Hao ordered the Northern Barbarians’ camp surrounded and the army to attack at dawn, then collapsed from exhaustion.
• Wei Chun welcomed Cai Tianming back to Shenzhou City, while Zhang Jun and Chen Xiaolin camped outside the city and their soldiers caught Northern Barbarians trying to flee that night.
• Han Su grew jealous of the Self-Defense Army’s support for Han Qing and planned to arrange her marriage, then invited Jiang Hao into the city to receive rewards.
• Jiang Hao rejected Han Su’s invitation, saying he still had to destroy the remnants of the Northern Barbarians’ army.

Jiang Hao and the Self-Defense Army annihilated He Qin’s forces, ended the siege of Shenzhou, and forced the Cangling Kingdom’s army to retreat. King Han then recognized Jiang Hao’s achievements by making him Champion Marquis and a first-rank grand general, granting the Self-Defense Army independent corps status and rewarding its commanders.

• Jiang Hao led the Self-Defense Army in a day-and-night battle that annihilated He Qin’s Northern Barbarian forces without letting any escape.
• The Cangling Kingdom’s troops withdrew from Ten-Thousand Dragon Mountain, and Shenzhou City emerged from its months-long isolation.
• Jiang Hao and his commanders answered King Han’s summons and appeared before the court, where Jiang Hao reunited eyes with Han Qing.
• King Han said Dragon Venerable’s merits would offset Jiang Hao’s past offenses, then made Jiang Hao Champion Marquis and a first-rank grand general.
• King Han allowed the Self-Defense Army to form an independent corps and granted titles and military appointments to Guo Dundun, Jiang Hailong, and other commanders.

At the state banquet, Jiang Hao deflected Han Su’s attempts to befriend him while officials crowded around to congratulate and court him. Han Qing led Jiang Hao to her sleeping palace to bathe and change for the banquet, where he accidentally pulled her into the bathing tub.

• Han Su tried to recruit Jiang Hao, Chubby, and Jiang Hailong, then turned his attention to Wen Ruxue and the other women.
• Wei Chun and Cai Tianming rescued Jiang Hao from officials seeking his acquaintance, and Cai teased him about potential marriage matches.
• Han Qing borrowed Jiang Hao from Wei Chun and Cai Tianming and took him to Flower-Watching Hall to change out of his armor.
• Jiang Hao bathed alone, fell asleep in the tub, and instinctively pulled Han Qing into the water when she touched him.
• Han Qing covered her chest while crouching in the tub, with one hand still held by Jiang Hao.

After an intimate moment, Jiang Hao attended King Han’s state banquet with Han Qing and learned she was being pressured to marry Xiao Lin for the kingdom’s sake. Han Qing revealed her betrothal, and Jiang Hao stood to claim he was the man she had pledged herself to.

• Han Qing helped Jiang Hao put on silver armor and reminded him not to forget their betrothal amid the temptations he would face.
• At the state banquet, the assembled dignitaries praised Jiang Hao’s military achievements while King Han presided over the feast.
• Han Su demanded that Han Qing choose between marrying Xiao Lin and another demand tied to the kingdom’s negotiations.
• Zhang Jincheng argued that Han Qing should marry for the country, and she announced that she had already been betrothed to someone a year earlier.
• Han Su challenged Han Qing to name her betrothed, and Jiang Hao rose and said that it was him.

At the state banquet, Han Su tried to block Han Qing and Jiang Hao’s marriage by accusing Jiang Hao of getting Gongsun Qianxue pregnant. Han Qing challenged Qianxue’s story with projected footage of her at an enemy camp, then confronted Wen Ruxue with evidence linking her to a disparaging article about Jiang Hao, leaving Ruxue under pressure to explain.

• Jiang Hao and Han Qing revealed their betrothal, and King Han confirmed that they would marry after Jiang Hao ended the war.
• Han Su accused Jiang Hao of violating Gongsun Qianxue and leaving her pregnant, and Qianxue confirmed that the child was his.
• Han Qing stood by Jiang Hao and questioned Qianxue, who claimed Jiang Hao had imprisoned her in an ice cave and named Wen Ruxue as her witness.
• Han Qing’s black-veiled attendant projected footage showing Qianxue entering and leaving the enemy camp with an unidentified man, whom Han Qing suspected was Xiao Lin.
• Qianxue denied visiting the enemy camp and appealed to Wen Ruxue, while Han Qing presented Ruxue with a newspaper article attacking Jiang Hao and demanded she identify it.

