Arc 2The Zhang Clan’s Rise

Zhang Lingfeng consolidated Warm Breeze Hall’s power, outmaneuvered Ye Fan, and expanded the Zhang Clan’s landholdings. The arc left him facing Zhang Qilin after the martial juren seized Little Moon Mountain’s water and detained Chen Qing.

  • Dong Wenhan recruited Wei He against Zhang Lingfeng, but Wei He helped Zhang Lingfeng and Chen Sanshi ambush Dong and destroy the Baile Gang.
  • Zhang Lingfeng announced Warm Breeze Hall’s victory, then the Zhang Clan bought the Li Clan’s 763 mu of farmland as Wang Fang fled after provoking the water dispute.
  • Zhang Lingfeng attained Dark Force, earned Guo Wei’s support, and outshone Ye Fan, while Zhang Pingping arranged Ye Fan’s engagement to Wei Hong and secured his future Qi and Blood Pills for Zhang Lingfeng.
  • Zhang Fugui and Zhang Fukang advanced in martial arts as Zhang Lingfeng continued training and strengthened the Zhang Clan’s position through its land and harvest.
  • After Great Saber Hong kidnapped Wang Biao, Zhang Lingfeng secured Huang Jiefu’s aid and led martial artists and bailiffs toward Shrimp Gully, prompting Hong to flee and Wang Biao to return safely.
  • Wang Jinshan transferred most of his farmland to the Zhang Clan, but Zhang Qilin seized Little Moon Mountain’s water, detained Chen Qing, and demanded Zhang Lingfeng come to him.
Chapters 26–50 Vol. 1 Read

Ch. 26Invitation

Dong Wenhan offered Wei He gifts to recruit him into an attack on Warm Breeze Hall, and Wei He pretended to accept. The meeting ended with an ambush that shattered Dong Wenhan’s spine.

  • Dong Wenhan rallied the Baile Gang to destroy Warm Breeze Hall and decided to recruit Wei He to help kill Zhang Lingfeng.
  • Dong Wenhan and Li Si brought gifts to Wei He, who was training in his courtyard while trying to recover from his failed breakthrough to Dark Force.
  • Wei He accepted Dong Wenhan’s proposal, claiming Warm Breeze Hall had humiliated him by detaining his sisters and forcing him to kill a martial master.
  • Wei He grabbed Dong Wenhan’s hands and held him as three figures rushed from the side room.
  • One of the ambushers struck Dong Wenhan behind the heart, shattering his spine and leaving him rigid.

Ch. 27Success

Zhang Lingfeng and his allies killed Dong Wenhan and began taking control of the Baile Gang’s businesses. As the night’s operation continued, Zhang Pingping directed the takeover while Zhang Lingfeng returned to the martial arts school, keeping his new Dark Force cultivation secret.

  • Zhang Lingfeng beat Dong Wenhan to death while Wei He restrained his hands, and Liu Feng killed the guards outside.
  • Li Si thanked Zhang Lingfeng and Chen Sanshi after learning his family was safe, then left to help manage the Baile Gang’s gambling houses.
  • Zhang Lingfeng, Chen Sanshi, and Wei He explained how they had lured Dong Wenhan to Wei He’s home and arranged his death.
  • Zhang Pingping promised to search for precious medicines to help Liu Feng pursue a breakthrough, and he went to help subdue the Baile Gang.
  • Zhang Pingping told Zhang Lingfeng to conceal his Dark Force cultivation until they had dealt with the Baile Gang and exposed any rival opportunists.
  • As reports and spoils arrived through the night, Zhang Pingping assigned the others their duties, and Zhang Lingfeng headed to the martial arts school at dawn.

Ch. 28Commotion

After the Warm Breeze Hall and the Baile Gang fought, Wu Yun arrived at the martial arts school fearing the worst for Zhang Lingfeng and Liu Feng. He revealed that Zhang Lingfeng secretly led the Warm Breeze Hall, just as someone greeted Senior Brother Zhang from the outer courtyard.

