After Jing Province and Qi Province were settled, the territories occupied by Great Liang formed an encirclement around You Province. In Duan Xu’s main camp, the generals gathered around the topographical map. Duan Xu traced his finger across the map and said, “Qing Sheng, the conditions for setting sail from Yan Hai Port in Qi Province are favorable these days. Lead the Cheng Jie Army from there, attack Feng Province from the sea route, and within half a month, advance to the area between Ji County and South Yi City to put pressure on the northeast part of You Province.”

Xia Qing Sheng accepted the order.

As Duan Xu turned his head, he saw Shi Biao’s excited eyes. Shi Biao rubbed his hands together and said, “Commander Duan, another batch of Wing Formation Chariots has arrived, enough to equip fifty thousand troops beyond the Returning Crane Army. Now that we’ve come this far, shouldn’t we show our trump card?”

Mountain bandits generally don’t have good tempers, and Shi Biao was no exception. When persuading this arrogant man who rarely bowed his head to surrender, Duan Xu calmly presented his plans to attack Danzhi, along with models of the Wing Formation Chariots. At that time, Shi Biao immediately realized that ruling a mountain as a bandit king was nothing heroic—a true hero would follow Duan Xu to fight the Hu Qi people.

Later, he obediently accepted imperial amnesty and joined the Returning Crane Army. Upon seeing the first batch of Wing Formation Chariots designed by Duan Xu and beginning to secretly select soldiers to practice chariot warfare, he increasingly felt that Duan Xu’s ability to design such battle tactics at such a young age was truly genius. He respected him immensely—Shi Biao would call him not just Commander Duan but Grandfather Duan if asked.

In response to Shi Biao’s enthusiastic praise at that time, Duan Xu simply smiled and said that he had received guidance from his masters and couldn’t take all the credit. On ancient battlefields thousands of years ago, large-scale battles always involved war chariots and great states were often called “Thousand Chariot States.” But over thousands of years, as cavalry and infantry were constantly strengthened, chariot warfare gradually declined. He had merely designed the Wing Formation Chariots by combining the ancient Eight Formation Diagram with Danzhi cavalry tactics.

What he hadn’t told Shi Biao was that while researching ancient texts, he discovered that many designs for war chariots were vaguely described and nearly lost to time. Back then, He Simu had leaned against his back while looking at those ancient texts. Hearing him lament these lost treasures, she had smiled and said—if you treat me well, these things aren’t lost at all.

This expert who had lived for several hundred years loved to wander battlefields and had personally seen these things.

Duan Xu smiled and said to Shi Biao, “It’s time to give them a big surprise.”

In the tenth month of the fourteenth year of Tianyuan, Duan Xu divided his forces into three routes, led respectively by Xia Qing Sheng, Wu Sheng Liu, and himself, attacking You Province from three directions, beginning the most famous You Province campaign in Great Liang’s history.

Duan Xu personally led the Returning Crane Army with its unique war chariots called Wing Formation. These chariots were light and had flat compartments, making them suitable for advancing through narrow, dangerous passages. The chariot compartments had openings on all four sides where soldiers could station themselves, with sharp wooden spikes inserted around the perimeter for defense. When reaching open terrain, the chariots could connect to form a square formation, with up to thirty chariots linked together, resembling a mobile fortress.

When the Hu Qi attacked the previous dynasty, they suffered greatly from city walls and fortresses. Now Duan Xu had transformed open-field battles into siege warfare. The Wing Formation Chariots, extending like a city wall, shocked the Danzhi garrison as soon as they appeared on the battlefield. After long-term training, the Returning Crane Army was skilled in using these chariots. Moreover, the soldiers on the chariots had been selected through multiple screenings—strong men who could draw bows of at least four jun. With arrows raining down from behind the chariots, even the formidable Danzhi cavalry had no way to engage.

The main problem with the Wing Formation Chariots was their speed. When Danzhi couldn’t break through and retreated, Duan Xu quickly dispatched cavalry to pursue. Ding Jin commanded fast and nimble light cavalry, personally trained by Duan Xu in mounted archery, pursuing the enemy while waiting for the Wing Formation Chariots to catch up.

