Recaps

Wu Shuangren and his forces broke through Mount Liang’s column, defeated the Great Saber Guards, and routed them. After the battle, Wu Shuangren saw that only a little over twenty of his thirty-eight heavily armored personal guards remained standing.

• Wu Shuangren advanced through the Mount Liang column, while Rong Province militiamen fled or were forced back into the fight by the disciplinary squad.
• Wu Shuangren killed Guo Fan in a swift duel, then joined Xu Yu in attacking the Great Saber Guards.
• Wu Shuangren and Xu Yu killed several of the Great Saber Guards’ leaders as their personal guards clashed with the enemy in a fierce melee.
• The Great Saber Guards’ morale collapsed and their formation routed; Wu Shuangren stopped pursuing and saw that many of his personal guards had fallen or were badly hurt.

Wu Shuangren and Xu Yu led the militia against a Mount Liang force of more than two thousand, while Xu Jing’s ambush struck from behind and turned the battle into a rout. Afterward, the exhausted survivors treated their wounded, and Wu Shuangren ordered them to recover the warhorses from the forest.

• Wu Shuangren formed his heavily armored guards and militia into a spear formation and pushed through Mount Liang’s ranks despite arrow volleys and a flanking attack.
• Wu Shuangren and Xu Yu fought through a group of Mount Liang experts, and Wu Shuangren’s advance frightened two leaders into fleeing.
• Xu Jing led his ambush force out of the forest, firing repeating crossbows into Mount Liang’s rear ranks and shouting that the enemy was surrounded.
• Mount Liang’s leaders fled, their force broke, and Xu Jing’s troops pursued as the militia routed the larger army.
• The militia treated its wounded after the battle, and Wu Shuangren ordered men to retrieve the warhorses from the forest.

Wu Shuangren’s militia won a costly ambush against Mount Liang’s forces on the official road, then recruited Rong Province militiamen who wanted to leave the rebels. Meanwhile, Mount Liang captured Yi Prefecture City, and Liang An confronted Governor Lu Hongjian, whose family had died by poison before the rebels arrived.

• Wu Shuangren tended to the wounded and counted twenty-three of his personal guards and nineteen other militiamen killed, with nineteen more severely wounded.
• Xu Jing praised Wu Shuangren’s fighters, and Wu Shuangren agreed to take five leaders of the Rong Province Militia to Yi Province so they could redeem themselves through service.
• Mount Liang’s forces and Mist Hidden Temple’s warrior monks took control of Yi Prefecture City, while Lin Qian and Liang An led their men to the governor’s residence.
• Liang An showed Lu Hongjian the severed heads of Xu Rangzheng and Cheng Yi, then demanded that Lu write a statement endorsing Mount Liang.
• Liang An learned that Lu Hongjian had poisoned his entire family, drew his saber, and charged at Lu before Lin Qian stopped him an inch from Lu’s forehead.
• Lu Hongjian remained defiant as black blood welled from his throat.

Wu Shuangren returned to Yi Prefecture City with reinforcements and captured Mist Hidden Temple monks, while Guo Jiwang explained how he had eliminated Fan Yu and proposed drawing Mount Liang's leaders out. The next morning, Wu challenged Ciwen to a duel in exchange for the monks’ lives, but Ciwen hesitated as Wu noticed Lin Qian’s [Snow Leopard] Trait.

• The governor of Yi Province and his family died after taking poison, and Lin Qian ordered them given a proper burial.
• Wu Shuangren arrived outside Yi Prefecture City with more than two thousand Rong Province militiamen after defeating a much larger force, while Guo Jiwang brought further reinforcements and captured warrior monks.
• Guo Jiwang told Wu Shuangren that Fan Yu and his personal guards had been killed, removing a threat to Wu, and suggested they force the Mount Liang leaders to leave the city.
• Wu Shuangren arrayed his troops outside the northern gate and challenged Ciwen to fight, promising to spare more than eight hundred captured monks if Ciwen won.
• Ciwen hesitated to accept the duel, and Wu Shuangren spotted Lin Qian’s [Snow Leopard] Trait before threatening to kill the monks and burn Mist Hidden Mountain.

