Chapter Summaries

Lin Yi used the prospect of dividing the Frostwest Empire to tempt Abaddon into an alliance, but Abaddon refused to commit because he feared Great Liang would turn on him afterward. The gathering ended with Abaddon agreeing to watch the Land of the Far West and asking Lin Yi for help if it attacked.

• Lin Yi hinted that Great Liang and the Great West Empire could divide the Frostwest Empire after Great Liang conquered Zhennan.
• Abaddon considered the offer but rejected an immediate agreement, fearing the Great West Empire would become Great Liang’s next target.
• Lin Yi said the territorial proposal was secondary and asked Abaddon to monitor the Land of the Far West and warn Great Liang of any moves.
• Abaddon agreed to keep watch and asked Lin Yi to lend him a hand if the Land of the Far West attacked.

Lin Yi accepted Abaddon's lavish birthday gifts while discussing the Great West Empire's uneasy alliance with Great Liang. After Abaddon left, Lin Yi ordered the Net to stir unrest behind the Frostwest Empire and told Wang Yue to welcome Ran Min and the returning forces.

• Abaddon presented Lin Yi with a chest of diamonds and other gifts, and the two discussed their countries before Abaddon departed.
• Guo Jia explained that Abaddon both wanted the Frostwest Empire defeated and feared facing Great Liang afterward, while Lin Yi dismissed morality as a guide to relations between nations.
• Lin Yi gave Guo Jia a copy of Thick Black Theory and ordered the Net to begin stirring unrest in the Frostwest Empire's rear as Zhennan neared pacification.
• Lin Yi told Wang Yue to welcome Ran Min and the returning forces so Great Liang's guests could see the empire's strength.

Lin Yi used Great Liang’s victory to intimidate the surrounding small nations into submission and puzzled over how to spend the enormous wealth brought back from Yamata. Princess Anne then visited him, anxious about her father and the Frostwest Empire after Lin Yi met Abaddon.

• Lin Yi planned to pressure the small nations into submitting, leaving Xu You and the others to handle them.
• Lin Yi told Guo Jia that he was troubled by nearly two hundred million in cash, and Wang Yue pointed out how much Great Liang had already invested.
• Lin Yi decided to ask Xun Yu and Li Bing to propose spending the new fortune on roads, waterways, and other projects.
• Princess Anne came to see Lin Yi and massaged his shoulders while worrying that he might attack the Frostwest Empire.
• Lin Yi asked Anne whether her father feared that he would move against the Frostwest Empire.

Lin Yi told Princess Anne that Great Liang would partition the Frostwest Empire, and she thanked him for being honest before falling into his arms. Meanwhile, Abaddon concluded that Lin Yi’s ambitions extended beyond Frostwest and ordered his people to test Bill III, with plans to kill him if he refused an alliance against Great Liang.

• Lin Yi told Princess Anne that he and Abaddon had discussed partitioning the Frostwest Empire, and Anne accepted her empire’s coming defeat and thanked him for not lying.
• Abaddon ordered A Long to confirm whether a mysterious overlord in the Land of the Far West had destroyed the Black Skull Army.
• Morandi proposed telling Bill III about the threat, but Abaddon reasoned that Lin Yi likely intended to conquer the Great West Empire as well as Frostwest.
• A Long warned that Bill III might ally with Lin Yi, while Abaddon decided to sound Bill III out and kill him if he refused to cooperate.

Abaddon worried that Great Liang would interfere with his plans against Bill III, then went to see the returning Qihuo Army and encountered Great Liang’s public celebration of its victories. After reading Yang Xiu’s article on gratitude, he recognized the force of its message.

• Abaddon agreed to sound out Bill III and deal with him if he remained obstinate, while hoping Zhennan would hold out against Great Liang.
• A guard told Abaddon that the Qihuo Army and Sun Jian had returned after destroying the Yamata Nation.
• Abaddon dismissed the Qihuo Army’s reported strength and went with Morandi and A Long to inspect its return.
• At Yong'an City’s crowded streets, Morandi explained that welcoming victorious armies was a rule Lin Yi had established.
• Morandi gave Abaddon a translated article by Yang Xiu, and Abaddon read its account of gratitude toward Lin Yi, the soldiers, and the people.

Abaddon recognized that the philosophy of gratitude could strengthen Great Liang’s unity and make Lin Yi appear like a benefactor to the entire nation, so he decided the Great West Empire should copy it. When Lin Yi welcomed the returning army in person, the crowd celebrated him, and Abaddon was stunned by Great Liang’s fully armored troops.

