Chapter Summaries

After learning that Yang Feng had killed Yuan Shu and declared himself emperor, Liu Zhang feared the Heavenly Screen’s prophecy that Yang Feng would take Yizhou, while other warlords dismissed Yang Feng as doomed. The Heavenly Screen then reappeared, leaving everyone to look up at its return.

• Liu Zhang panicked when he heard Yang Feng had seized Shouchun and proclaimed himself emperor, but Ma Liang and Fa Zheng urged him to trust Yizhou’s defenses and wait for Yang Feng’s enemies to defeat him.
• Liu Bei struggled to reconcile Yang Feng’s rise with what he knew of the former slave, while Guan Yu and Zhang Fei predicted that other warlords would crush him.
• Liu Biao dismissed Yang Feng as an insolent upstart, and Sun Ce laughed off the news as an amusing interlude.
• The Heavenly Screen shimmered across the sky again, drawing Liu Zhang, Liu Bei and his brothers, Cao Cao, and others to look up.

The Heavenly Screen revealed that Yang Feng fled to Yizhou, where Liu Zhang tried to poison and eliminate him while the realm's warlords urged Liu Zhang to destroy him. It ended by revealing that Yang Feng had planned to win over Li Yan and Fa Zheng, whose choices would change the course of history.

• Yang Feng remained calm as he considered what he would do if the Heavenly Screen portrayed his defeat.
• The Heavenly Screen said Liu Zhang repeatedly tried to poison Yang Feng and his followers after they arrived in Yizhou.
• The realm's warlords urged Liu Zhang to kill Yang Feng, and Liu Zhang prepared to attack him openly.
• The Heavenly Screen revealed that Yang Feng had chosen Yizhou because he expected Li Yan and Fa Zheng to abandon Liu Zhang and join him.
• The Heavenly Screen declared that Li Yan and Fa Zheng's choices would utterly change history, leaving the audience stunned.

Yang Feng and the other lords interpreted the Heavenly Screen’s mention of Fa Zheng and Li Yan’s dissatisfaction with Liu Zhang, but the chapter ended before revealing what would happen in Chengdu. Yang Feng’s officials believed he had a plan to win Yizhou, while Cao Cao and Liu Bei expected Fa Zheng and Li Yan to thwart him.

• Yang Feng worried that Fa Zheng and Li Yan might not join him and could instead deceive him or oppose his plans.
• Yan Xiang and Ji Ling praised Yang Feng for supposedly planning to recruit Fa Zheng and Li Yan as inside men to take Yizhou without bloodshed.
• Yang Feng’s officials knelt and praised his supposed strategy, leaving him to hide his doubts behind an inscrutable smile.
• Cao Cao agreed with Guo Jia’s view that Fa Zheng and Li Yan would become obstacles to Yang Feng, and eagerly awaited the Heavenly Screen’s continuation.
• Zhang Fei, Guan Yu, and Liu Bei likewise concluded that Yizhou’s powerful clans would make Yang Feng’s campaign dangerous.

The Heavenly Screen exposed Fa Zheng and Li Yan’s resentment toward Liu Zhang, leaving Liu Zhang humiliated and Yang Feng baffled by the attention it gave him. Yuan Shao and his advisers mocked the rivals, and the screen began moving again.

• Liu Zhang feared the Heavenly Screen’s revelation would undermine his authority, while Fa Zheng and Li Yan knelt and denied any disloyalty.
• Liu Zhang considered the clans’ power and reassured himself that Fa Zheng and Li Yan would not abandon him for Yang Feng.
• Yuan Shao laughed at Liu Zhang and Yang Feng, and Feng Ji, Shen Pei, and the other advisers joined in mocking them and praising Yuan Shao.
• Yang Feng wondered why the Heavenly Screen had exposed Liu Zhang’s internal divisions and praised him despite his poor chances of victory.
• The Heavenly Screen’s golden light flowed again after a brief silence.

