Li Zhenwei

Biodata

Background / History

Early Military Service

Li Zhenwei came from the Li Household of Wuyang Town, a hereditary military family whose ancestors included three generals. His father, Li Kuo, was also an old soldier 64.

Li Zhenwei began as a common soldier. He shared meals, quarters, and ambitions with a close comrade who could mend leather armor and requench arrowheads. During a scouting mission, they encountered a powerful enemy spearman in the woods outside Cangzhou City. Unable to overcome him, Li’s comrade deliberately caught the spear through his own body, giving Li an opening to sever the enemy’s arm. Li’s saber broke in the attack, and his mortally wounded companion entrusted him with his own weapon 16 18.

The spearman was later identified as an enemy general. The encounter earned Li merit and a promotion, but he never found the man again. He carried his fallen comrade’s saber through years of campaigning until a Northern Di heavy cavalryman’s spiked club severely cracked it in a battle before New Year 16.

The spearman was eventually revealed to be Helian Zheng, the commander of the Iron Pagoda. Their first encounter occurred ten years before their final duel, when Li had been a common soldier two years into his service. Li’s subsequent rise through the Northern Army was driven in part by his desire to gain the merit, intelligence, and connections necessary to find his enemy 59.

Finding Qin Tiexin

While home on family leave, Li accepted County Magistrate Wang Mingyuan’s recommendation to consult the Heavenly Craft Workshop. Its master smith dismissed the saber as beyond practical repair, repeating the verdict of military craftsmen who had already examined it. Li refused to treat the weapon as replaceable because it preserved his comrade’s memory and unfinished final request 13 15.

After hearing that a billhook made by Qin Tiexin had cut through a workshop saber, Li ordered his personal guard to investigate the young smith. Impressed by Qin’s workmanship and perseverance despite bereavement, debt, and hunger, he visited in inconspicuous clothes and initially introduced himself only by his surname 15 16.

Qin agreed to attempt a repair without guaranteeing success. Li supplied food, discussed his handling of the saber, and obtained Ice Soul Stone, Fire Pattern Stone, and Cloud Silver from Northern Army stores. During the three-day forging, he concentrated on memories of his comrade and poured his intent into the weapon while Qin restored its damaged structure and preserved its original Intent 16 17 18.

Recruitment and Protection

Li tested the restored saber by purchasing the Heavenly Craft Workshop’s Armor-Piercing Spear and cutting through its refined-steel shaft in public. He then revealed his military identity and invited Qin to join the army’s craftsmen’s battalion, valuing both his smithing and his stubborn, disciplined character 19.

When Qin hesitated out of loyalty to his late master’s shop, Li gave him ten days to decide and promised to resolve the county office’s fine. He offered fifty taels for the repair; Qin accepted only five as payment, while Li left the remaining forty-five as an advance on military pay. His intervention also blocked Zhao Xuan’s attempt to seize the shop through official pressure 19 24.

On the appointed departure day, Li intercepted two poisoned needles aimed at Qin, who blocked a third with Edgeless. Li pursued the attacker toward the Heavenly Craft Workshop, confronted Zhao Xuan, and threatened retaliation if either Qin or his shop suffered harm. He subsequently accepted Qin’s written IOU for the forty-five taels and brought their departure forward 25 26.

Li escorted Qin north, arranged his opportunity to ride Black Cloud, and explained the frontier war during the journey. At Xinyang Pass, he instructed Commandant Sun to settle Qin in the Craftsmen’s Camp while he reported to central command 27 28.

The Secret Strike Force

After testing a new armor-piercing arrowhead bearing the mark of Qin’s workshop group, Li reconsidered him for military selection. He secured Li Xun’s authorization to form a fifty-man force intended to strike Yelü Hongshan’s central army, with six months to prepare it. He recommended Qin for his strength, smithing, steadiness, and clean background, which made him unlikely to attract Northern Di spies’ attention 35 37.

Li oversaw a selection process beginning with one hundred candidates. Its trials included a timed mountain crossing with stone-filled packs, a teamwork exercise against veterans, and a final flag-capture battle. Qin passed after defeating Sun Yun and raising the flag 38 39.