  • The county yamen inspected the Baile Ward after the battle, removed injured gang members, and began clearing corpses and bloodstains.
  • Wu Yun found Hei Hu, Sun Yan, Zhang Lingfeng, and Liu Feng absent from the martial arts school and feared the Warm Breeze Hall had lost.
  • The inner courtyard disciples discussed the fight, and Wu Yun disclosed that Zhang Lingfeng was the true master behind the Warm Breeze Hall.
  • Wu Yun explained that Zhang Lingfeng had provoked the Baile Gang by insisting on opening a gambling den in its ward, despite Dong Wenhan's warning.
  • A respectful voice called out, "Good morning, Senior Brother Zhang!" from the outer courtyard.

Ch. 29United hearts

Zhang Lingfeng arrived at the inner courtyard alive and revealed that Warm Breeze Hall had killed Dong Wenhan and taken over the Baile Gang. He invited his fellow disciples to a banquet at the Drunken Spring House, and they agreed to attend as Warm Breeze Hall’s growing strength became clear.

  • Zhang Lingfeng greeted Wu Yun, Ye Fan, Zhao Hu, Liu Rushuang, and Ma Fei after arriving with Liu Feng, Hei Hu, Sun Yan, and the outer courtyard apprentices.
  • Zhang Lingfeng said Warm Breeze Hall had killed Dong Wenhan and absorbed the Baile Gang after Dong attacked them.
  • Zhang Lingfeng invited the disciples to a banquet at the Drunken Spring House, and Wu Yun accepted.
  • Liu Feng explained that Zhang Lingfeng had killed Dong Wenhan with strikes to his back that shattered his internal organs.
  • Ma Fei, Zhao Hu, Liu Rushuang, and Ye Fan congratulated Zhang Lingfeng and agreed to attend the banquet.

Ch. 30Drawing up the deed

Warm Breeze Hall’s show of strength and government backing left the Li Clan isolated in its dispute with the Zhang Clan over Little Moon Mountain’s water. Li Mingtian sold the clan’s 763 mu of land to Zhang Laochong for 500 taels, then revealed that Wang Fang had misled them about the water source.

  • Warm Breeze Hall held a banquet attended by Dark Force martial artists and Huang Jiefu, demonstrating its strength and government support to Baile Ward.
  • Zhang Da had Xu Laiyi show Li Hongwei Warm Breeze Hall’s rise, prompting Li Hongwei to rush home and tell Li Mingtian what he had seen.
  • Li Mingtian concluded that Zhang Laochong wanted the Li Clan’s 763 mu of land and agreed that they should sell it rather than risk losing access to water.
  • Li Mingtian brought Li Hongwei and the land deeds to the Zhang Clan, where they sold the fields to Zhang Laochong for 500 taels and had a new deed drawn up.
  • Zhang Laochong expanded the Zhang Clan’s holdings to 1,891 mu, and Li Mingtian told him that Wang Fang’s claims about Little Moon Mountain’s water had caused the conflict.

Ch. 31Granting her wish

Wang Fang fled after confessing that she had instigated the Li Clan to cut off Little Moon Mountain’s water, while Zhang Lingfeng expanded his clan’s landholdings and arranged martial arts training for his cousins. After learning of Wang Fang’s role, Zhang Lingfeng decided to grant her wish and take action against her.

  • Wang Fang learned that the Li Clan had sold its farmland to the Zhang Clan, realized the Li Clan would blame her for the water dispute, and fled overnight after telling Wang Biao what she had done.
  • Zhang Lingfeng sent Zhang Fugui to Elder Zheng Martial Arts School and Zhang Fukang to Xu Clan Martial Arts School, paying their tuition and for three months of Qi and blood replenishing soup.
  • Zhang Pingping read Zhang Laochong’s letter, which reported that the Zhang Clan had bought 763 mu of Li Clan farmland for five hundred taels, bringing its total holdings to 1,891 mu.
  • Zhang Lingfeng learned that Wang Fang had urged the Li Clan to cut off Little Moon Mountain’s water and recalled how their broken engagement had damaged her reputation.
  • Zhang Lingfeng said Wang Fang was both pitiful and hateful, then resolved to grant her wish.