Thus, Ji Wang, known as the “impregnable fortress,” fell to the Returning Crane Army in just five days. Danzhi retreated in disarray, pursued relentlessly by the Returning Crane Army.

Of course, Duan Xu hadn’t forgotten his specialty—devious tactics. Many lodestones had been excavated from the Tian Luo mines. He equipped some Wing Formation Chariots with these lodestones, and the soldiers on these chariots wore rattan armor and carried wooden staffs. When Danzhi soldiers encountered these magnetic chariots, their armor and iron horseshoes were attracted to the lodestones, causing them to stumble and falter, making every step difficult, as if under a spell. Duan Xu, drawing from the contents of the “Azure Scripture,” continued to elaborate, presenting these effects as divine miracles, engaging in psychological warfare against the Danzhi army.

The battles on the southern and eastern fronts progressed smoothly, while Wu Sheng Liu on the western front met with strong resistance and advanced slowly. Duan Xu ordered the Returning Crane Army to continue advancing while he led Chen Ying with light cavalry to the western front to coordinate with Wu Sheng Liu and break down Danzhi’s resistance.

News of Duan Xu’s exploits spread widely throughout the human realm, naturally reaching He Simu’s ears as well.

He Simu read the battle reports by lamplight in Jade Zhou City. Jiang Ai helped review the official documents beside her, while Bai San Xing, bored, propped his chin up and played with the lamp, then suddenly stood up and said, “This is too boring. I’m going back.”

Jiang Ai looked at him with a smile and said, “No, I haven’t taken a break yet. How can you want to rest?”

“There’s nothing for me to do here!”

“Then I’ll share some of these documents with you. Would you like to see what your old subordinates are doing?”

“What’s interesting about these long-winded reports? They’re deadly boring.”

“Haha, when you were the Master of the Phantom Ghost Hall, didn’t you read reports from your subordinates?”

Bai San Xing’s expression changed, and he clenched his teeth in silence. Jiang Ai understood and said, “Yan Ke helped you read them all, right? No wonder you were betrayed without even knowing it.”

She pushed the stack of documents in front of Bai San Xing and smiled, “Read them carefully and tell me your thoughts afterward.”

Bai San Xing’s gaze turned sinister. Jiang Ai raised her hand, waving the bell on her wrist, and he reluctantly picked up the documents and began reading with resentment, his gaze seeming to burn holes through the papers.

He Simu watched these two evil ghosts thoughtfully. She had heard before that Bai San Xing had a violent temper, but in front of Jiang Ai, he seemed unable to express his anger. If anyone other than Jiang Ai were controlling him, given Bai San Xing’s temperament, he would probably prefer annihilation to submission.

Jiang Ai picked up the next document and, while reading, sighed, “I never realized before that Yan Zhang was such a capable fighter.”

“She was originally the daughter of a military general. Later, when her father was found guilty of crimes, she became a courtesan, and then was betrayed by her lover. Her life was full of suffering, and her resentment ran deep, translating into strong spiritual power,” He Simu explained.

“She was promoted by you and is very loyal to you. Also, the new Master of the Phantom Ghost Hall, along with the Masters of the Drought Ghost Hall and Pestilence Ghost Hall, almost immediately declared their loyalty to denounce Yan Ke.”

He Simu flipped through the battle reports and said, “Yan Ke has his faction, and naturally, I have mine. I’m not as isolated as he thought. These Hall Masters would be useful even if not specifically targeted against him.”

After a pause, she looked up at Jiang Ai and said, “Soon, Bai San Xing can make his appearance. Currently, Yan Ke still thinks I know nothing about Bai San Xing’s situation and believes this is a point of conflict between you and me. Has he been trying to win you over recently?”

“I’ve refused all visitors. He’s also worried about being caught by you, so he’s only sent people messages a few times. The Hall Masters currently led by Yan Ke are all remnants from the previous reign and most received help from Bai San Xing at some point. If Bai San Xing appears and accuses Yan Ke of betrayal, those Hall Masters following him will certainly have doubts.” Jiang Ai glanced at the gloomy-faced Bai San Xing and smiled at He Simu, “Simu, when you originally said you planned to end this rebellion in half a year, I thought you were boasting. Looking at it now, it might end in half a year. Are you trying to finish early so you can see your little friend sooner?”