The Heavenly Screen revealed that Fa Zheng and Li Yan planned to marry their daughters to Yang Feng and help him establish power in Yizhou, prompting Yang Feng to fear he was following Zhu Yuanzhang’s path. His officials suppressed gossip about his rise through marriage, while Yang Feng worried that the screen’s revelation had openly threatened Liu Zhang and compounded his enemies.

• The Heavenly Screen claimed Fa Zheng and Li Yan admired Yang Feng’s poetry and planned to marry their daughters to him while helping him gain a foothold in Yizhou.
• Yang Feng was stunned by the revelation and privately compared his supposed rise through his wives’ families to Zhu Yuanzhang’s beginnings.
• Officials in the hall whispered that Yang Feng had gained power through women, so Yan Xiang and Ji Ling defended him and silenced them.
• Yang Feng worried that the announced plan to take Yizhou had declared war on Liu Zhang and that he had already made enemies of both Liu Zhang and Cao Cao.

The Heavenly Screen’s poems stunned Cao Cao’s court and stirred anger and envy in Liu Bei and his brothers, while a young man on Wolong Ridge recognized the phrase “Yizhou Discourse.” In Chengdu, Liu Zhang realized that the screen’s final words foretold Yang Feng taking Yizhou, leaving him on the verge of panic.

• Cao Cao and his court praised Yang Feng’s poems while wondering how he had won the support of Fa Zheng and Li Yan.
• Zhang Fei cursed Yang Feng and Fa Zheng and Li Yan, Guan Yu agreed with him, and Liu Bei acknowledged the poems’ quality while envying Yang Feng’s success.
• A young man on Wolong Ridge focused on “Draped in the yellow robe, Yizhou Discourse” and wondered why the phrase sounded familiar.
• Liu Zhang read the Heavenly Screen’s final words in Chengdu and nearly fell from his seat as he realized Yang Feng was poised to seize Yizhou.

Liu Zhang confronted Fa Zheng and Li Yan after the Heavenly Screen revealed that they would defect to Yang Feng and bow before his poetry. He let them go after they denied the vision, while both men privately wondered what could truly make them support Yang Feng.

• Liu Zhang erupted in anger at Fa Zheng and Li Yan for the Heavenly Screen’s revelation that they would join Yang Feng and bow to his poetry.
• Fa Zheng and Li Yan knelt before Liu Zhang, denied that they would betray him, and insisted the vision was false.
• Liu Zhang considered executing the two men but decided their deaths would destabilize Yizhou and weaken him against Yang Feng.
• Liu Zhang ordered Fa Zheng and Li Yan to rise and forbade anyone from mentioning the matter again.
• Fa Zheng and Li Yan privately speculated that Yang Feng’s talent or his proposed Yizhou Discourse might explain their future allegiance.
• The golden Heavenly Screen began moving again above the provincial governor’s residence.

The Heavenly Screen showed Yang Feng presenting the Yizhou Plan, a strategy that resembled the Longzhong Plan and insulted several rival warlords. Yang Feng worried that the broadcast had made enemies before his rule was secure, while his officials praised him and Cao Cao welcomed its prediction that he would defeat Yuan Shao.

• Yang Feng told Fa Zheng and Li Yan that Cao Cao would defeat Yuan Shao, advised against contending with Cao Cao or Sun Ce, and dismissed several other warlords as wine sacks and rice bags.
• Yang Feng outlined a plan to seize Yizhou and Jing Province, ally with Sun Ce, strengthen the state, and eventually march north to claim the realm.
• Yang Feng, watching from Shouchun, wondered whether he had copied Zhuge Liang's Longzhong Plan and feared the Heavenly Screen had provoked powerful enemies.
• Yan Xiang and Ji Ling praised Yang Feng's foresight, while Yang Feng privately wished they would focus on the danger posed by the offended warlords.
• Cao Cao watched from Yan Province and laughed with delight at the prediction that he would defeat Yuan Shao.