Outside Yi Prefecture City, Zhigang fought Wu Shuangren in a duel arranged to spare Mist Hidden Temple and its warrior monks. Zhigang’s overwhelming strength met Wu Shuangren’s increasingly powerful technique, and the fight remained unresolved as Wu Shuangren rose with each escalation.

• Zhigang accepted Wu Shuangren’s challenge, and Liang An secured a retreat of three hundred zhang and ruled out mounted combat before Zhigang descended from the wall.
• Zhigang and Wu Shuangren exchanged rapid attacks, with Zhigang winning their first direct clash of strength.
• Lin Qian judged that Wu Shuangren’s martial arts had reached the First Rank and estimated Zhigang had a slight advantage.
• Zhigang unleashed a secret technique, increasing his strength and attacking with his sixty-jin staff.
• Wu Shuangren’s power rose alongside Zhigang’s, and he began deflecting the staff’s force while circling Zhigang like a rising tide.

Wu Shuangren defeated Zhigang and pursued him toward the city, but Lin Qian and Ciwen intervened and trapped him between their spear and staff. As the two First Rank experts pressed their attack, Wu Shuangren’s enhanced Internal Skill began to produce Thunder Sound, though he struggled to control it.

• Wu Shuangren’s saber art advanced as he fought Zhigang, and he broke Zhigang’s right arm before driving him into retreat.
• Lin Qian left the city wall to aid Zhigang, and Ciwen followed after Liang An called for support.
• Wu Shuangren refused Lin Qian’s offer to withdraw and attacked him, prompting Lin Qian to fight back with his spear.
• Ciwen joined Lin Qian, and the two First Rank experts trapped Wu Shuangren between their attacks.
• Wu Shuangren’s Internal Skill produced Thunder Sound as he struggled to adapt to its enhanced power, and Lin Qian’s spear narrowly scraped past his breastplate.

Wu Shuangren held off Lin Qian and Ciwen long enough for Mount Liang’s loyalty to draw Zhigang and Liang An out of Yi Prefecture City, letting Wu’s riders attack the gate. The fighting turned into a chaotic melee, and Ciwen led warrior monks out to reinforce the defense as Wu’s guards neared the drawbridge.

• Wu Shuangren used Cloud Tiger Seven Kills to hold off Lin Qian and Ciwen, but Ciwen withdrew toward the city while Wu kept Lin engaged.
• Zhigang demanded that the gate be opened to rescue Lin, and Liang An agreed rather than risk being branded disloyal.
• Guo Jiwang’s plan succeeded when Zhigang and Liang An led Mount Liang fighters out, while Xu Yu led Wu Shuangren’s riders toward the gate.
• The two cavalry forces collided outside the gate and broke into a disorganized melee, where Xu Yu knocked Zhigang’s staff away before Liang An engaged him.
• Wu Shuangren’s armored guards fought toward the drawbridge, and Ciwen led fifty-nine warrior monks out of the gate to stop them.

Ciwen withdrew after his armored monks were worn down by Xu Jing and Chen Tie’s militia, while Lin Qian escaped Wu Shuangren’s pursuit and the Mount Liang forces retreated into Yi Prefecture City. Wu Shuangren retook the city, and Xu Jing learned that his third uncle, Xu Dengyun, had died defending its gate.

• Ciwen led his armored warrior monks through three militia battalions, but withdrew toward the city gate rather than risk losing more of his men.
• Lin Qian unleashed his potential and escaped after Wu Shuangren wounded his shoulder; Liang An and the other Mount Liang fighters then retreated toward the city.
• Wu Shuangren led the militia across the drawbridge and into Yi Prefecture City as the Mist Hidden Temple and Mount Liang forces fled through the other gates.
• Wu Shuangren ordered the gates closed and the wounded treated, securing Yi Prefecture City for the militia.
• Xu Jing questioned veterans about his third uncle and learned that Xu Dengyun had been killed defending the north gate.

After Yi Prefecture City was retaken, Xu Jing searched unsuccessfully for news of Xu Dengyun’s body, while Guo Jiwang and Wu Shuangren dealt with the dead, the city’s defenses, and the forces still threatening it. That night, Wu Shuangren visited Xu Jing, who sat alone beneath a tree in his armor.