Working with Shi Meng, Li taught strategy, supervised increasingly severe training, and enforced secrecy when recruits returned to their original camps. He believed the fifty soldiers could become worth thousands and help end the war, while explicitly telling them that he wanted them to survive their missions 41 43 46.

Over four months, Li assembled specialist instructors to teach stealth, swimming, close combat, the Di language, drugging, lock-picking, and disguise. The training drew on scouts, watermen, veterans, clerks, and a retired undercover operative 46.

Qin’s Return to Combat

Li ordered Team A’s first lethal mission when Northern Di patrols threatened to expose the training camp. After Qin suffered nightmares and loss of appetite following his first kill, Li agreed with Zhou Cang that he should temporarily stop training 46 47.

When Qin returned, Li tested his response to blood by making a shallow cut on his own hand. Qin’s report of Night Scouts near Team A’s mission site then alerted Li that the supposedly ordinary enemy patrol could be elite troops. He sent Qin ahead on Black Cloud while assembling light cavalry reinforcements 49.

After Qin returned with Helian Zhen’s remains, Li praised him and ordered him to rest and eat his fill 50.

After Team A returned wounded from rescuing two captured scouts, Li again praised Qin’s saber work. He emphasized that the support of comrades protecting one another, rather than individual speed alone, made the fastest blade 53.

The Final Hunt

During the battle against Yelü Hongshan’s invading army, Li gathered the available members of Team A under Li Xun’s orders and led them behind enemy lines. Already wounded in his left arm, he used a blood-soaked map obtained at the cost of a scout’s life to explain their mission: destroy four Night Scouts command posts, then intercept Yelü Hongshan along his retreat route 57.

The force used disguise to take the first post by surprise, but suffered mounting losses at the following positions. Zhang Shan died at the second post, and the severely wounded Zhao Ziliang was left behind. At the third, an ambushing Night Scout nearly struck Li from behind; Shi Meng pushed him clear and suffered a deep shoulder wound. Zhou Laowu and Wang Meng died, and Shi Meng remained behind while Li, Qin Tiexin, Lin Feng, and Tu Dazhu continued to the final cliffside post. The four silently killed its guards and prepared their ambush as the Northern Di army began to rout 57.

Duel with Helian Zheng and Death

Li led the four survivors into Black Wind Valley in a wedge formation to intercept Yelü Hongshan’s fleeing party. Helian Zheng blocked their advance, and Li recognized the one-armed commander as the man responsible for his comrade’s death ten years earlier 59.

Rather than allow the entire pursuit to stall, Li ordered Qin, Tu Dazhu, and Lin Feng to charge past while he held Helian Zheng. He committed to forceful attacks that disregarded his own defense, creating an opening for his companions to continue after Yelü Hongshan 59.

The two exchanged repeated head-on blows until Li’s saber broke on the eleventh exchange, roughly one foot above the hilt. Li took a mace blow to his left shoulder rather than dodge, was knocked from his horse, and rose with the broken weapon. He then accepted another blow to his chest to stab Helian Zheng in the lower abdomen, seized him around the waist, and dragged him from the saddle. Their fall drove the broken saber farther through Helian Zheng, while the mace inflicted fatal injuries on Li’s chest 59.

Helian Zheng died first. Li calmly acknowledged that he would not survive either, turned his head north toward his companions’ pursuit, and entrusted its completion to Qin. As he died, he declared that he had avenged Shitou 59.

Return Home and Memorial

Qin recovered Li’s body from the snow, closed his eyes, and bound the two pieces of his saber together. Examining the weapon, he found that its Intent had dispersed after its long-held vengeance and purpose were fulfilled. He placed the broken saber beside Li, covered the body with his own padded coat, and carried him back with the other fallen soldiers 62.

At Xinyang Pass, Qin and the surviving members of Team A prepared the dead, cremated them, and gathered six comrades’ ashes into jars. They vowed to care for the fallen soldiers’ loved ones and take their remains home 62.

Qin subsequently brought Li’s urn, broken saber, and reward money to Li Kuo in Wuyang Town. Funeral rites were already underway when they arrived. Li Kuo placed his son’s ashes and saber on the lowest tier of the family ancestral hall and described his death as worthy of his military calling 64.

After returning to Ink City, Qin made memorial tablets for six fallen soldiers, continuing to honor the comrades lost in the campaign 65.

