Recaps

After their wedding night, Wu Shuangren discovered that Xu Yuebai enjoyed mathematics and offered her the chance to review the accounts of his businesses. The newlyweds traveled to the city in Yi Province, where Xu Yuebai began examining the books under Mo Zhengxing’s guidance, though Wu Shuangren had not yet handed her full control of the finances.

• Wu Shuangren and Xu Yuebai spent their wedding night together.
• The next morning, Wu Shuangren learned that Xu Yuebai enjoyed studying the mathematical arts and promised to support her interest.
• Wu Shuangren asked Xu Yuebai to help manage the accounts of his many businesses as his chief financial officer.
• Wu Shuangren took Xu Yuebai to the city in Yi Province and told Mo Zhengxing to give her the business account books to review.
• Wu Shuangren reserved full financial control until he could assess Xu Yuebai’s abilities and their trust had time to grow.

Wu Shuangren and Guo Jiwang planned to use the Yuan Clan’s influence to bring down Zhang Da while avoiding its demands, as Zhang Da grew alarmed over the Pu father and son. In the capital, Yuan Feng died after warning Yuan Shu to protect the clan, and Yuan Shu emerged as the leading candidate to succeed him as vice director of the Central Secretariat.

• Wu Shuangren told Guo Jiwang he wanted to defeat Zhang Da, avenge the Forged Edge Workshop, win over the Pu father and son, and gain a foothold in Shu Province; Guo Jiwang proposed borrowing the Yuan Clan’s influence without letting it dictate terms.
• Xu Cheng rejected Zhang Da’s apology and invitation, prompting Zhang Da to fear that the Yuan Clan would intervene and to consider silencing the Pu father and son.
• Yuan Feng, gravely ill, urged Yuan Shu to protect the Yuan Clan, secure the Shanbei Army and Jiannan Circuit, and act cautiously if the realm fell into chaos before he died.
• The emperor posthumously honored Yuan Feng, whose death shook the political order and left the vice director position of the Central Secretariat vacant.
• At the grand court assembly after Yuan Feng’s funeral, Yuan Shu became the leading candidate to succeed his father as vice director.

Court factional conflict weakened the Yuan Clan as the Lu and Cui Clans gained power, while Xu Jing told Wu Shuangren that Xu Ning had been pushed out of the capital’s Imperial Guard. Wu Shuangren abandoned the plan to use the Yuan Clan’s influence against Zhang Da and decided to take men to Shu Province himself.

• The emperor left the Central Secretariat vice minister post vacant, but elevated Lu Shiyi to chancellor and appointed Cui Jin to command the Northern Headquarters Imperial Guard, where Cui Jin removed officers tied to the Yuan Clan.
• Yuan Shu recognized that the Lu and Cui Clans had joined forces against him and resented his father’s advice to yield while Yuan Shao prospered.
• Xu Jing trained his Yi Province troops with methods he had learned from Wu Shuangren, though he found the garrison’s hereditary soldiers less disciplined than the militia.
• Xu Jing told Wu Shuangren that Cui Jin had taken command of the Imperial Guard and that Xu Ning had been transferred to a sinecure, making the Xu Family’s ties to the Yuan Clan a liability.
• Wu Shuangren decided the Xu Family should oppose Zhang Da directly rather than rely on the Yuan Clan, then returned to Yi Prefecture City and told Guo Jiwang he would lead men to Shu Province.

Wu Shuangren grew concerned about the Cui Clan’s rising power and decided to go to Shu Province with Guo Jiwang. There, Xu Cheng’s accusation against Zhang Da escalated into an open military confrontation, while Yuan Shu rejected Dong Zhuo’s proposal to bring troops to the capital and reaffirmed his claim to lead the Yuan Clan.

• Wu Shuangren told Guo Jiwang that Cui Jin’s appointment and the Cui Clan’s influence made him fear worsening court factionalism, so Guo Jiwang offered to accompany him to Shu Province.
• Xu Cheng accused Zhang Da of secretly mining, forging weapons, murder, colluding with the enemy, and betraying the nation, then told Su Jinfan that witnesses and evidence were on their way.
• Wang Junning delivered Dong Zhuo’s proposal that Yuan Shu recruit generals and bring troops to the capital against the Cui Clan, but Yuan Shu called the suggestion alarmist and sent him away.
• Xu Cheng returned to the Shu Province garrison and assembled his troops to escort the witnesses, defying Ding Lin’s demand that he obey Zhang Da’s orders.

Xu Cheng and Wu Shuangren joined forces to bring Pu Zheng and Pu Yuan openly into Shu Province, hoping to force Zhang Da into a public confrontation and win the circuit intendant’s support. As their troops traveled toward Shu Province City, Xu Cheng began explaining Zhang Da’s past to Wu Shuangren.