• Xu Jing asked many people what had happened to Xu Dengyun’s body, found no answers, and returned to work reorganizing the city’s defenses and clearing out enemies.
• Guo Jiwang stood in the hall where Lu Hongjian had died, remembered their brief friendship, and poured wine onto the ground in farewell before leaving with Zhou Zhengqing.
• Chen Tie reported the battle’s casualties and captured equipment to Wu Shuangren, who ordered proper care for the fallen and strict discipline among the troops.
• Wu Shuangren and Guo Jiwang discussed guarding Yi Prefecture City, controlling the Rong Province militia, rewarding its commanders, and preparing for Mist Hidden Temple’s likely return.
• After curfew, Wu Shuangren went to the Xu residence and found Xu Jing sitting alone under a tree in his armor.

Wu Shuangren gathered powerful bows and swift horses from Xu Jing and rode out with him and eleven archers to hunt Ciwen’s departing forces. They found the Mount Liang and Mist Hidden Temple column at night and began a surprise attack from the rear.

• Xu Jing showed Wu Shuangren his third uncle’s hidden bow collection and gave him the Startled Tiger Bow, a mounted bow, and armor-piercing arrows.
• Wu Shuangren chose Azure Fire and Thunder Treader and told Xu Jing he intended to kill Ciwen; Xu Jing agreed to go with him.
• Wu Shuangren, Xu Jing, and eleven archers left Yi Prefecture City after dark and followed the tracks from Mist Hidden Mountain.
• The group found the forces of Mount Liang and Mist Hidden Temple transporting supplies, while Lin Qian told Liang An that Wu Shuangren had bested him in their fight.
• Wu Shuangren and the archers charged the rear of the column, and Wu Shuangren’s first arrow struck a warrior monk in the back of the neck.

Wu Shuangren and his riders harassed Mount Liang’s column, killing many pursuers before Liang An and the other leaders recognized him. When Ciwen, Liang An, Zhigang, and Lin Qian rode out together to kill him, Wu Shuangren fled with his men and used his heavy bow to unhorse Zhigang, then turned his fire on Lin Qian.

• Wu Shuangren’s thirteen riders shot at Mount Liang’s column from beyond bow range, then drew out more than thirty pursuers.
• Wu Shuangren shot down six Mount Liang riders, and he and his companions chased the survivors until fewer than ten returned to the column.
• Liang An led a dozen warrior monks in a charge, but Wu Shuangren switched to Thunder Treader and his saber, killing several before Liang An ordered a retreat.
• Wu Shuangren pursued the retreating monks, killing more, while Liang An returned to the column and identified him to Lin Qian, Ciwen, and Zhigang.
• Ciwen, Liang An, Zhigang, and Lin Qian rode out together, and Wu Shuangren withdrew with Xu Jing’s riders before turning to shoot Zhigang’s horse down.
• Wu Shuangren then shot a heavy arrow at Lin Qian, who deflected it with his spear.

Wu Shuangren forced Ciwen to accept a duel after threatening the Mist Hidden Temple’s monks, then fought him on a hillside beneath the moon. Wu Shuangren found a way to break Ciwen’s defenses and injured both his legs, leaving their battle unresolved.

• Wu Shuangren challenged Ciwen to a one-on-one fight and threatened to pick off the Mist Hidden Temple’s monks if he refused.
• After Liang An and Lin Qian warned him that the group’s morale was collapsing, Ciwen accepted Wu Shuangren’s challenge and walked to a nearby hillside.
• Wu Shuangren attacked Ciwen, but Ciwen’s armor and mastered Leakless Golden Body let him withstand repeated blows and press him with his iron staff.
• On the seventy-eighth move, Wu Shuangren used his saber to disrupt Ciwen’s Qi and blood, breaking through the defense of his Leakless Golden Body and buckling his left leg.
• Ciwen unleashed the World-Purifying Wisdom King Mantra, but Wu Shuangren outmaneuvered him and struck his right leg as their fight continued.

After killing Ciwen and declaring Mist Hidden Temple finished, Wu Shuangren explained the raid to Guo Jiwang and recovered in Yi Prefecture City. He reflected on the battle and his growing strength, then met the captured Mist Hidden Temple chief steward, Hong Zhanming.