He Simu smiled lightly at her words.

Jiang Ai then said, “I’ve heard he’s become quite famous in the human realm lately. His battles are extremely impressive. Why not have him come help you fight in our Ghost Realm? That way, you wouldn’t be separated, looking at each other from a distance.”

He Simu waved her hand dismissively and said lightly, “He has his battles to fight, and I have mine. Aunt Jiang Ai, don’t always turn the conversation toward him.”

“What’s wrong? Missing him?”

He Simu looked at Jiang Ai, into her smiling eyes filled with teasing. She looked at her, then at the frowning Bai San Xing beside her. After a moment of silence, she calmly closed the battle report and smiled, “Then I’ll trouble Aunt Jiang Ai with the remaining reports.”

Jiang Ai was startled, and before she could react, a wisp of blue smoke drifted by, and the Ghost King had disappeared.

The Ghost King had temporarily abandoned her duties to find her lover.

When He Simu occasionally recalled this moment later, she would wonder if she had received some sort of premonition that suddenly made her go find Duan Xu. Perhaps humans experience chest tightness, heart palpitations, or eyelid twitching, though, of course, she would never have such feelings.

Her only premonition was that, at that moment, she suddenly missed him terribly.

Perhaps somewhere deep in her consciousness, she sensed that if she didn’t go to him this time, it would be like letting go of his hand in the vast, dark sea of time—she would never see him again.

As soon as He Simu’s feet touched the ground, her soul’s ethereal form was passed through by a blood-covered soldier. In the unfamiliar bedroom crowded with numerous people, she was momentarily confused, wondering if she had come to the wrong place. However, in the next instant, she saw Duan Xu lying on the bed through the gaps between people.

For a long time afterward, she would continuously recall this scene.

In the flickering candlelight, Duan Xu’s upper body was bare, his hair disheveled and sticking to the sides of his face with blood and sweat. Thick bandages wrapped around his left chest, but they had already been completely soaked through to a dark color. His face was as pale as paper, with dark stains of blood at the corners of his mouth. His eyes were quietly closed.

He Simu was very familiar with battlefields, with death, and especially with people like this—those on the brink of death.

“Doctor, call the doctor quickly! Commander Duan has been shot with an arrow! The bleeding won’t stop!”

“It’s been two hours already… will it be too late…?”

“Don’t talk nonsense!”

“The blood is black—there’s poison on the arrow!”

People continuously passed through He Simu’s ethereal form as they came and went. She stood there for who knows how long, as if unable to control her body. When she wanted to move forward, she saw the doctor turning Duan Xu’s body. Duan Xu’s left hand hung lifelessly from the side of the bed, swaying weakly.

The candlelight flickered, and his pale fingertips swayed back and forth between shadow and light on the bedcover. The swaying gradually diminished until it stopped completely. The dark liquid flowed from his fingertips, dripping one by one onto the floor.

He Simu’s steps halted. She called out softly, almost helplessly, “Duan Xu.”

“Little Fox Duan, Duan Shun Xi, Duan Xu!”

She began to move forward, her voice growing louder with each step, calling his name—a name that only he, among all others, could hear. Before, no matter what happened, whenever she called his name like this, she could always wake him. She called his name as she crouched by his bed, reaching out to touch his face, but her fingers passed straight through his cheek.

Her hand began to tremble, and a sense of panic arose in her heart—the fear of being unable to hold onto him. She had always thought of Duan Xu as a steadily burning flame. Resting her head on his chest, she could hear the crackling sound of sparks. He was always burning brightly and fearlessly.

But it seemed that in just an instant, in the blink of an eye, she saw the flame weaken, the sound diminish.

It seemed he was about to be extinguished.

When Duan Xu was leading his troops back from the western front to the Returning Crane Army, they were ambushed by Danzhi forces, and Shi Biao failed to provide support in time. Duan Xu’s five thousand cavalry were trapped for three days. Eventually, Zhao Xing from Qi Province brought reinforcements. During the breakout, Duan Xu was shot in the chest by a Danzhi divine crossbow, sustaining severe injuries and falling into a coma.

The arrow was highly poisonous, the bleeding wouldn’t stop, and his situation appeared grim.