Han Qing exposed Gongsun Qianxue’s treason and cleared Jiang Hao’s name, while King Han punished Gongsun Qianxue and Han Su. After the state banquet, the Self-Defense Army began recruiting and received royal supplies and funding as it prepared to expand.

• Han Qing presented witnesses and evidence proving Gongsun Qianxue had spread treason accusations against Jiang Hao and colluded with the enemy.
• King Han ordered Gongsun Qianxue imprisoned, condemned her accomplices to beheading, and confined Han Su to his bedchamber.
• Consort Qu blessed Han Qing and Jiang Hao’s relationship, and Jiang Hao thanked Han Qing for defending him.
• After the banquet, Chubby and Zhang Jun began recruiting Beast Tamers and ordinary soldiers for the Self-Defense Army.
• The court sent the Self-Defense Army generous funding, supplies, food, and rewards in recognition of its recent victory.

Jiang Hao expanded and reorganized the Self-Defense Army before splitting it into three routes to retake territory and clear the Northern Barbarians from the region. After the North Sea Kingdom rallied eight hundred thousand troops behind Xiao Lin, he captured Wuji City, leaving Long Yun defeated and the city fallen.

• Jiang Hao promoted new commanders, expanded the army, and arranged for injured veterans to settle in Shenzhou City.
• Jiang Hao teased Yang Di about Cai Ling'er, and Yang Di revealed that she had given him a Peace Knot Charm.
• Jiang Hao, Chubby, and Liu Zhiwei led three separate forces toward enemy-held cities while Yang Di flew to the Wuji Mountains.
• Xiao Lin launched an all-out assault on Wuji City after learning that Jiang Hao had destroyed He Qin's army, and the North Sea Emperor ordered the kingdom to mobilize against Shenzhou.
• The sixteen Grand Lords compelled the North Sea lords to send eight hundred thousand troops, and Xiao Lin captured Wuji City after a month-long siege.
• Xiao Lin's reinforcements helped defeat Long Yun's defenders; one Transcendent Master died, two were wounded, and Long Yun's beast pet was killed.

Jiang Hao delayed his advance on Ghost Gate City to strengthen Big Hen and prepare a siege, while the Northern Barbarians used the city's civilians as forced defenders. After the Army Ants completed a secret tunnel, Jiang Hao planned a surprise assault and offered Gongsun Qianxun a possible way to save her sister through useful intelligence; the chapter ended as his army approached the city and its frightened defenders prepared for battle.

• Jiang Hao struggled to raise Big Hen's level and spent over half a month advancing toward Ghost Gate City while gathering siege materials.
• The Northern Barbarians forced Ghost Gate City's civilians to help defend the walls, and Jiang Hao's army spent five days building siege equipment.
• Jiang Hao's Army Ants dug a three-li-long tunnel into the city, and Gongsun Qianxun asked him to help save Gongsun Qianxue.
• Jiang Hao said Gongsun Qianxue might atone by providing useful intelligence on Xiao Lin's camp, then assigned Wu Fan and Shen Zaitian roles in the coming assault.
• Jiang Hao's army approached Ghost Gate City, where the Northern Barbarians ordered the frightened civilians to prepare weapons and defenses.

The Self-Defense Army retook Ghost Gate City after Gongsun Qianxun opened its gate from a secret tunnel and the troops fought through the Northern Barbarian defenders. Jiang Hao began rebuilding his forces for the approaching invasion by recruiting rescued Beast Tamers and volunteers, while King Han formed the Shenzhou Ace Army to join him.