• Wu Shuangren killed Ciwen with the iron staff and announced that Mist Hidden Temple was no more.
• Wu Shuangren told Guo Jiwang how he had raided the enemy camp, and they drank together as Guo Jiwang accepted the result.
• Guo Jiwang proposed clearing out Mist Hidden Temple while Wu Shuangren recovered from his injuries.
• Wu Shuangren reviewed how his Trait had strengthened Hegemon-King Strips Armor and realized he was close to another Trait upgrade and an Internal Skill breakthrough.
• Guo Jiwang returned with the captured Hong Zhanming, who recognized Wu Shuangren and remarked on his youth.

Wu Shuangren captured Hong Zhanming, took control of Mist Hidden Temple, and discovered its hidden treasury, weapons, and martial arts manuals. The story then shifted to Mount Liang’s stalled siege of Tiger Soul Pass, where Lu Yulin planned a renewed assault after learning that Song Hai had captured Heavenly Spring Pass.

• Guo Jiwang explained how he traced Hong Zhanming through the rice shop where Ciwen had hidden, and Hong Zhanming agreed to reveal Mist Hidden Temple’s secrets after learning Ciwen was dead.
• Wu Shuangren led his men to Mist Hidden Temple, subdued more than three hundred returning warrior monks, and ordered the temple searched.
• Hong Zhanming revealed a concealed cave containing money, armor, weapons, and martial arts manuals, including the World-Purifying Wisdom King Mantra and Leakless Golden Body.
• At Tiger Soul Pass, Lu Yulin’s army remained unable to break through Zhang Liao’s defenses after six days of attacks.
• After receiving news that Song Hai had captured Heavenly Spring Pass, Lu Yulin ordered a major assault at daybreak and assigned the generals their roles.

Zhang Liao’s night raid burned Mount Liang’s supplies at Tiger Soul Pass, and reinforcements from Shannan Circuit later forced Song Hai’s army to withdraw. Three days after Ciwen’s death, Yi Prefecture City gathered to witness the execution of Mist Hidden Temple’s leaders, who were escorted toward the platform.

• Zhang Liao led a hundred riders into Mount Liang’s camp, killed defenders, and set fire to tents and a supply depot.
• Lu Yulin pursued Zhang Liao and fought him on horseback, but Zhang Liao escaped into Tiger Soul Pass.
• Lu Yulin’s attacks failed the next day, and Song Hai later arrived with over fifteen thousand troops to renew the siege.
• Thirty thousand reinforcements from Shannan Circuit entered Tiger Soul Pass, forcing Song Hai to retreat with Mount Liang’s army.
• Townspeople and prominent figures gathered in Yi Prefecture City as Hong Zhanming escorted more than thirty Mist Hidden Temple leaders toward the execution platform.

After Wu Shuangren’s forces publicly executed Hong Zhanming and his accomplices, wealthy households rushed to offer gifts, and Wu hosted Yi Province’s officials to discuss defending the city. He sought their support to establish the Yi Province Militia, and the officials debated whether to grant him authority or give him only an empty title.

• Hong Zhanming and the other prisoners were publicly beheaded, frightening Yi Province’s wealthy households and former associates of Mist Hidden Temple.
• Wealthy households brought silver, silk, and antiques to Wu Shuangren’s residence after Guo Jiwang predicted the executions would make them comply.
• Wu Shuangren hosted Feng Guanglu, Shen Jingchuan, Wang Xun, Xu Jing, and other officials, then warned that Mount Liang’s growing forces might attack while reinforcements were cut off.
• Wu Shuangren asked the officials to support the establishment of the Yi Province Militia so he could unite local forces to defend the city.
• After the banquet, Guo Jiwang told Wu Shuangren that he needed to gain a name to match his existing power.
• The officials gathered at Feng Guanglu’s residence, where Shen Jingchuan proposed giving Wu Shuangren an empty title instead of establishing the militia.

Wu Shuangren and Guo Jiwang arranged a gathering to bring Yi Province’s local powers under the militia’s influence. Wu Shuangren left them stunned with a parade of his troops and equipment, then sent nearly three hundred riders out of the city.