• Xu Cheng denounced Ding Lin’s defense of Zhang Da and led every soldier on the drill ground away to retrieve the witnesses.
• Zhang Da considered whether Xu Cheng was baiting him, while Adviser Wang warned that acting against Xu Cheng might be exactly what he wanted.
• Guo Jiwang explained to Wu Shuangren that a public confrontation would reveal who had the advantage and influence the circuit intendant’s stance.
• On the forty-third day after killing Long Lie, Xu Cheng met Wu Shuangren at the Shu Province–Yi Province border, and the two groups set out for Shu Province City with Pu Zheng and Pu Yuan in plain view.
• As scouts and informants watched for an ambush, Xu Cheng told Wu Shuangren about Zhang Da’s military career and their nearly ten years of dealings.

Xu Cheng and Wu Shuangren prepared to confront Zhang Da, who gathered government troops, militias, gangs, and Zhou Family retainers at Zhou Family Village. Zhang Da’s more than four thousand men assembled for battle, and after paying them, he led them out to meet Xu Cheng’s approaching force.

• Xu Cheng explained that Zhang Da could command about a thousand government troops and might gather thousands more, while Wu Shuangren offered to handle Zhang Da’s elite personal soldiers.
• Zhang Da assembled his forces at Zhou Family Village with support from Zhou Xi, Yan Laoba, local gangs, and village men.
• Jiang Chuan struggled to drill the more than four thousand gathered men, whose discipline and training were poor.
• Zhang Da and his allies feasted and pledged to fight together, while officers promised the troops rewards for victory.
• The next morning, Zhang Da formed his forces near the official road, declared the battle a service to the imperial court, and distributed a string of coins to each man.

Xu Cheng and Zhang Da met in battle outside Zhou Family Village after accusing each other of rebellion and treachery. Xu Cheng’s smaller force held formation and gained the upper hand in the infantry clash, leaving Zhang Da’s larger army at risk of collapse.

• Zhang Da enforced military discipline among his troops and sent scouts to gather intelligence on Xu Cheng’s approaching force.
• Xu Cheng and Wu Shuangren discussed Zhang Da’s position as their armies drew close, then both sides exchanged accusations of rebellion and treachery.
• Xu Cheng advanced in an Arrowhead Formation while Zhang Da’s army formed a Flying Geese Formation, and their crossbowmen and archers traded volleys.
• The infantry formations collided, with Xu Cheng’s center pushing back Zhang Da’s troops as Zhang Da’s wings attempted to encircle them.
• Zhang Da sent his cavalry to attack Xu Cheng’s rear, but Xu Cheng’s cavalry intercepted them and performed better despite being outnumbered.
• Zhang Da’s encirclement failed to break Xu Cheng’s formation, and his center neared collapse as he ordered everyone to prepare.

Lu Yulin appeared on the battlefield and revealed himself as a Great Grandmaster, charging straight toward Wu Shuangren. His arrival overwhelmed the fighting forces, who stopped and made way for him.

• Wu Shuangren and Zhang Da led their elite personal troops into the battle at Zhou Family Village.
• A black-robed man on the village wall ordered his hidden experts to move, then charged onto the battlefield with a spear.
• The spear-wielding man cut through the cavalry with ease, killing riders as he advanced toward Wu Shuangren.
• Xu Cheng sent Lin Qian to intervene after Lin Qian sensed something was wrong.
• The newcomer called out Wu Shuangren's name, and the wind tore away his conical hat, revealing Lu Yulin and his golden [White Qilin] Trait.
• Lu Yulin's presence and booming voice stopped the nearby fighters and cleared a path through the battlefield.

Wu Shuangren faced Lu Yulin, who had arrived as a Great Grandmaster to support Zhang Da, while Lin Qian confronted the meaning of Lu Yulin’s path. Wu Shuangren fought Lu Yulin alone after sending Lin Qian to attack Zhang Da, and the chapter ended as Lu Yulin launched another spear thrust.

• Wu Shuangren noticed Lu Yulin’s Traits had turned golden, and Lin Qian arrived to face the Great Grandmaster.
• Zhang Da celebrated Lu Yulin’s arrival, while Lu Yulin argued that rebellion meant rejecting the rules imposed by others and challenged Lin Qian to break free of his constraints.
• Wu Shuangren sent Lin Qian to kill Zhang Da and stepped forward to fight Lu Yulin alone as the battlefield erupted into chaos.
• Lu Yulin crossed the distance and thrust at Wu Shuangren four times, but Wu Shuangren deflected each attack and revealed his heightened strength.
• Lu Yulin wondered whether Wu Shuangren’s power gave him confidence, then attacked again after Wu Shuangren denied it.