Ch. 32Supplementary Pills

Zhang Lingfeng watched Ye Fan break through into Dark Force and considered whether Qi and Blood Pills could help his own cultivation. He visited Guo Wei and revealed that he had attained Dark Force, leaving his master astonished.

  • Zhang Pingping informed Zhang Laochong that Zhang Fugui and Zhang Fukang had entered the martial arts school and that Baile Ward was stable, while Chen Sanshi handled Wang Fang's matter.
  • Ye Fan broke through into Dark Force and received congratulations from the other disciples as Mr. Yan delivered Qi and Blood Pills for Guo Wei.
  • Ye Fan suggested Zhang Lingfeng use Qi and Blood Pills and recruit a Dark Force expert to support Warm Breeze Hall, while privately hoping Zhang Lingfeng would fund his cultivation.
  • Zhang Lingfeng went to see Guo Wei and announced that he had attained Dark Force.
  • Guo Wei examined Zhang Lingfeng's bone structure in disbelief and marveled at his breakthrough.

Ch. 33Shortening the time

Zhang Lingfeng learned that a Qi and Blood Pill could accelerate his cultivation through his subsidy ability, giving him a chance to surpass Ye Fan and claim Guo Wei’s legacy. After receiving Wang Biao’s courtyard as payment to spare Wang Fang, Zhang Lingfeng discovered Sanshi planned to infiltrate the Wang Family residence that night.

  • Guo Wei gave Zhang Lingfeng the lower part of the Twelve-Routine Iron Mountain Fist and a Qi and Blood Pill after Zhang Lingfeng hinted he needed cultivation resources.
  • Zhang Lingfeng’s subsidy panel showed that the pill added two months of cultivation, sharply increasing his fist-training progress.
  • Zhang Lingfeng realized that Qi and Blood Pills and similar resources could help him reach Transforming Jin before Ye Fan.
  • Zhang Lingfeng returned home and told Zhang Pingping about the pill, prompting her to hand him the deed to Wang Biao’s courtyard.
  • Zhang Pingping told Zhang Lingfeng that Sanshi planned to take Xiaohu and sneak into the Wang Family residence that night to find Wang Fang.

Ch. 34Sponsorship

Zhang Lingfeng and Zhang Pingping considered how to secure cultivation resources and protect the Zhang Clan’s land, then moved into Wang Biao’s residence. Zhang Lingfeng discovered that Ye Fan hoped to win his sponsorship and welcomed him as a neighbor, while Ye Fan quietly resolved to use the Zhang Clan’s wealth to advance his cultivation.

  • Zhang Lingfeng and Zhang Pingping discussed whether Guo Wei had redirected Ye Fan’s Qi and Blood Pill and how Ye Fan might react to losing his support.
  • Zhang Pingping moved the siblings into the residence Wang Biao had given them after Chen Sanshi failed to find Wang Fang.
  • Zhang Lingfeng saw Ye Fan leave Guo Wei looking glum and inferred that Guo Wei might now be supporting them both.
  • Zhang Lingfeng met Ye Fan on Datong Street and revealed that he lived in a spacious courtyard residence next door.
  • Zhang Lingfeng invited Ye Fan to share an expensive meal, and Ye Fan became more determined to persuade him to sponsor his cultivation.

Ch. 35A warning

Ye Fan tried to pressure Zhang Lingfeng into funding his Qi and Blood Pills, but Zhang refused. Zhang Lingfeng then revealed his breakthrough to dark force at the martial school, drawing Guo Wei’s approval and his fellow disciples’ congratulations as they arranged banquets in his honor.

  • Ye Fan demonstrated the Iron Mountain Fist to Zhang Lingfeng and hinted that Warm Breeze Hall should prepare for government investigations, hoping to secure support for his cultivation.
  • Zhang Lingfeng refused Ye Fan’s attempt to enlist Warm Breeze Hall, and Ye Fan left determined to make the hall regret it.
  • After Ye Fan met Huang Jiefu, Zhang Lingfeng practiced the Twelve-Routine Iron Mountain Fist at full strength in front of the disciples and revealed that he had attained dark force.
  • Guo Wei praised Zhang Lingfeng, while Ma Fei, Liu Rushuang, Yang Tao, Zhao Hu, and Wu Yun congratulated him and offered to host banquets.
  • Zhang Lingfeng invited Ye Fan and the others to a banquet with Huang Jiefu, then signaled Hei Hu to hurry to the eastern district government office.