Cao Cao and his advisers praised Yang Feng’s assessment of the realm, while Yuan Shao and Lü Bu erupted in anger at his insults. Zhuge Liang was stunned to find Yang Feng’s strategy matched his own, and Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei wondered why Yang Feng had not mentioned them as the Heavenly Screen began showing the next scene.

• Cao Cao welcomed Yang Feng’s judgment and listened as Guo Jia and Xun Yu praised his own prospects.
• Yuan Shao raged at Yang Feng’s prediction that he would lose to Cao Cao, while his advisers tried to calm him.
• Lü Bu threatened to kill Yang Feng for calling him a wine sack and rice bag, while Chen Gong privately agreed with the assessment.
• Zhuge Liang realized Yang Feng’s Yizhou Plan matched the strategy he had developed in secret and turned his attention back to the Heavenly Screen.
• Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei felt overlooked by Yang Feng’s analysis, and the Heavenly Screen began to reveal its next scene.

After Fa Zheng, Li Yan, and Yan Xiang killed Liu Zhang and forced Yang Feng to take the throne in the Heavenly Screen’s vision, Yang Feng watched a coalition gather against him. In Shouchun, Yang Feng was horrified by how closely the vision resembled events around him, while Yan Xiang and Ji Ling took it as proof that he was destined to rule.

• Fa Zheng, Li Yan, and Yan Xiang secretly plotted to enthrone Yang Feng and killed Liu Zhang in his bedchamber.
• Yan Xiang’s men dragged Yang Feng from bed to Chengdu’s gatehouse, where Fa Zheng and Li Yan draped a yellow blanket over him.
• Yan Xiang announced a heavenly omen, and the assembled soldiers hailed Yang Feng as emperor; the next day, Yang Feng founded the Great Yang Empire in Chengdu.
• The Heavenly Screen showed Cao Cao calling a coalition against Yang Feng and teased his legendary shot at the coalition’s camp.
• In Shouchun, Yang Feng wondered why every script made him emperor, while Yan Xiang and Ji Ling believed the vision confirmed his heavenly mandate.

The Heavenly Screen showed a future in which Fa Zheng and Li Yan raised Yang Feng to the throne in Chengdu, prompting Yan Xiang and Ji Ling to celebrate while Yang Feng feared the enemies he would make. Cao Cao and Liu Xie reacted with alarm in Xu Capital, and Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei were left stunned by the prospect of becoming emperor this way.

• Yan Xiang hailed the Chengdu scenario as proof that Yang Feng had Heaven's mandate, and Ji Ling joined him in urging Yang Feng to ascend the throne.
• Yang Feng worried that the Heavenly Screen's repeated emperor scenarios were turning every warlord against him.
• Cao Cao wondered how Yang Feng had again been raised to the throne by his subordinates, while an adviser dismissed the scenario as empty and predicted Yang Feng's defeat.
• Liu Xie wept over the prospect of Yang Feng killing his imperial uncle Liu Zhang and denounced Yang Feng as a mortal enemy of the Han.
• Cao Cao reassured Liu Xie that he would defeat Yang Feng, while Guo Jia argued that Yang Feng lacked battlefield skill.
• Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei stared at the vanished Heavenly Screen, and Zhang Fei asked how someone could become emperor that way.

Liu Bei, Zhang Fei, and Guan Yu resented Yang Feng’s rise and hoped Cao Cao would defeat him, while Lü Bu envied Yang Feng and decided to face him alongside Cao Cao. In Yizhou, Liu Zhang was unsettled by his subordinates’ report about the Heavenly Screen.

• Liu Bei cursed Liu Zhang for losing his life and territory, while Zhang Fei and Guan Yu disparaged Fa Zheng and Li Yan for submitting to Yang Feng.
• Liu Bei privately resented Yang Feng for claiming the imperial title and hoped Cao Cao and Lü Bu would defeat him.
• Lü Bu asked Chen Gong to arrange for him to become emperor like Yang Feng, but Chen Gong urged him to wait and build strength.
• Lü Bu declared that he would join Cao Cao the next day to challenge Yang Feng, while Chen Gong privately expected him to suffer a humiliating defeat.
• Liu Zhang became restless after his subordinates reported what the Heavenly Screen had shown.