• Gongsun Qianxun led a group through a secret tunnel, broke into Ghost Gate City, and fought a werewolf while the Self-Defense Army forced open the gate.
• Shen Zaitian led troops across the moat and up the walls as the infantry entered the city; the civilians turned against the Northern Barbarians, helping the army overwhelm them.
• Gongsun Qianxun killed the werewolf after a prolonged fight, and the battle for Ghost Gate City ended at daybreak with the last enemy dead.
• Jiang Hao ordered his soldiers not to mistreat civilians, then learned that more than four thousand captured Beast Tamers had survived and agreed to take them in.
• Jiang Hao arranged for civilian volunteers to register for the Reserve Force, while King Han ordered the formation of the Shenzhou Ace Army to help oppose Xiao Lin’s army of eight hundred thousand.

After an assassin’s attempt on Gongsun Qianxue’s life, she confessed how she had helped Xiao Lin and revealed that his beloved older sister was Nalan Hongchuo, the Beihai Female Prophet. Han Qing reported the intelligence to King Han, who dismissed her unauthorized promise of clemency, then unsettled her by asking which of her elder brothers could shoulder responsibility.

• Han Su sent an assassin to kill Gongsun Qianxue, but Han Qing and Qingqing caught him in the act, and he killed himself.
• Gongsun Qianxue confessed that Xiao Lin had used her to frame Jiang Hao and recounted how she had aided the Northern Barbarians and conspired with Xiao Lin.
• Han Qing offered Gongsun Qianxue exile instead of death if she provided information, and Gongsun Qianxue revealed that Xiao Lin deeply cared for his older sister, Nalan Hongchuo.
• Han Qing ordered Qingqing to protect Gongsun Qianxue and quietly investigate Nalan Hongchuo, then decided to tell Marquis Jiang about the revelation.
• Han Qing informed King Han about Gongsun Qianxue’s confession, and he let her decide Gongsun Qianxue’s fate.
• King Han asked Han Qing which of her two elder brothers was more capable of shouldering responsibility, leaving her unsure whether he was testing her or had ruled her out as an heir.

Han Qing received an ultimatum from King Han to kill Han Jing or lose her claim to the throne, while Jiang Hao learned of a possible lead involving Nalan Hongchuo and Xiao Lin and devised a plan. His army launched an assault on Worry-Free City, where the Shao Lineage’s flying Beast Tamers infiltrated the city and began coordinating with its people to attack the Northern Barbarians.

• King Han accused Han Qing of sheltering Han Jing and gave her one month to kill him or abandon her claim to the throne.
• Han Qing worried over her mother's possible betrayal and briefly imagined Jiang Hao being unfaithful to her.
• Jiang Hao received Han Qing's report about Nalan Hongchuo and Xiao Lin, then sent a secret letter to Guo Dundun, who abandoned his advance on Hengshui City and disappeared.
• Jiang Hao marched from Ghost Gate City toward Worry-Free City and ordered an all-out assault after his army camped and scouted the city's defenses.
• Shen Zaitian explained that 230 flying Beast Tamers belonged to the Shao Lineage, and Jiang Hao sent them to carry troops over Worry-Free City's wall.
• Over a thousand Beast Tamers entered the city, and local civilians guided them toward the Northern Barbarians' camp while setting fires to confuse the pursuers.

Jiang Hao returned to the Ice Cave Military Camp after the Self-Defense Army helped take the city and withdrew from the front, leaving Han Min to face Xiao Lin. Chen Qianshu revealed a scarce potion that could regenerate wounds, while Jiang Hao prepared a secret route to strike the North Sea Kingdom and force Xiao Lin to choose between advancing and turning back.

• The Self-Defense Army rescued prisoners, captured most of the city wall, and drove the Northern Barbarians toward the gate tower as the enemy abandoned other cities to join Xiao Lin.
• Han Min led the Ace Army after Jiang Hao, then learned that Jiang Hao and Liu Zhiwei had withdrawn; his generals reassured him that Jiang Hao might be planning a flanking attack.
• Jiang Hao returned to the Ice Cave Military Camp, where Chen Qianshu showed him a potion made with Seven-Tribulation Earth Essence that let a hare recover from fatal wounds and return to life.
• Chen Qianshu estimated that the remaining Seven-Tribulation Earth Essence could produce ten bottles, enough for a thousand people, and Jiang Hao ordered him to make all the potions.
• Jiang Hao went to Cave No. 399, where Chubby's men were digging a secret passage toward Wumeng City so the Self-Defense Army could bypass enemy scouts and threaten the Han Palace Royal Court.