Appearance

• Face and bearing: Resolute features, an upright military posture, and a composed, weighty presence 13 19.
• Hair: A few gray-white strands fall across his forehead 19.
• Clothing: Wears civilian clothes while on leave, practical dark gray fighting clothes, and later a dark teal martial outfit with a black cloak 13 19 25.
• Later condition: By the time he summons Qin for secret selection, he is thinner, with more sunken eyes but a brighter gaze 38.
• Final campaign: Remains straight-backed in the saddle despite a pale face and a bleeding, hastily bandaged left arm 57.
• Build: Described as powerfully built when Qin retrieves his armored body 62.

Personality

Li is direct and practical, with little patience for ceremony. He recognizes useful workmanship without being dazzled by appearance: his assessment of the Heavenly Craft Workshop acknowledges its consistency and affordability while noting its shortcomings beside veteran military smiths’ work 15 19.

His attachment to his saber reflects enduring loyalty rather than concern for its monetary value. He remains deeply affected by his comrade’s sacrifice and continues to seek the enemy responsible. Qin’s insistence on preserving the weapon’s Intent earns his trust because it respects what other craftsmen overlook 15 16 17.

He combines harsh training standards with personal concern for his soldiers. He supplies Qin with food and clothing, defends his independence when accepting the IOU, and permits recovery after combat trauma. His ferocity toward threats to subordinates contrasts with his stated hope that his recruits will return alive 19 26 41 47.

Li regards mutual protection as fundamental to battlefield effectiveness, teaching Qin that comrades supporting one another make the fastest blade. His final action puts this principle into practice: he holds Helian Zheng alone so his three companions can continue the mission, accepting mortal wounds to remove the obstacle 53 59.

Power Progression

Abilities & Skills

Saber Combat

• Uses economical, battle-hardened technique, coordinating his stance, waist, shoulders, and arm rather than relying on elaborate movements 19.
• Cuts cleanly through a thick refined-steel spear shaft with his restored saber; Qin identifies the result as a combination of the blade’s renewed forces and Li’s precise application of strength 19.
• Throws his saber to intercept poisoned needles and immediately pursues the attacker 26.
• Strength limit: Can barely hold the approximately 170-jin Edgeless level with both arms, unlike Qin, who uses it for body-tempering exercises 26.
• Uses sweeping, forceful army saber techniques emphasizing weight, power, and decisive killing blows. During his final duel, he chains increasingly heavy cuts into a sudden thrust to create an opening in Helian Zheng’s defense 59.
• Continues fighting after his saber breaks and his shoulder is shattered, using the remaining blade and a close grapple to kill Helian Zheng at the cost of his own life 59.

Sha Qi

• Releases an intimidating battlefield-honed killing aura that weakens the workshop assistants’ legs and forces Zhao Xuan to retreat despite his Qi Refining Third Layer cultivation 26.
• His reputation as the “Baleful Intent God” frightens camp noncombatants; Master Liu panics upon learning that Qin has his backing 32.
• Zhao Xuan considers Li’s combat skill and ferocity potentially dangerous even to himself; Li is nevertheless identified as a mortal, not assigned a cultivation realm 24 26.

Military Strategy and Command

• Teaches deception through feints, surprise attacks, misleading displays of strength, and examples from his own campaigns 41.
• Designs selection trials testing endurance, silent cooperation, and competitive combat 38 39.
• Recognizes the implications of Night Scout activity near an apparently ordinary patrol and organizes a relief response 49.
• Coordinates a broad specialist training program covering infiltration, language, survival-related skills, and covert operations 46.
• Plans a behind-the-lines operation against the Night Scouts’ signaling posts to position Team A for an ambush on Yelü Hongshan’s retreat route 57.
• Prioritizes continuing the pursuit over keeping the surviving force together, personally tying down Helian Zheng so Qin, Lin Feng, and Tu Dazhu can pass 59.