• Abaddon and A Long concluded that Lin Yi’s philosophy of gratitude could unite Great Liang and make his power frightening.
• Abaddon told Morandi to start a newspaper for the Great West Empire and reuse Yang Xiu’s article with the names changed.
• Lin Yi arrived in his carriage to welcome the returning army, and Abaddon told A Long to remember the ceremony for their own empire.
• Great Liang’s common people praised Lin Yi as the army and foreign observers gathered to watch the homecoming.
• Sun Jian and the other generals led the returning troops through the city gates, and Abaddon was astonished that every soldier wore armor.
• Abaddon asked A Long whether the Great West Empire could equip its army the same way, and A Long replied that they lacked the money.

Nearly a hundred thousand Qihuo Army troops returned to Great Liang, frightening foreign rulers with their discipline, equipment, and battle-hardened aura. Lin Yi welcomed the army at the city gate, where its generals and soldiers knelt before him and the people celebrated their safe return.

• The Qihuo Army marched through the streets as onlookers praised its power and Lu Yafu recognized its formation as a true army of tigers and wolves.
• Abaddon, Morandi, and A Long discussed the army’s equipment and murderous aura, while Abaddon and Bill III worried Great Liang might turn its strength against them.
• Lin Yi watched the foreign rulers’ unease and believed few in the west could resist Great Liang’s military power.
• Sun Jian, Ran Min, Yu Jin, and the other generals dismounted and knelt before Lin Yi as the hundred thousand soldiers greeted him and Great Liang.
• The people cheered the troops’ return, and Lin Yi thanked the soldiers for their service as Sun Jian and the others replied that serving him was an honor.

Lin Yi celebrated Great Liang’s destruction of Yamata Nation and declared the ocean Great Liang’s territory. As the returning army brought back an immense treasure convoy, the great clan leaders hoped the riches would keep Lin Yi from targeting them and even suggested he conquer more nations.

• Lin Yi welcomed the victorious army and declared that Yamata Nation had become Great Liang’s Inside-the-Well Commandery.
• Sun Jian thanked Lin Yi for giving him the chance to see the vast world and oceans, and the ruler and his subjects shared stories of the campaign.
• The people saw a seemingly endless convoy of carts carrying gold, silver, and other treasures from Yamata Nation.
• Zhang Wanhao and the other clan leaders realized the captured wealth could amount to several hundred million and hoped it would keep Lin Yi from demanding money from them.
• Zhang Wanhao proposed that Great Liang destroy more nations so the great clans would remain safe, and Liu Kun agreed that neighboring nations could bear the cost.

Lin Yi learned that Zhou Yu had sent him a hundred million strings of cash from an open-pit gold mine and gemstones he found overseas. Zhou Yu had also discovered a sea route to Zhennan and prepared a large surprise that was arriving with the convoy.

• Abaddon envied the vast wealth Great Liang had seized from Yamata Nation, but Sangdu warned him not to act rashly under the Hundred Riders' watch.
• Sun Jian told Lin Yi that the convoy's total had reached three hundred million strings of cash, including a hundred million sent by Zhou Yu as a birthday gift.
• Sun Jian explained that Zhou Yu had found an island with an open-pit gold mine and gemstones.
• Sun Jian said Zhou Yu had discovered the sea route to Zhennan and was heading for its coast to attack.
• Lin Yi watched as Zhou Yu's promised big gift finally appeared at the rear of the convoy.

Zhou Yu sent Lin Yi an enormous whale as a birthday gift, which Yu Jin presented as the legendary Kun of the Northern Deep. After learning that it had been safely butchered and preserved, Lin Yi embraced the divine-beast story and considered trying its meat.

• The enormous creature hauled through the streets frightened the onlookers, while Lin Yi recognized it as a giant whale.
• Yu Jin explained that Zhou Yu had captured the creature, calling it the Kun of the Northern Deep and recounting how one had exploded after becoming stranded.
• The people cheered Great Liang for capturing a divine beast, while Lin Yi worried that the whale might explode and injure the crowd.
• Sun Jian assured Lin Yi that the whale had been cut open, salted, and kept cold, so it was safe.
• Lin Yi praised Zhou Yu and accepted the whale as a divine beast, while Xun Yu declared it an auspicious omen and Guo Jia asked to eat its meat.