Lu Yulin used his newly attained Great Grandmaster spear Dao to suppress Wu Shuangren, but Wu Shuangren kept surviving each attack without finding a chance to counter. Meanwhile, Lin Qian fought through Lu Yulin’s allies toward Zhang Da, leaving Lu Yulin worried that the battle was slipping beyond his control.

• Lu Yulin intensified his spear attacks, using the Spear of Fate to narrow Wu Shuangren’s paths of escape until Wu was forced to block a direct thrust and suffered internal injuries.
• Wu Shuangren realized that Lu Yulin’s golden Trait enhanced his martial arts, yet he continued to withstand the attacks with flawless defenses despite falling behind in speed, strength, and technique.
• After more than fifty exchanges, Lu Yulin found he could neither break Wu Shuangren’s defense nor force him into the fatal outcome his spear Dao prescribed.
• Lin Qian smashed through Zhang Da’s heavily armored guards and charged toward Zhang Da, believing Wu Shuangren was only holding Lu Yulin back for him.
• Yan Xiaobing and Liang An joined forces with Lu Yulin’s other experts to stop Lin Qian, but Lin’s reckless spear assault drove them back and wounded several fighters.
• Lu Yulin saw that Lin Qian might kill Zhang Da before the duel ended and feared the battle would repeat the earlier crisis outside Yi Prefecture City.

Wu Shuangren used the Method of the Escaped One and a sudden burst of power to defeat Lu Yulin, who fled after suffering a near-fatal slash. Wu Shuangren survived but was badly injured, and he wondered whether he could kill Lu Yulin without risking Lin Qian’s life.

• Lu Yulin unleashed his full strength, but Wu Shuangren repeatedly found openings to counterattack and endured the spear blows with his heavy armor.
• As their battle continued, Lin Qian and Xu Yu’s forces gained ground, and Lin Qian killed Zhang Da, disrupting Lu Yulin’s state of mind.
• Wu Shuangren activated the [World-Purifying Wisdom King Mantra] and slashed Lu Yulin deeply when the opening in his spearwork widened.
• Lu Yulin fled, while Yan Xiaobing and Liang An retreated after him; Lin Qian stayed to protect Wu Shuangren.
• Wu Shuangren spat blood as Lin Qian helped suppress his turbulent Qi and blood, and he decided not to send Lin Qian after the wounded Lu Yulin.

After Wu Shuangren defeated Great Grandmaster Lu Yulin, Xu Cheng’s forces routed Zhang Da’s troops and captured their equipment and witnesses. Wu Shuangren reflected on the risks and gains of his victory, while the chapter ended three days later at the Mount Shu Sect’s compound in Shu Province City.

• Wu Shuangren told Lin Qian that Lu Yulin had been defeated but not killed, and that his shattered state of mind would make another defeat likely.
• After Lin Qian killed Zhang Da and Lu Yulin fled, Xu Cheng’s forces pursued the fleeing troops, while most of Zhang Da’s soldiers surrendered.
• Wu Shuangren told Xu Cheng he had won through luck, then considered how his battle with Lu Yulin had strengthened his Traits and [Method of One Person].
• Xu Cheng gave Wu Shuangren captured armor, weapons, horses, and crossbows, and planned to use captured Mount Liang rebels as witnesses against Zhang Da.
• Three days after Lu Yulin’s defeat, disciples practiced swordsmanship at the Mount Shu Sect’s compound in Shu Province City, where leader Li Xiao oversaw the sect’s affairs.

After Wu Shuangren defeated Lu Yulin and Zhang Da died, Li Xiao learned that the nineteen-year-old Wu had stopped a Great Grandmaster and worried he would expand into Shu Province. Zhang Da’s crimes were exposed, and news of Wu Shuangren’s victory reached Chang’an, where people across the capital began debating his strength.

• Li Xiao met Su Jinfan, who told him that Wu Shuangren had defeated Lu Yulin and Zhang Da had died during the clash with Xu Cheng.
• Su Jinfan warned Li Xiao that Wu Shuangren might next expand into Shu Province, and Li Xiao agreed to prepare the Mount Shu Sect.
• Xu Cheng returned to Shu Province City with Zhang Da’s associates, while the Pu father and son presented evidence about the Forged Edge Workshop and retrieved the hidden account book.
• Captured former Mount Liang experts and Adviser Wang confessed to collusion with Zhang Da, and government troops uncovered bones at the private mine on the Shu-Yi border.
• Su Jinfan sent Zhang Da’s crimes to the court, and the memorial reached Chang’an, where officials learned that Wu Shuangren had defeated Lu Yulin.
• News of Wu Shuangren’s victory spread through Chang’an, prompting widespread debate over whether Lu Yulin had truly become a Great Grandmaster.