• Feng Guanglu and the other officials asked Wu Shuangren to send militia members to help recruit manpower, avoiding any mention of establishing the Yi Province Militia.
• Guo Jiwang explained that the local officials would resist Wu Shuangren taking command, while Wu recognized that Guo’s earlier killing of Fan Yu had also served his larger plan.
• Wu Shuangren sent militia squads with government officers to invite Yi Province’s local powers to a meeting in the prefectural city.
• On the sixth day after Ciwen’s death, Xu Yu led the assembled representatives to the north gate, where Wu Shuangren announced a military parade.
• Wu Shuangren’s troops marched out in disciplined companies, including more than two thousand men, over a thousand suits of leather armor, and nearly a hundred suits of iron armor; Guo Jiwang said the armor had been seized from brigands.
• Nearly three hundred riders emerged from the city gate, further impressing the local powers gathered on the wall.

Wu Shuangren used a military review and promises of protection and rewards to persuade Yi Province’s local militias to join a unified force against Mount Liang. When nearly ten thousand troops gathered outside Yi Prefecture City and demanded reward money, the officials realized Wu had established the Yi Province Militia without their approval.

• Wu Shuangren displayed his well-equipped troops to the local strongmen and urged them to unite against Mount Liang’s returning army.
• The county militias and local strongmen agreed to send troops to Yi Prefecture City, and Wu announced they would join the Yi Province Militia.
• Wu Shuangren and Guo Jiwang hosted a banquet, assuring the representatives that the militia would provide benefits and reward money.
• Over the following days, troops from Yi Province and Rong Province gathered outside the city until nearly ten thousand soldiers had assembled.
• The gathered troops demanded reward money, prompting Feng Guanglu and Shen Jingchuan to summon Wu Shuangren and accuse him of establishing the militia without their consent.

Guo Jiwang forced Yi Province’s officials to approve the formation of the Yi Province Militia, and Wu Shuangren was hailed as its commander outside Yi Prefecture City. Wu then publicly rewarded his troops and honored their fallen, leaving the militia and its supporters with new promises of support for the martyrs’ families.

• Guo Jiwang confronted the officials with statements they had written for the Mount Liang rebels and secured an official document approving the Yi Province Militia.
• Wu Shuangren rode out of Yi Prefecture City, where nearly ten thousand men greeted him as commander.
• Wu Shuangren’s clerks distributed battle rewards to the Bo County Militia, impressing the other forces and their leaders.
• Wu Shuangren read the names of 115 fallen militiamen and declared them Yi Province Martyrs.
• Wu Shuangren promised land, houses, free medical care, and priority militia admission for the martyrs’ families.

Wu Shuangren rewarded the Yi Province Militia, honored its martyrs, and punished deserters as he united the province’s forces under his command. After feeding and reorganizing the troops, he announced a new rank and pay system and ordered the formation of a cavalry battalion.

• Wu Shuangren honored the fallen with a hundred breaths of silence and introduced military merit rewards, granting land, property, and promotions to deserving soldiers.
• Wu Shuangren condemned and executed seven militia privates who had deserted during the battle at Yi Province’s north gate.
• Wu Shuangren paid the militias and local volunteers from across Yi Province and promised them the same rewards for brave service.
• Wu Shuangren arranged for the nearly ten thousand people outside Yi Prefecture City to receive food, supplementing what the city’s government and wealthy households provided.
• Wu Shuangren reorganized the troops, kept the Rong Province Militia in separate battalions, established military ranks and pay, and ordered a cavalry battalion formed.

Wu Shuangren reorganized the Yi Province Militia, assigning ranks and commanders while leaving four battalion leadership posts open to encourage cooperation and performance. As the combined forces trained outside Yi Prefecture City, Xu Jing urged Wu Shuangren to teach flag signals so battlefield orders could reach the growing army.

• Wu Shuangren established a rank system and reorganized the Yi Province Militia, naming commanders for three battalions and the personal guard, cavalry, and archery and crossbow corps.
• Wu Shuangren left the commander and deputy commander posts for four battalions unfilled, saying he would appoint them based on training performance.
• Wu Shuangren mixed militiamen from Bo County with forces from elsewhere in Yi Province, assigned acting leaders, and began training the combined troops outside Yi Prefecture City.
• The militia trained in formations, riding, and archery, while Xu Jing's instructors taught riders and Wu Shuangren's personal guards supervised discipline.
• Xu Jing told Wu Shuangren that the army needed flag signals because shouted battlefield orders would not reach so many men, and Wu Shuangren agreed.