Ch. 36Changes

Huang Jiefu planned to pressure Zhang Lingfeng for a larger share of the Warm Breeze Hall’s profits, but Hei Hu told him that Zhang Lingfeng had cultivated Dark Force and invited him to a celebratory banquet. Huang Jiefu eagerly accepted, while Hei Hu arranged for Wang Ergou to turn away Ye Fan’s people.

  • Huang Jiefu drilled his subordinates and planned to use the evening banquet to pressure Zhang Lingfeng into raising the yamen’s cut of the Warm Breeze Hall’s profits.
  • Hei Hu arrived at the East District Yamen and invited Huang Jiefu to a banquet at the Drunken Spring House.
  • Huang Jiefu initially refused, but Hei Hu explained that Ma Fei was hosting the banquet and that Zhang Lingfeng had cultivated Dark Force.
  • Huang Jiefu agreed to attend and promised to bring gifts after hearing of Zhang Lingfeng’s breakthrough.
  • Hei Hu gave Wang Ergou silver and asked him to send Ye Fan’s people away, saying Huang Jiefu had already received an invitation.

Ch. 37Primordial Yang

Huang Jiefu realized Ye Fan had used him to trouble Zhang Lingfeng and warned his men not to provoke the newly powerful disciple. At the martial arts school, Zhang Lingfeng impressed Guo Wei and outperformed a distracted Ye Fan, while Guo Wei advised him to cultivate diligently and preserve his primordial yang.

  • Huang Jiefu realized Zhang Lingfeng had reached Dark Force and ordered his deputy to stop provoking the Warm Breeze Hall and prepare a generous gift.
  • Hei Hu watched an outer courtyard apprentice fail to enter the eastern district yamen, while Tang Baihu's group seized the apprentice in an alley and knocked him unconscious.
  • Guo Wei instructed the inner courtyard disciples, and Zhang Lingfeng demonstrated the Iron Mountain Fist before sparring with Ye Fan.
  • Zhang Lingfeng struck Ye Fan and sent him staggering, prompting Guo Wei to bring Zhang Lingfeng inside while Ye Fan continued practicing anxiously.
  • Zhang Lingfeng told Guo Wei that the Qi and Blood Pill had improved his Qi and blood and understanding, and Guo Wei praised his constitution while cautioning him against relying on pills.
  • Guo Wei advised Zhang Lingfeng to cultivate diligently and preserve his primordial yang to improve his chances of reaching Transforming Jin.

Ch. 38Dejection

At a feast celebrating Zhang Lingfeng’s breakthrough to Dark Force, Ye Fan felt increasingly overshadowed and isolated. After seeing Zhang Lingfeng celebrated again at Warm Breeze Hall, Ye Fan lashed out at a wall, then met Zhang Pingping, who praised him and invited him to drink.

  • Guo Wei, the guests, and the disciples praised Zhang Lingfeng at Drunken Spring House, while Ye Fan brooded over their attention and Huang Jiefu’s coldness toward him.
  • Ye Fan left the feast, but Hei Hu’s address of Zhang Lingfeng as “Master Zhang” further stung him as he walked back toward Datong Street.
  • Ye Fan saw Warm Breeze Hall celebrating Zhang Lingfeng’s breakthrough and, overwhelmed by resentment, punched a wall with Dark Force.
  • Zhang Pingping appeared and told Ye Fan she had long admired him and once hoped to invite him to work for her family.
  • Ye Fan admitted he felt stifled and wanted company, and Zhang Pingping led him into a nearby alley.

Ch. 39Innocence

Zhang Pingping used wine and a drug to bring Ye Fan and Wei Hong together, and Ye Fan woke the next day believing he had compromised his martial cultivation and reputation. The chapter ended with Wei He bursting into Wei Hong’s room and attacking Ye Fan.