After witnessing Great Liang’s wealth and military power, Abaddon concluded that the Great West Empire could not face it alone. He sought an alliance with Bill III, and they agreed to recruit more countries before Great Liang advanced west.

• The common people celebrated Great Liang’s capture of the Kun and called Lin Yi the Celestial Emperor descended to earth.
• Abaddon warned that Great Liang’s strength, wealth, and freed-up troops made it a serious threat to the Great West Empire.
• A Long urged Abaddon to set aside his hatred and ally with the Frostwest Empire before Great Liang moved west.
• Abaddon approached Bill III, who admitted that the Frostwest Empire also needed allies to deter Great Liang.
• Abaddon and Bill III agreed that their two empires needed more support, and Abaddon offered to contact other countries.

After returning from the conquest of the Yamata Nation, Sun Jian and the other commanders received promotions and new military posts from Lin Yi. Emperor Muren was brought before the court as a prisoner, where he blamed treacherous ministers for opposing Great Liang, and Lin Yi challenged his excuse.

• Sun Jian and the other commanders recounted the fall of the Yamata Nation, impressing the ministers with its thousands of islands and million-strong military.
• Lin Yi rewarded the returning commanders with promotions, appointing Sun Jian grand commander of the East Sea and Ran Min commandant of the Western Regions' vanguard.
• Sun Jian asked Lin Yi what should be done with Emperor Muren, and Lin Yi ordered that the prisoner be brought before him.
• Wang Yue forced Muren to his knees before Lin Yi, who mocked him for once daring to provoke Great Liang.
• Muren claimed treacherous ministers had deceived him, and Lin Yi questioned who these ministers could be when Muren had ruled with absolute authority.

Muren desperately tried to save his life by offering his daughters and Yamata Nation's queen to Lin Yi, but Lin Yi and his ministers showed no interest in sparing him. Chen Qun urged Great Liang to punish Yamata Nation harshly, leaving the court ready to respond with force.

• Lin Yi rejected Muren's plea to become Great Liang's servant, and Muren offered his daughters and Yamata Nation's queen in exchange for mercy.
• Cao Cao praised Muren's willingness to offer his family, while Jiang Wei, Zhang Juzheng, and Gongsun Zan condemned him and agreed he could not be trusted to live.
• Chen Qun told Lin Yi that Great Liang had been too gentle toward foreign powers and should make an example of Yamata Nation.
• Guo Jia, Qu Yi, and Gongsun Zan recognized Chen Qun's anger and anticipated that Great Liang would soon take ruthless action.

Lin Yi told Muren that the Yamata Nation had been destroyed and handed him over to Zhao Gao for punishment. He then learned that several kings were gathering with Abaddon and Bill III, and prepared to deal with their opposition to Great Liang.

• Chen Qun condemned Muren, and Lin Yi agreed that Muren should not be allowed to morally blackmail Great Liang.
• Sun Jian told Muren that the Yamata Nation had been destroyed after its people resisted Great Liang's army, leaving Muren in despair.
• Muren cursed Lin Yi, who handed him over to Zhao Gao; Zhao Gao silenced him and had eunuchs drag him away.
• Xu You reported that Abaddon and Bill III were contacting other kings, and several had already joined them.
• Jiang Wei and the other ministers called for the kings to be killed, while Lin Yi concluded that their defiance showed he had been too lenient.

Lin Yi and his ministers planned to defeat the Great West Empire and Frostwest Empire together, but an unexpected invasion from the Land of the Far West forced them to reconsider. Xun Yu advised letting the newcomers and the Great West Empire weaken each other while Great Liang conquered nearby lands.

• Lin Yi decided Great Liang would wage war against both the Great West Empire and the Frostwest Empire after they rejected his offer to submit.
• Xun Yu and the other chancellors judged that Great Liang had enough troops and strength to fight the two empires.
• Wang Yue reported that a hundred thousand troops from the Land of the Far West had landed in the eastern Great West Empire and clashed with its forces.
• Lin Yi recognized that the invasion disrupted his plans and asked his ministers how Great Liang should respond.
• Xun Yu proposed letting the invaders and the Great West Empire fight while Great Liang absorbed nearby small countries and the Frostwest Empire, then attacked the weakened sides.

Lin Yi and his advisers decided not to attack the Great West Empire while the Land of the Far West advanced, choosing instead to exploit the disruption and expand Great Liang’s control. Lin Yi assigned generals to prepare for operations in the Western Regions and ordered Xun Yu to oversee logistics.

