Back in Dongqin, Xuanyuan Lige moved about unhurried, calm and composed as though nothing at all had happened, as though none of the world’s affairs concerned him in the slightest.

To anyone unaware of the truth, he would have looked like nothing more than a zither master detached from worldly affairs, happening to pass through a battle-hardened military camp.

The moment he entered the camp, the Beast Clan’s second young master came rushing over. “Xuanyuan Lige, this is bad!”

“What is it?” Xuanyuan Lige asked flatly.

“The King of Nanzhao has summoned me back,” the second young master said directly.

“Why?” Xuanyuan Lige frowned at this.

“Partly to ask about the death barrier matter, and partly because the election for the next Beast Clan Chief has already begun,” the second young master answered. The Beast Clan’s chief was aging, and many had long coveted the position.

The second young master waited anxiously, but Xuanyuan Lige gave him only two words: “Decline it.”

“What!” the second young master looked utterly incredulous. “Xuanyuan Lige, if you’re so capable, why don’t you decline it for me!”

The King of Nanzhao had entrusted the Meng Clan with finding the death barrier on one hand, while also having him keep watch on Xuanyuan Lige on the other.

Whatever reports came from the Meng Clan’s side were surely fabricated, while on his end, nearly all the correspondence exchanged with the Nanzhao royal court had been arranged by Xuanyuan Lige himself.

Now that the King of Nanzhao had personally summoned him back, how was he supposed to decline?

“I don’t care what method you use, what excuse you come up with — just decline it,” Xuanyuan Lige said coldly, leaving the second young master no room to argue.

Furious, the second young master chased him all the way into the tent, shouting angrily, “Xuanyuan Lige, what exactly do you mean by this!”

“Nothing in particular. You know too much — you can’t leave,” Xuanyuan Lige said, sitting down as he spoke, lowering his head to study a map, never once even glancing at the second young master!

“You! You still doubt me!” The second young master was thoroughly enraged now.

Xuanyuan Lige, however, said nothing more, his eyes lowered and focused, occasionally picking up his brush to write something down.

Mi’er respectfully served hot tea, unable to hear what exactly had upset the second young master, but she could tell the young master was displeased.

She couldn’t help blinking a signal at the second young master, urging him to hold back.

If this had been before, the second young master would have listened to Mi’er — after all, this girl had stayed by Xuanyuan Lige’s side long enough to understand his temperament well.

But today, he’d reached the end of his patience. “Xuanyuan Lige, you’re just afraid I’ll expose the matter of Han Ziqing, aren’t you! Is that really necessary?”

The moment the second young master said this, Mi’er clearly saw the young master’s brush pause.

“Xuanyuan Lige, you scheme against her friends on one hand, while pursuing her husband’s kingdom on the other, yet you go to such lengths to keep her identity a secret — what exactly are you trying to do? Why bother?”

At these words, Mi’er instinctively stepped back, and Xuanyuan Lige’s grip tightened on the brush.

“Xuanyuan Lige, this young master has no interest in wasting time playing this pointless game with you. I’m heading back to Nanzhao right now! I’ll tell you this — the moment Jun Beiyue reaches Xiliang, I will absolutely convince the King of Nanzhao to send troops. I told you long ago, what you want is Xichu — what this young master wants is the entire Da Zhou!”

With that, the second young master turned to leave, but in that very instant, Xuanyuan Lige’s brush shot out suddenly, with force equal to a blade of wind.

The brush shaft plunged directly into the second young master’s lower back, right at the center. Before he could even react, his legs gave out beneath him completely.

That precise spot was enough to leave someone paralyzed from the waist down.

Ignoring the pain entirely, the second young master stared at Xuanyuan Lige in utter disbelief — he had never imagined this man would actually dare to strike him.

“You… Xuanyuan Lige… how dare you…”

Xuanyuan Lige said nothing, as though nothing at all had happened before him. He kept his head lowered, continuing to annotate the map, casually picking up his tea to take a sip, then turning to tell Mi’er quietly, “This tea’s gone stale. Replace it.”

“Xuanyuan Lige, you’ll regret this, you will absolutely regret this. I’m telling you, if I don’t return to Nanzhao within a month, my father will not let this go — he’ll make sure the King of Nanzhao learns everything!” the second young master screamed like a madman, wishing he could lunge forward and tear Xuanyuan Lige apart, but with his lower body completely unresponsive, he was utterly powerless!

Still, even such a threat had no effect on Xuanyuan Lige whatsoever — he was far too shrewd a man to have joined forces with the second young master without already having every contingency fully prepared.

“Someone, take him away,” he finally said coldly, not sparing the second young master so much as a glance even now.

“Xuanyuan Lige, I will make you regret this!”

“Xuanyuan Lige, no matter how much you accomplish, no matter how much you possess, Han Ziqing will never even glance at you!”

“Xuanyuan Lige, I curse you, I curse you to die by Han Ziqing’s own blade! I curse you!”

…

As the man was dragged away, his shouting faded into the distance, and Mi’er’s gaze followed him until he was out of sight before turning back.

She was familiar with the shape of the young master’s lips when he spoke, but not with the second young master’s — still, unfamiliar as she was, she could still make out something.

It seemed to be a woman’s name. Who could it be?

Someone who would turn the young master and the second young master into bitter enemies?

Someone who would enrage the young master to such a degree?

Though the young master showed no outward reaction, remaining perfectly composed throughout, Mi’er could tell from the strokes he’d left on the map that his brush had moved with considerable fury with every stroke!

Just then, a general hurried in. “Report, Your Highness — word from the west. Xijing and Xiliang have gone to war. Da Zhou’s troops will reach the battlefield within five days at most!”

“Five days…” Xuanyuan Lige murmured to himself, casually picking up the letter from Yu Xiaomeng and skimming through it briefly, then said flatly, “Send word to the Xiongnu. In ten days, deploy fifty thousand slave troops to attack the northern desert. It must be taken.”

The general started, alarmed. “Your Highness, this…”

“Go, quickly!” Xuanyuan Lige said coldly, allowing no further questions.

“Yes!” The general clasped his fists in acknowledgment and hurried off.

At that moment, the border between Xijing and Xiliang had already erupted into full chaos, a complete reversal from the previous calm.

Xiliang’s approach to the war remained entirely defensive, while Xijing launched a relentless, ferocious assault. Situ Haonan and Yelu Qianqian weren’t fighting together — the couple had split, each personally leading their own troops on separate fronts!

Eyes blazing red as though possessed, they had only one goal — to cut off Wanyan Lie’s head and hang it at the gates of Xiliang’s imperial palace!

As the two armies clashed, Yelu Qianqian, her eyes burning with fury, gripped her sword tight, her long hair whipping wild as she charged straight into the fray, her blood-streaked figure weaving through the battlefield.

Only in these moments could the suffocating rage that had been lodged in her chest finally find some measure of release.

Only then could those unbearable memories, at last, loosen their grip on her, if only for a moment!

With the two armies originally evenly matched, Yelu Qianqian’s decision to personally lead the vanguard as commanding general sent Xijing’s morale soaring. Within three days, she had forced Xiliang’s troops into steady retreat, driving them back within the city walls, no longer daring to venture out!

Yelu Qianqian’s army arrived before the city, her sword pointed directly at the gates. “Soldiers of Xiliang, listen well! This princess is prepared to accept your surrender at any moment — but tell Wanyan Lie, this princess refuses his!”