  • Zhang Pingping drank with Ye Fan, drew out his frustrations, and led him to Wei Hong, who embraced him.
  • Zhang Lingfeng saw the drunken Ye Fan with Wei Hong and quietly left with Zhang Pingping.
  • Guo Wei noticed Ye Fan was absent from the martial hall, and Hei Hu reported that Ye Fan had not returned home.
  • Ye Fan woke beside Wei Hong, who accused him of refusing responsibility and threatened to kill herself.
  • Wei He stormed into the room, saw Ye Fan gripping Wei Hong, and punched toward Ye Fan’s vital spot.

Ch. 40Ruined Reputation

Ye Fan was accused of violating Wei Hong and trying to flee, so Zhang Lingfeng arranged an engagement to settle the matter without letting Guo Wei find out. The chapter ended with Ye Fan asking Zhang Lingfeng how to hide the loss of his primordial yang from Guo Wei.

  • Wei He and Chen Sanshi confronted Ye Fan after he tried to escape, and Ye Fan asked to see Zhang Lingfeng.
  • Zhang Lingfeng arrived and heard Wei Hong accuse Ye Fan of violating her and attempting to abandon her.
  • Zhang Lingfeng warned Ye Fan that Guo Wei would punish him if he learned what happened, then told Wei Hong and Wei He to wait outside.
  • Zhang Lingfeng proposed that Ye Fan and Wei Hong become engaged, with a formal wedding after Ye Fan succeeded in the martial examinations.
  • Ye Fan agreed to the engagement, then asked Zhang Lingfeng how he could conceal his lost primordial yang from Guo Wei.

Ch. 41Signing and sealing

Zhang Lingfeng arranged Ye Fan’s marriage to Wei Hong and persuaded him to hand over six months of Qi and Blood Pills as the betrothal gift. He planned to use those pills to outpace Ye Fan and become Guo Wei’s favored disciple, leaving the struggle for the thirteenth hand unresolved.

  • Zhang Lingfeng convinced Ye Fan to give Wei He the Qi and Blood Pills he would receive over the next six months, presenting them as a betrothal gift and a way to conceal his lost primal Yang.
  • Zhang Lingfeng witnessed Ye Fan and Wei Hong sign a marriage contract and a pledge promising the pills as the betrothal gift.
  • Wei He approved the marriage, while Zhang Lingfeng reminded Wei Hong to keep Ye Fan’s situation secret and helped him leave without being seen.
  • After Ye Fan left, Wei He worried that he might break through to Transforming Jin, but Zhang Pingping said their signed statement could hold him to the marriage.
  • Zhang Lingfeng declared that keeping Ye Fan from the pills would let him surpass Ye Fan and win Guo Wei’s favor.

Ch. 42Breaking through

Zhang Fugui broke through to Ming Jin and earned Elder Zheng’s approval, while Zhang Lingfeng pushed his followers to progress quickly. After Ye Fan received another Qi and Blood Pill from Guo Wei, he secretly passed it to Zhang Lingfeng, who consumed it and advanced his Iron Mountain Fist.

  • Zhang Fugui broke through to Ming Jin after nearly two months of training, and Elder Zheng brought him into the inner courtyard.
  • Zhang Lingfeng urged Zhang Fukang to keep training and challenged Zhang Fugui to reach Dark Force within a year.
  • Zhang Lingfeng continued practicing the Iron Mountain Fist as his progress advanced to 67/600.
  • Guo Wei gave Ye Fan a high-grade Qi and Blood Pill, but Ye Fan hesitated to take it while Zhang Lingfeng and the others watched.
  • Wei He met Zhang Lingfeng in an alley and passed him a Qi and Blood Pill, which Zhang Lingfeng swallowed, raising his Iron Mountain Fist progress to 100/600.

Ch. 43Defeat

Zhang Lingfeng bought a superior Qi and Blood Pill from Guo Wei, who covered the shortfall in his payment. After consuming it, Zhang Lingfeng's cultivation surged, and he defeated Ye Fan in a spar.