Liu Zhang confronted Li Yan and Fa Zheng after the Heavenly Screen revealed that they would kill him and support Yang Feng, but he was too powerless to punish them. He sent them away and hoped the prophecy would not come true that night.

• Liu Zhang accused Li Yan and Fa Zheng of planning to kill him in his sleep and place Yang Feng on the throne.
• Li Yan and Fa Zheng kept their heads down, knowing the prophecy had exposed their future treachery.
• Li Yan swore loyalty and dismissed the Heavenly Screen’s words as lies, while Liu Zhang pretended to believe him.
• Liu Zhang let the two men withdraw because he feared their power and planned to add more guards outside his bedchamber.
• Liu Zhang looked ahead to the Heavenly Screen’s account of Cao Cao and Lü Bu attacking Yang Feng and wondered what “shooting a cannon at the camp gate” meant.

After the Heavenly Screen made Yang Feng famous, he planned to leave vulnerable Huainan for Yizhou if he won the coming contest. In Yizhou, Fa Zheng persuaded Li Yan to betray Liu Zhang and support Yang Feng, while Liu Zhang lay awake fearing them.

• Yang Feng told Yan Xiang and Ji Ling that Huainan was too exposed to defend indefinitely and planned to march west to Yizhou if the Heavenly Screen favored him over Cao Cao and Lü Bu.
• Yang Feng privately hoped Li Yan and Fa Zheng would help him overthrow Liu Zhang, take Yizhou, and let him retire from imperial ambitions.
• Liu Zhang lay sleepless behind heavy guard, troubled by the Heavenly Screen's revelations about Fa Zheng and Li Yan.
• Fa Zheng argued that he and Li Yan should act before Liu Zhang moved against them and support Yang Feng regardless of the coming battle's outcome.
• Li Yan agreed to follow Fa Zheng, and the two left Fa Zheng's residence for the gates of Chengdu in the middle of the night.

Fa Zheng and Li Yan led a mutiny in Chengdu, killed Liu Zhang, and declared Yizhou part of Yang Feng’s empire. A courier carried their message to Huainan, where Yan Xiang arrived at Yang Feng’s bedside with what he called wonderful news, leaving Yang Feng wary and confused.

• Fa Zheng rallied Chengdu’s soldiers and townspeople against Liu Zhang and urged them to welcome Yang Feng.
• Fa Zheng and Li Yan led the rebels into Liu Zhang’s residence and killed him.
• Fa Zheng displayed Liu Zhang’s head, announced that he and Li Yan would govern Yizhou, and raised the Yang banner over Chengdu.
• Fa Zheng sent a letter bearing Li Yan’s seal by courier toward Huainan.
• Yan Xiang arrived in Shouchun and excitedly told Yang Feng that he had wonderful news.

Yang Feng learned that Fa Zheng and Li Yan had killed Liu Zhang and declared Yizhou part of the Great Yang Empire, leaving him horrified by the consequences of his unexpected expansion. In Yan Province, Cao Cao's court received the same news, and Liu Xie broke down crying over his slain imperial uncle.

• Yan Xiang presented Yang Feng with a letter from Fa Zheng and Li Yan announcing that they had killed Liu Zhang and would surrender Yizhou to the Great Yang Empire.
• Yang Feng suspected a trap, then panicked when Yan Xiang confirmed that Chengdu's citizens had raised Yang banners and celebrated the takeover.
• Yang Feng imagined that his annexation of Yizhou would make him the enemy of Emperor Xian of Han, Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and the other lords.
• A courier told Cao Cao and the court that Fa Zheng and Li Yan had killed Liu Zhang and declared Yizhou's submission to Yang Feng.
• Cao Cao and his officials were stunned, while Liu Xie wept and cried out for his imperial uncle.

