The thirty-fourth-ranked famous general under Heaven—
The number one in southern battlefield combat.
Wielding twin dragon war halberds, capable of killing a martial arts grandmaster within thirty-three paces.
He led an army of Great Halberdiers, capable of defeating cavalry with foot soldiers, fearless and unstoppable. Together with the famed Mo Saber Army of the aristocrats in the Central Plains of Ying Kingdom, they dominated the north and south.
And now, such a peerless and valiant general…
Had betrayed his post, severed ties with his command, and become a notorious outlaw.
"Yue Qianfeng…"
In a quiet study, an elegant elder softly murmured the name, with a tone filled with both murderous intent and confusion.
"All of that Yue family's followers have already been relocated to the borderlands, with the emperor's brother commanding troops to suppress them. After rounds of discipline and favor, each one has been pacified and granted titles. Yet… only Yue Qianfeng resigned his office, abandoned his post, and charged into our borders like a mad dog."
"What's going on with Xiao Wuliang?!"
"He and that Sword Immortal from Luzhou took action together earlier, yet they still let Yue Qianfeng survive!"
A subordinate, head bowed, replied,
"...General Xiao said that General Yue—"
He paused, then added,
"Yue Qianfeng's physical cultivation has already reached perfection. When his Crimson Dragon Manifestation erupts, it can incinerate mountains and boil rivers. In covert interception without his troops, although Yue isn't Xiao's match one-on-one, it was also not hard for him to escape."
"The Sword Immortal from Luzhou has peerless sword qi, able to split mountains and seas—but that martial brute once had seventeen first-charge battle merits, slew eight generals, seized three banners. His twin halberds could take heads amid ten thousand soldiers as if plucking something from a pouch. And with the soft armor gifted by the former emperor, he barely survived."
The refined elder slammed his fist on a precious table, roaring:
"Absurd!"
"Wearing armor bestowed by the late emperor, only to rebel against the court—what a traitor!"
"Xiao Wuliang can lead a charge with seven riders and hurl an awl to slay the strongest archer of the Turks."
"How many generals alive today surpass him? This is the second time. Ten years ago, he led the Night Cavalry but let a weak woman and a child escape. Now, a decade later, he can't even stop Yue Qianfeng?"
"Ten years ago at twenty-three, maybe his cultivation wasn't complete and others helped."
"But now, at thirty-three, still not enough?!"
"He's defying orders! Arrogant with his martial prowess!"
"Has he forgotten who promoted him back then?!"
The subordinate, still with head bowed, replied,
"General Xiao said… he has sinned by failing to fulfill the Prime Minister's command."
"He begs to be stripped of rank and posted to the border as a common soldier—"
"—to guard the gates of the nation."
The elder froze, unable to reply for a moment. Then he flung his sleeve and cursed:
"Fool! He knows nothing of national matters—the capital, the ministers, the millennia-old noble families—that's where power lies. All he ever talks about is going to the frontlines, leading troops into battle!"
"Does he not know it's the common folk who suffer in war? That warfare has always been the tool of killers, used only when sages have no choice? At his age, he's still like a green soldier in his first fight."
Calming, he stared at the map of the world spread across his desk.
The Chen Kingdom was marked in great detail. The rest were only outlined.
He stared closely at the borders between Ying and Chen.
After Yue's family was suppressed, Ying and Chen resumed friendly ties and trade.
Two months later, at Chen's ancestral sacrifice ceremony, Ying's Second Prince Jiang Guang would also attend in congratulations.
Yet the Ying Kingdom had stationed thirty thousand Tiger-Brute Cavalry at the border.
The Yue Family Army remained across the river, holding the balance.
Their veteran commanders were stranded at the border, unable to rescue their general.
What none expected was a reckless brute ignoring all restraints.
Throughout history, great generals often had this disposition.
Without it, they would not dare defy death as they do.
Ying and Chen enjoyed a brief peace.
Ying's Marshal Yuwen had moved part of the army north to repel the Turks.
The clans of Longyou guarded against Tuyuhun and could not attack Chen.
The world was approaching a delicate balance of power—peace through equilibrium.
This was the perfect grand design calculated by the court ministers.
But now it had changed.
One top-tier general had turned his spearhead, ramming straight into Chen's borders.
Yue Qianfeng's repeated appearances had already triggered many covert changes:
—Grandmasters of the martial world moved to intercept.
—Chen's top general Xiao Wuliang had to deploy.
—Jiangzhou was briefly thrown into turmoil.
—Surrounding regions were forced to redeploy troops to intercept Yue.
—The court had to fully appease the other Yue commanders.
—Ying's Tiger-Brute Cavalry and Grand Marshal had to shift forces from the northwest.
Now Tuyuhun stirred. The Turks watched Ying's next move.
The old man saw clearly—
The fate of the world was now tied to Yue Qianfeng.
If he breached the border fortress…
If the frontier armies were recalled…
The elder clenched his fists in rage.
"Fool! Utter fool!"
"Dumb as a bull!"
"So this is the so-called great general—"
"A pack of wild horses without reins, biting their masters. As long as they go mad and disregard their lives, they alone can throw the world into chaos. They call them national treasures, but without loyalty to the king, they're just traitors!"
"The border troops must not move again."
"I shall write to summon the Ying royal prince to court."
"Have the commander at Guanyi City mobilize troops from another city to flank from the side. No matter what Yue Qianfeng intends, he must be stopped—stopped dead!"