Weapon Assessment and Intent

• Evaluates balance, tempering, construction quality, and handling by examining and testing weapons 15 16 35.
• Helps guide his saber’s Intent during repair through concentrated memory and resolve 17 18.
• Senses the restored connection with the blade, including its preserved core Intent and new traces of cold resilience and explosive fire 18.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Old military saber — Inherited from the comrade who died saving him. Its worn scabbard retains a nearly illegible name; the blade bears battle scars and dark-red stains 13 16.
  • Repaired by Qin using the Mend the Heavens method, with Ice Soul Stone, Fire Pattern Stone, and Cloud Silver 17 18.
  • The repaired area carries an intertwined blue-and-red marking. The saber becomes slightly heavier without losing its balance, and its original Intent remains intact 18 19.
  • Breaks roughly one foot above the hilt during his final duel with Helian Zheng. Li uses the remaining blade to inflict the wound that kills his enemy 59.
  • Its Intent disperses after the revenge is fulfilled. Qin binds the two pieces together and returns them with Li’s ashes; Li Kuo places them in the family ancestral hall 62 64.
• Black horse — His personal mount during the journey north; distinct from Black Cloud, the horse Qin rides 27.
• Military identification — Carries an identity token and sealed official documents and complies with secret-number verification at Xinyang Pass 28.
• Qin Tiexin’s IOU — Acknowledges a forty-five-tael debt. Li carefully folds it and keeps it in a concealed pocket close to his body 26.
• Military authorization token — Receives a token from Li Xun when organizing the secret force; presents an iron token bearing a deeply engraved tiger pattern when requisitioning Qin for selection 37 38.
• Night Scouts command-post map — A blood-soaked map acquired through a scout’s sacrifice, used to brief Team A on its final infiltration and ambush mission 57.

Relationships

• Qin Tiexin — Saber repairer, recruit, and subordinate. Li becomes his patron and protector, first recognizing his craftsmanship and later selecting him for specialized combat service. He entrusts the final pursuit of Yelü Hongshan to Qin before dying; Qin recovers his body, oversees his cremation, and returns his ashes and broken saber to his father 16 19 26 37 59 62 64.
• Shitou, his fallen comrade — A fellow common soldier whom Li calls his brother. His sacrifice, saber, and final request remain central to Li’s memories and desire for revenge. Li names Shitou as he dies after avenging him by killing Helian Zheng 16 18 59.
• Li Kuo — Father and an old soldier of Wuyang Town’s hereditary Li military household. Receives Li’s ashes and broken saber, honors him in the ancestral hall, and regards his death as worthy of his arms 64.
• Commandant Sun — Personal guard and trusted aide who investigates Qin, accompanies Li on leave, and helps escort the recruit to the frontier 15 16 27 28.
• Wang Mingyuan — County magistrate and social acquaintance who recommends the Heavenly Craft Workshop; later warns Zhao Xuan against pursuing someone under Li’s protection 13 24.
• Li Xun — Northern Army commander-in-chief and Li’s superior, who authorizes the fifty-man strike force and its preparation deadline. Orders Li to lead Team A behind enemy lines for the final ambush on Yelü Hongshan 37 57.
• Shi Meng — Collaborates with Li in training and assessing the secret recruits. Saves Li from a Night Scout’s attack during the final mission, suffering a severe shoulder wound 41 46 57.
• Zhou Cang — Qin’s smithing instructor; consults Li about Qin’s psychological condition after his first kill 47.
• Zhao Xuan — Adversary whose plans against Qin are obstructed by Li’s protection. Li confronts and threatens him after the poisoned-needle attack 24 26.
• Helian Zheng — Long-sought enemy who killed Shitou and lost his left arm to Li ten years earlier. Li finally encounters him as commander of the Iron Pagoda and kills him in a mutually fatal duel at Black Wind Valley 59.
• Yelü Hongshan — Target of the secret force’s intended strike and its final retreat-route ambush. Li leaves his pursuit to Qin, Lin Feng, and Tu Dazhu while holding off Helian Zheng 37 57 59.

Notable Quotes

“That hand of yours is worth this much. The thought you put into it is worth even more.” 19

“Anytime. But you have to stay alive.”
— Answering whether Qin can return to forging after joining the new force 38

“You will be the sharpest blade in my Northern Army. You will carry out the most dangerous missions.” 41

“Tiexin! I'll lock him down. You charge past!”
— Holding Helian Zheng so his companions can continue the pursuit 59

“Tiexin... I leave it to you...”
— Entrusting the pursuit to Qin as he lies dying 59

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