Emperor Xian and Cao Cao grieved and raged after learning that Fa Zheng and Li Yan had killed Liu Zhang and surrendered Yizhou to Yang Feng. Guo Jia reframed the news as an opportunity for Cao Cao to defeat Yang Feng and take Yizhou, while Liu Bei and his brothers learned of the surrender in their camp.

• Emperor Xian wept and condemned Fa Zheng and Li Yan for betraying Great Han by handing Yizhou to Yang Feng.
• Cao Cao grew furious that Yang Feng had gained Yizhou before Cao Cao could move against it.
• Guo Jia argued that Cao Cao and Lü Bu could defeat Yang Feng and then claim Yizhou as a Heaven-sent opportunity.
• Emperor Xian, Cao Cao, and the ministers regained their confidence after accepting Guo Jia's reasoning.
• Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei received a scout's report that Liu Zhang had been killed and Yizhou had submitted to Yang Feng.

After Fa Zheng and Li Yan handed Yizhou to Yang Feng, Liu Bei and Liu Biao worried over the threat he posed but trusted Cao Cao and Lü Bu to defeat him. Zhuge Liang decided to leave Wolong Ridge and join Yang Feng, while Lü Bu and Chen Gong received the news in Xu Province.

• Liu Bei condemned Fa Zheng and Li Yan for killing Liu Zhang and giving Yizhou to Yang Feng, then hoped Cao Cao and Lü Bu would defeat him.
• Zhang Fei and Guan Yu agreed that Yang Feng could not overcome Cao Cao and Lü Bu, though Guan Yu lamented the loss of another Han province.
• Kuai Yue and Cai Mao reassured Liu Biao that Cao Cao and Lü Bu would destroy Yang Feng, after which Jing Province could take Yizhou.
• Zhuge Liang decided to take his bookboy and go serve Yang Feng before the Heavenly Screen revealed whether Yang Feng could defeat Cao Cao and Lü Bu.
• Lü Bu and Chen Gong received the news from Yizhou while standing atop the city gate in Xu Province.

Lü Bu grew furious over Fa Zheng and Li Yan choosing Yang Feng, while Chen Gong secretly viewed Lü Bu as a temporary refuge and soothed him with praise. In Chengdu, Fa Zheng and Li Yan worried over their gamble on Yang Feng and planned to switch sides if he lost, as the lords across the realm watched the Heavenly Screen appear again.

• Lü Bu complained to Chen Gong that Fa Zheng and Li Yan had disregarded him by killing Liu Zhang and joining Yang Feng, and vowed to take Yizhou after defeating Yang Feng.
• Chen Gong privately judged Lü Bu unworthy of loyalty but praised his alliance with Cao Cao until Lü Bu's anger subsided.
• In Chengdu, Fa Zheng and Li Yan wondered whether Yang Feng could defeat Cao Cao and Lü Bu, and agreed they might surrender Yizhou to Cao Cao if Yang Feng fell.
• Fa Zheng recalled the Heavenly Screen's title for Yang Feng, "the one emperor through the ages," and chose to believe Yang Feng could win.
• Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, Liu Biao, Liu Bei, and other lords watched the sky as golden light appeared and the Heavenly Screen returned.

After the Heavenly Screen described Lü Bu’s defeat and execution at Cao Cao’s hands, Lü Bu angrily rejected the account while Chen Gong decided to abandon him and seek Cao Cao’s service. Chen Gong believed Cao Cao would defeat Yang Feng and ultimately rule the realm.

• The Heavenly Screen recounted how Cao Cao flooded Xiapi, captured Lü Bu, and hanged him at White Gate Tower before leading a vast army toward Yizhou.
• Lü Bu furiously called the account fake and insisted that he was invincible.
• Chen Gong concluded that Lü Bu was doomed because he had planned to betray Cao Cao and would be easily defeated.
• Chen Gong decided to leave Lü Bu and offer his services to Cao Cao, believing Cao Cao would accept him for his abilities.
• Chen Gong judged Yang Feng’s unsettled empire unable to resist Cao Cao and concluded that the realm would ultimately belong to the Cao family.