"Have our frontier agents contact the Tangut—send them gold and silk, and invite them to court."
"Send fine jade and beauties to Tuyuhun's Right Prince, whose daughter loves such things."
He issued orders one by one, sealing off the chaos stirred by Yue Qianfeng.
A seasoned strategist, cool and composed.
When he took up the brush to write, his face was calm,
As if the weight of the world rested in his hand.
Just then, someone rushed in—a palace eunuch, speaking urgently:
"My lord, His Majesty has received a painting of the 'Thousand Miles of Peaceful Rivers and Mountains.' The ministers in court couldn't interpret it, and His Majesty is growing angry."
An official preparing to report on military matters frowned and scolded:
"Absurd! The Prime Minister is handling serious—"
"Absurd!" the elder shouted louder.
The official opened his mouth—
A heavy inkstone smashed into his forehead, blood flowing as he collapsed in confusion.
The elegant elder laid down his brush, rushed to the eunuch, grasped his arm, and said:
"This is a great matter—if none can appreciate Sage's masterpiece—"
"Though foolish, I shall try."
"Please lead the way."
He wore crimson official robes, and jade belts, and departed in haste.
The wounded young official sat dumbfounded, staring at the map barely written upon.
The elder was already gone into the wind, his red silhouette vanishing into the night sky.
If Yue Qianfeng breached the pass…
Or if even the rumor spread that he intended to…
The young official looked at the swirling clouds above the moon.
"The sky… is about to change."
Meanwhile, in the secret realm—
Faced with Xue the Divine General's questions,
Li Guanyi barely scraped by with some clichés from The Art of War.
General Xue shook his head and sighed,
"Empty talk. You've never been on a battlefield. What you say, every military student can repeat—but you don't understand the depth."
"Yes, all correct—but meaningless. Next time, don't say it at all."
"How do you discern real from false in 'know yourself, know your enemy'? How do you assess void and solid in 'strike where the enemy is weak'?"
"How do you maintain unity, drill your troops, form ranks, invoke the will to die without seeking victory—and thus, win?"
"How to set up camps by terrain? How to exploit weather?"
"What if a general is disloyal? What if your warrior is defeated?"
"Thirty-two types of espionage, sixteen kinds of 'death spies'—do you know them?"
"How to identify enemy spies, turn them to your use?"
"Thirty-six basic formations—these are just battlefield skills. Only by mastering these can you bear the lives of thousands and the fate of the nation."
"True generals see far, beyond just tactics—they grasp strategy. You… you're just a parrot."
Xue's gaze was half-jesting.
Li Guanyi twitched a smile.
Xue raised his brush and wrote a "one" on the youth's forehead.
"Still," he said with a hint of a smile, "at least my preparation wasn't wasted."
"Let me teach you how to break each of these scenarios."
He began explaining cavalry tactics and crescent-charge formations.
An hour later, Li Guanyi floated back up from the water in exhaustion.
Back on land, the maiden Yaoguang said calmly,
"You look very tired."
Li Guanyi clutched his forehead, thinking of Xue's ceaseless lessons mid-exhaustion.
"I feel like… military theory has forcefully entered my brain in the most underhanded way."
From then on, Li Guanyi fell into a routine—
Practicing archery and internal arts by day, visiting the secret realm in the afternoon to train, endure battle, take alchemical pills, and—once exhausted—receive Xue's lectures on warfare.
He had an excellent memory and quick comprehension.
Xue kept raising the difficulty.
Every time he defeated a figure, Xue would teach him the ancient war doctrines that person had once excelled in.
It was a relentless process.
Ten days passed.
Li Guanyi didn't yet know what use it had.
But one day, on his return from training, he noticed something—
The city defenses had changed.
Even the guards were all battlefield veterans, deployed in crisscross formations with bows and crossbows.
It was a formation to counter close-quarters infiltration.
From the layout, Li Guanyi deduced:
—There was likely a general stationed nearby.
—The plainclothed commoners were specialists with hook chains to trip horses.
—It was a very solid defense.
He entered the city, stunned by his train of thought.
Expression turning grim, he clutched his forehead.
He felt a mix of pride and dread.
Xue's teachings had worked—he had changed.
But… if a city like Guanyi had deployed this level of defense,
Did that mean someone was going to attack?
Who would be mad enough to do that?
He decided:
He had to get Auntie out of Chen first.
He headed for the Xue household.
Also, he had run out of pills.
His training consumed far more than normal.
He couldn't keep relying on Missy for money.
Lately, he'd been telling stories to Xue Changqing and earning a little silver—barely enough.
As he turned the corner, he heard:
"Divinations and fortune-telling, all-knowing—Zi Wei astrology, Six Ren methods, all at your fingertips. Young man, wait! I see blackness on your brow—you may soon face bloodshed and calamity!"
The voice sounded familiar.
It was that old man who once climbed the wall—the "Minister of Fate."
The old man also saw Li Guanyi.
They locked eyes.
The old man froze mid-stroke stroking his beard.
He saw the White Tiger on Li Guanyi's shoulder.
The Crimson Dragon on his arm.
They both stiffened, realizing they were both seeing the same thing.
"You can see them?!" the old man cried.
Li Guanyi frowned and turned to leave.
The old man hurled aside his stall and chased him:
"Disciple—wait! Disciple, stop right there!"
Li Guanyi walked even faster.
The old man leaped and clung to the youth's leg.
"Disciple—no, wait, not disciple."
"If you don't want to be my disciple, then how about being my master?!"
"Master!!"