Yuan Shu learned that Wu Shuangren had founded the Yi Province Militia and rejected the Yuan Clan, then turned to cultivating ties with Lü Fengxian, the emperor’s Great Grandmaster guardian. The chapter ended with Lü Fengxian accepting Yuan Shu’s invitation and arriving for a wine banquet.

• Yuan Shu blamed Xue Ling and Peng Cheng for underestimating Wu Shuangren and ordered them beaten to death.
• Yuan Shu realized Wu Shuangren had built the Yi Province Militia himself and that the Xu Family had chosen him over the Yuan Clan.
• Wang Junning secretly visited Yuan Shu that evening to speak with him.
• Emperor Li Bian asked Lü Fengxian whether a nineteen-year-old could become a Great Grandmaster, and Lü dismissed the reports as rumors.
• Lü Fengxian told Li Bian that imperial authority outweighed individual martial prowess, then escorted him to Cining Palace.
• Lü Fengxian accepted Yuan Shu’s invitation and arrived at the Yuan residence, where Yuan Shu welcomed him to drink wine.

Yuan Shu tested Lü Fengxian’s views on who could shape the realm’s future and sent him home with Du Xiu'er, then secretly wrote to Dong Zhuo. The story shifted to Shannan Circuit, where Dong Zhuo rewarded the Western Liang Guard after watching their training.

• Yuan Shu asked Lü Fengxian about rumors of a nineteen-year-old Great Grandmaster and who could steer the realm’s greater course; Lü named Yuan Shu, the Prince of the Western Capital, and several other powerful figures, but dismissed Han Shizhong and Zhao Yunlong as unsuitable.
• Yuan Shu described Dong Zhuo as ambitious and said a divine general was needed to rein him in, then introduced Du Xiu'er and offered her to Lü Fengxian.
• Lü Fengxian accepted Du Xiu'er and returned home with her and several jars of wine.
• After Lü Fengxian left, Yuan Shu wrote a letter to Dong Zhuo and ordered a trusted aide to deliver it through Wang Junning.
• At the Western Liang Guard’s drill grounds, Hua Xiong stopped the soldiers’ training when Dong Zhuo arrived, and the guards saluted their military governor.
• Dong Zhuo praised the Western Liang Guard, promised them extra meat, and rewarded Ma Chen with his saber for performing best in a military exercise.

Dong Zhuo considered Yuan Shu’s invitation to march on the capital, prepared Shannan’s forces while awaiting a secret order, and ordered an inquiry into Wu Shuangren’s strength. Meanwhile, Wu Shuangren recovered in Yi Province as his victory over Lu Yulin made him famous and drew martial artists to the region.

• Dong Zhuo’s commanders discussed Yuan Shu’s letter urging him to lead troops to the capital, but Li Ru advised him not to mobilize without a secret order from the Yuan Clan.
• Dong Zhuo agreed to reply to Yuan Shu and redeployed Shannan’s troops into a defensive posture while preparing to withdraw elite soldiers.
• Dong Zhuo ordered Niu Fu to have Wang Yan investigate the returning soldiers’ account of Lu Yulin and Wu Shuangren.
• The court stripped Zhang Da of his posts and punished those implicated, while Xu Cheng was promoted and Su Jinfan received a commendation.
• Wu Shuangren continued recovering from his injuries as martial artists flocked to Yi Prefecture City after hearing of his victory over Lu Yulin; Xu Jing’s troops suppressed those who tried to cause trouble.

Wu Shuangren strengthened his forces in Bo County and prepared to expand them through the reopened Forged Edge Workshop in Shu Province. He left for Shu Province with Lin Qian as the workshop began recruiting thousands of workers and guards.

• Wu Shuangren ordered Luo Heng to accept five applicants with clean records for militia training and use others in Flying Feather Hall, while approving the expansion of its Shu Province branch and placement of agents at the Forged Edge Workshop.
• Wu Shuangren and Lin Qian sparred with the Escaping One Saber, and Lin Qian recognized how the technique found tiny flaws in otherwise complete moves.
• Wu Shuangren told Lin Qian he planned to travel to Shu Province despite his unhealed internal injuries, and Lin Qian agreed to accompany him.
• Pu Yuan and his son reopened the expanded Forged Edge Workshop outside Shu Province's capital and began recruiting workers and household guards.
• Wu Shuangren told Pu Yuan that the workshop needed more guards after its past massacre and said the more guards they recruited, the better.