  • Guo Wei watched Ye Fan practice and saw little change after Ye Fan took a Qi and Blood Pill.
  • Zhang Lingfeng paid Guo Wei eight hundred taels for a pill, and Guo Wei supplied the remaining three hundred taels himself.
  • Zhang Lingfeng ate the pill and rapidly advanced his Twelve-Routine Iron Mountain Fist and Dark Force.
  • Guo Wei and the other disciples were astonished by Zhang Lingfeng's newfound strength, while Ye Fan suspected Zhang Lingfeng had taken the pill he had handed to Wei He.
  • Guo Wei ordered Ye Fan to spar with Zhang Lingfeng, who broke through Ye Fan's defense and sent him flying with two strikes.

Ch. 44Tax collection

Zhang Lingfeng defeated Ye Fan and won Guo Wei’s praise, while Ye Fan lost confidence and felt abandoned. A month later, Zhang Lingfeng returned to oversee the Zhang Clan’s harvest and studied the tax collectors, intending to secure his family a place among them.

  • Zhang Lingfeng defeated Ye Fan, prompting Guo Wei to praise Zhang Lingfeng’s exceptional constitution and prospects.
  • Guo Wei scolded Ye Fan for losing his composure, while the martial hall’s disciples gathered around Zhang Lingfeng and praised him.
  • A month later, Zhang Lingfeng returned to Zhang Family Gully with Chen Qing to inspect the rice harvest on Little Moon Mountain.
  • Zhang Lingfeng watched county clerks and patrol inspectors measure the Li Clan’s land and collect taxes, noting that he wanted to learn which families supplied their ranks.
  • Zhang Laochong told Zhang Lingfeng that the Zhang Clan should host the next tax collection, and Zhang Lingfeng promised no one would take their rice.

Ch. 45An old dog

After returning to the county town, Zhang Lingfeng continued cultivating while Zhang Pingping planned the clan’s expansion and expenses. At the Zheng Family Martial Arts School, Yang Yu’s rapid breakthrough to Dark Force unsettled Zhang Fugui and threatened the Zhang Clan’s hopes of gaining Elder Zheng’s true teachings.

  • Zhang Laochong gave Liu Dongsheng an extra two hundred shi of grain to ease Zhang Lingfeng’s dealings with the authorities.
  • Zhang Lingfeng returned to the martial arts school and kept training, while news arrived that Zhang Fukang had broken through to Ming Jin.
  • Zhang Pingping reviewed the eastern district map with Wang Ergou as the clan considered how to cover its growing expenses.
  • Elder Zheng announced that Yang Yu had advanced from Ming Jin to Dark Force in a year and a month, despite having low-grade innate aptitude.
  • Zhang Fugui and Wei He told Zhang Lingfeng and Zhang Pingping about Yang Yu’s achievement and worried he would receive Elder Zheng’s true teachings.
  • Zhang Lingfeng urged Zhang Fugui to keep training and try to befriend Yang Yu rather than panic.

Ch. 46Eating people

Great Saber Hong abducted Wang Biao, and Wang Fang begged Zhang Lingfeng to rescue her brother, offering most of the Wang Family’s land. Zhang Lingfeng agreed to attempt the rescue and required the family to transfer half its land to the Zhang Clan before he acted.

  • Great Saber Hong’s men knocked Wang Biao unconscious in the fields and carried him off toward the mountains, leaving a ransom note.
  • Chen Qing and Xu Laiyi alerted Zhang Laochong, who sent Xu Laiyi to the county town to inform Zhang Lingfeng and request reinforcements.
  • Zhang Lingfeng sent Hei Hu and Sun Yan back to Zhang Family Gully, while Zhang Pingping anticipated that Wang Fang would seek help.
  • Wang Fang visited Zhang Lingfeng with Great Saber Hong’s demand for fifteen hundred taels of silver within three days and offered the Wang Family’s remaining land for Wang Biao’s rescue.
  • Zhang Lingfeng agreed to try to rescue Wang Biao and required the Wang Family to transfer fifty percent of its land to the Zhang Clan regardless of the outcome.