Wu Shuangren organized flag-signal training and raised a banner naming his forces the Yi Province Army and Wu Clan Army. He also pushed his commanders to think beyond provincial rivalries, while local leaders competed for militia posts by recruiting more men.

• Xu Jing agreed to serve as chief instructor and taught the militia commanders the Five Directions Flags, while Wu Shuangren suggested practicing the signals as they learned.
• Wu Shuangren established a Command Flag Battalion and raised a black banner bearing the red character “Wu,” identifying the forces as the Yi Province Army and Wu Clan Army.
• Guo Jiwang refused Guo Ya’s money and hinted that the remaining camp appointments depended on recruiting more men, prompting local leaders to return home for recruits.
• Wu Shuangren confronted Chen Tie about the Rong Province Militia’s poor training and led him to recognize that the Yi Province Militia’s advantages extended beyond its training methods.
• Chen Tie promised to make the veterans train the Rong Province Militia properly, and Wu Shuangren urged him to consider future expansion into Rong Province.

Wu Shuangren learned from Flying Feather Hall that Mount Liang and the Shannan Army had fought to a draw at Ya Province City, leaving him uncertain whether Mount Liang would send troops south toward Yi Province. In Ya Province City, Song Hai heard Lin Qian, Zhigang, and Liang An recount their defeat by Wu Shuangren and questioned the young commander's identity.

• Chen Tie told Wu Shuangren that many Second Battalion soldiers volunteered to practice Internal Skills, and Wu Shuangren ordered the volunteers in each battalion to train separately.
• Wu Shuangren began studying Upright Origin Deliverance and practicing Leakless Golden Body, then learned that his Trait had enhanced the body-tempering art.
• A Flying Feather Hall agent reported that the Shannan Army and Mount Liang had fought to a draw near Ya Province City after a night raid and a field battle.
• Wu Shuangren considered whether Mount Liang would attack the Shannan Army or send troops south, then sparred with Xu Yu to test his enhanced Leakless Golden Body.
• In Ya Province City, Lin Qian, Zhigang, and Liang An described Wu Shuangren's victories to Mount Liang's leaders, and Song Hai asked whether Wu Shuangren was truly only eighteen.

Song Hai rallied Mount Liang after the defeat in Yi Province and ordered Lu Yulin and Wu Yan to lead an expedition to seize Yi Prefecture City, while Wang Yan sent Xu Rong and Zhang Liao by way of Lu Province to take the province first. Wu Shuangren completed the Yi Province Militia’s organization, and Luo Heng arrived in Yi Prefecture City to discuss the next steps with him.

• Lin Qian admitted Wu Shuangren had defeated him, and Song Hai accepted responsibility for the losses while restoring the hall masters’ morale.
• Wu Yan advised Song Hai to keep the Shannan Army occupied and seize Yi Prefecture City; Song Hai assigned Lu Yulin to lead ten thousand troops south and sent Wu Yan with him.
• Zhang Liao persuaded Wang Yan to send six thousand troops through Lu Province toward Yi Province, with Xu Rong commanding the detachment.
• Wu Shuangren filled the Yi Province Militia’s battalion and officer posts, bringing his forces, including two unofficial Rong Province battalions, to more than ten thousand men.
• Luo Heng arrived in Yi Prefecture City with five chests and asked Wu Shuangren whether Mo Zhengxing could come as well.

Wu Shuangren formally brought Luo Heng’s Flying Feather Hall into the Yi Province Militia, assigning ranks and outlining plans for its leadership. He then inspected the limits of local armor production and watched the militia’s first joint drill, which remained chaotic but showed the troops beginning to advance together.

• Wu Shuangren gave Luo Heng the rank of Senior Militia Colonel and ordered Flying Feather Hall to join the Yi Province Militia, granting it additional ranks and responsibilities.
• Wu Shuangren sent a second shoulder patch to Chief Steward Mo and explained that Hou Huai and two wounded personal guards would become Flying Feather Hall deputy hall masters.
• Luo Heng reported that the new armor factory had too few skilled workers and insufficient materials to produce more than a few suits of armor each month.
• Wu Shuangren inspected the militia’s first joint drill of more than ten thousand men as Xu Jing directed the formation using drums and signal flags.
• The troops struggled to follow the commands and keep formation, but Wu Shuangren ordered them to practice again as the militia slowly advanced together.