• Jia Xu argued that the Land of the Far West’s army was isolated and that Great Liang should first subdue the Frostwest Empire and nearby small nations.
• Lin Yi decided to leave the Great West Empire alone for now and use the western advance as grounds to clear out the small nations between the countries.
• Lin Yi sent Ran Min to reinforce the Western Regions and watch the Frostwest Empire’s border, while Xue Rengui was tasked with swiftly defeating the small nations.
• Lin Yi ordered Jiang Wei, Gongsun Zan, Qu Yi, and Chen Dao to enter the Western Regions secretly and prepare for a later attack.
• Lin Yi instructed Xun Yu to manage logistics and told him to enlist Zhang Wanhao and the others if needed.

Abaddon formed the preliminary Grand Western Alliance to deter Great Liang, while weighing the threat of Lin Yi and the need to keep the Frostwest Empire between his empire and Great Liang. The story left Abaddon determined to remove Bill III as a potential defector, just as Sangdu arrived with news of more trouble.

• Abaddon persuaded the kings of various Western nations to establish the preliminary framework of a Grand Western Alliance against Great Liang.
• Abaddon and A Long discussed Great Liang’s superior weapons and the Great West Empire’s need to strengthen its defenses.
• Morandi warned Abaddon that the alliance could provoke Lin Yi, but Abaddon argued that Lin Yi would eventually target his empire regardless.
• A Long and Morandi noted that the Frostwest Empire stood between the Great West Empire and Great Liang, but Abaddon decided Bill III had to be removed because his allegiance was uncertain.
• Sangdu hurried in and told Abaddon that more trouble had arisen outside.

Abaddon and the other foreign kings discovered Muren’s mutilated corpse displayed outside a restaurant, a warning from Lin Yi that terrified them and made them regret opposing Great Liang. Jiang Li defended the display as the victor’s punishment of the weak and revealed that he had once been defeated by Great Liang, leaving the crowd admiring him for surviving.

• Sangdu told Abaddon that Great Liang had displayed a corpse, and Abaddon went outside with his group to investigate.
• Abaddon found blood dripping from Muren’s corpse and learned from Bill III that the dead man was the king of Yamata Nation.
• Abaddon interpreted the display as Lin Yi’s warning, while Bill III and the other kings feared Great Liang’s retaliation and regretted joining the resistance.
• A young man tried to remove the corpse, but a bystander explained that Zhao Gao had hung it there at Lin Yi’s direction.
• Jiang Li of South Mountain Commandery said the corpse represented the victor’s punishment of the defeated, and the crowd admired him for having survived defeat by Great Liang.

After Great Liang’s crackdown drove foreign rulers to seek its favor, Nan Yiming decided to turn against his father, the Zhennan ruler. Lin Yi received Li Yu and Li Ling as system rewards and reflected on the tragedies of their former lives.

• The countries that had rejected Abaddon’s alliance chose to pledge themselves to Great Liang and headed to the Court of Diplomatic Reception.
• Nan Yiming saw Muren’s corpse and resolved to abandon his father, who had left him to Great Liang’s pressure.
• Lin Yi received system rewards for winning over seven countries and turning Nan Yiming, including Li Ling, Li Yu, and their troops.
• Lin Yi considered Li Yu’s sorrowful fate as an emperor and Li Ling’s unjust surrender after the Han court failed to support him.

Lin Yi welcomed Li Yu and Li Ling into Great Liang, assigning Li Ling to the western expedition and arranging for both men to join the empire. After several western kings pledged allegiance, Lin Yi ordered Ban Chao to absorb their countries and sent Nan Yiming back to Zhennan to try to survive its crisis.

• Lin Yi praised Li Yu’s appearance and poetry, then told him to make Great Liang known through his work.
• Lin Yi recognized Li Ling’s military talent and urged him to fight for Great Liang in the western expedition; Li Ling pledged his service.
• Lin Yi summoned Zhao Yun to arrange Li Yu and Li Ling’s formal entry into Great Liang’s system.
• Zhao Yun reported that several western kings had submitted, and Lin Yi ordered Ban Chao to take over their countries and recruit their men for the western expedition.
• Lin Yi ordered Nan Yiming to return to Zhennan with Li Ru’s help, and Li Yu and Li Ling exchanged remarks about the misfortunes of imperial families.