Ch. 47Commanding

Zhang Lingfeng assembled support to rescue Wang Biao from Great Saber Hong, persuading his fellow disciples to join him and pressuring Huang Jiefu to take action. Huang Jiefu agreed to gather troops and set out with them to capture Great Saber Hong.

  • Wang Fang suggested that Zhang Lingfeng use the chance to capture Great Saber Hong to win Huang Jiefu's favor, and Zhang Lingfeng agreed to approach him.
  • Zhang Lingfeng asked Ye Fan, Wu Yun, Ma Fei, Yang Tao, Zhao Hu, and Liu Rushuang to help rescue Wang Biao, and they all agreed after he said they would mainly support Huang Jiefu.
  • Zhang Lingfeng led his fellow disciples to the eastern district government office and offered Huang Jiefu the opportunity to capture Great Saber Hong.
  • Huang Jiefu hesitated until Zhang Lingfeng's disciples declared they would help, then agreed to assemble troops and set out with them.

Ch. 48Severed heads

Zhang Lingfeng gathered martial artists and government men to rescue Wang Biao from Great Saber Hong, while Chen Sanshi secretly sent warnings to both sides. After learning that a rescue force was approaching, Great Saber Hong killed the messengers and prepared to face Zhang Lingfeng’s group.

  • Zhang Lingfeng brought martial artists and Huang Jiefu’s bailiffs to join the rescue of Wang Biao, while Tang Baihu and Li Si spread news of the expedition around town.
  • Chen Sanshi sent Sanjiao and Dapen to warn Great Saber Hong that Zhang Lingfeng and government men were coming to capture him.
  • Sanjiao and Dapen delivered the warning, but Great Saber Hong killed them and demanded that Wang Biao explain who Zhang Lingfeng was.
  • Great Saber Hong sent men to scout and learned that government men and Guo Wei Martial Arts School experts, including Ma Fei, Zhao Hu, and Ye Fan, were approaching.

Ch. 49Success

Zhang Lingfeng led a group of martial artists and Huang Jiefu’s constables to rescue Wang Biao and arrest Great Saber Hong, but the bandit fled after realizing how many powerful people had come. The group returned to Zhang Family Gully, where word of Zhang Lingfeng’s role in driving off Great Saber Hong quickly spread.

  • Wei He told Zhang Lingfeng that the preparations were complete, and Zhang Lingfeng promised Huang Jiefu that they would help capture Great Saber Hong.
  • Great Saber Hong recognized the martial artists and Huang Jiefu approaching Shrimp Gully, freed Wang Biao, and fled into the mountains with his men.
  • Wang Biao reached the group at Shrimp Gully and explained that Great Saber Hong had run away, leaving Huang Jiefu disappointed that the arrest had failed.
  • Zhang Lingfeng invited the martial artists and constables to rest and eat at Zhang Family Gully, and Huang Jiefu led his group there with them.
  • After Wang Biao arrived with the group, word spread through the area that Zhang Lingfeng had scared Great Saber Hong away.

Ch. 50The martial juren

After Zhang Lingfeng rescued Wang Biao, Li Mingtian sought help from Juren Zhang to reclaim Little Moon Mountain’s water supply and pressure the Zhang Clan. Zhang Qilin seized the water supply and detained Chen Qing, demanding that Zhang Lingfeng come meet him.

  • Li Hongwei told Li Mingtian that Zhang Lingfeng had rescued Wang Biao from Great Saber Hong, and Li Mingtian worried about the Zhang Clan’s growing influence.
  • Li Mingtian visited Zhang Qilin, who agreed to help reclaim Little Moon Mountain’s water supply and force the Zhang Clan to sell its farmland cheaply.
  • Wang Jinshan transferred all but a tenth of his farmland to the Zhang Clan, and Zhang Laochong inspected the newly acquired fields with his sons.
  • Xu Laiyi reported that Zhang Qilin had seized Little Moon Mountain’s water supply and detained Chen Qing, demanding that Zhang Lingfeng come see him.
  • Zhang Laochong ordered Zhang Da to notify Zhang Lingfeng, while Zhang Da worried that the family could not contend with the martial juren.
Arc 2 of 2
Arc 2 of 2