Liang Qiang gazed across the wilderness.

The late autumn grassland was a sheet of withered yellow, not flat but undulating.

The setting sun spread a layer of brilliant radiance across the horizon.

Without the soldier saying more, he knew how to turn the tide and restore glory. He could even seem to see it.

In the brilliant radiance at the horizon’s edge, Xi Liang soldiers desperately tore and bit. The few dozen Da Xia soldiers were fearless—even in death, they clutched Xi Liang soldiers and wouldn’t let go. But even the fiercest tiger couldn’t withstand a pack of hyenas. One soldier after another fell, until finally that general.

Zhong Changrong was pierced by countless blades and spears, yet still killed several more men before stopping.

Gripping his blade with eyes open, his body bristling with long swords and spears, he stood firmly—dead.

Liang Qiang wanted to close his eyes, but closing them couldn’t block out this scene. He saw the shouting, celebrating Xi Liang soldiers. He saw himself galloping through dust clouds. He saw himself leading troops to painfully annihilate these hyena-like Xi Liang soldiers. He saw soldiers racing after him in pursuit, chasing the Xi Liang forces across the wasteland—

Then returning cloaked in glory.

The soldier’s voice continued in his ears, sometimes near, sometimes far: “This time Da Xia won’t need to pay a price. No cities will be lost. The people won’t be harmed.”

“Zhong Changrong is already suspicious of you. With him around, not only can you no longer lead troops, you’ll be interrogated and sent back to the labor camp.”

“Surely Young Master Liang isn’t willing to let these two years of effort come to nothing? For everything to turn to dust?”

“Moreover, Young Master Liang, you are a valiant person.”

Hearing these words, the illusion before Liang Qiang’s eyes dispersed. He turned to look at the soldier. “Valiant?”

He smiled self-mockingly.

“How can I, who was protected by you all on the battlefield, speak of valor?”

The soldier clenched his fist and tapped his own chest. “Young Master Liang, don’t be modest. Precisely because we’ve been on the battlefield so long, though you received our protection, we could see—Young Master Liang has a valiant heart.”

A valiant heart. Liang Qiang pressed his own chest. So they too believed he had a valiant heart, just like Miss Chu.

Yes, whether as a wealthy young master or reduced to labor service, his heart had never abandoned valor.

“I do have a valiant heart,” he murmured.

The soldier’s expression was sincere. “So when Young Master Liang takes over the border army’s great responsibility, you won’t be inferior to Zhong Changrong—you might even do better. You’ll become Da Xia’s glory, the people’s blessing. Your name will surely be recorded in history.”

Liang Qiang pressed his chest, his gaze becoming resolute. “Yes, I will certainly achieve this.”

The soldier smiled. “So—”

“So what should I do?” Liang Qiang took over, asking. He looked at the soldier beside him. “I know your intention in having me constantly petition Zhong Changrong—to keep me close to him so I can discover in time when he’s ambushed. But how do I handle this crisis? How do I valiantly and heroically defeat the Xi Liang ambush without rescuing Zhong Changrong?”

He only had a dozen or so soldiers with him.

He shook his head.

“I don’t believe the Xi Liang forces that can kill Zhong Changrong can be defeated by just our dozen men.”

“Or—”

He looked at the soldier.

“Through your arrangement, the Xi Liang soldiers will withdraw, but that wouldn’t count as heroic or valiant, would it?”

Hearing his words, another soldier smiled. “Colonel Liang is thorough in thought.” He raised his chin. “This time they won’t escape. This time Colonel Liang must personally kill them all, because Zhong Changrong’s trusted men need to witness this scene with their own eyes.”

“And of course it won’t rely on just our dozen men. Right now there’s a force of several hundred soldiers patrolling not far away. We’ve planted people among them.”

He pulled out five whistling arrows from his back.

“When Colonel Liang charges into the enemy, if Zhong Changrong is dead by then, all the better. If not, we’ll take the opportunity to kill him, and simultaneously shoot the whistling arrows.”

“Our people will immediately lead that force here. This way Colonel Liang can demonstrate valor without being outnumbered and dying a heroic death.”

Liang Qiang reached out to take the whistling arrows, examining them in his hand. “Truly thorough.” Without waiting for the soldiers to speak again, he raised his head to look forward and took down his crossbow. “Then let us go kill the enemy.”

With that, he spurred his horse forward at a gallop.

The soldiers hadn’t reacted yet. They exchanged glances, their eyes filled with mockery and contempt.

“So impatient.”

“Of course—Colonel Liang hasn’t had a chance to display valor for a long time.”

They spoke and laughed in low voices, but at the same moment, their gazes toward the front became strange. What had been jokes on their lips twisted into distorted shouts.

“No—”

A sharper explosive sound drowned out their shouts.

Liang Qiang, galloping ahead, raised his crossbow on horseback and shot whistling arrows one by one into the sky.

The whistling arrows shrieked and exploded, blooming like brilliant flowers in the sky just swallowed by dusk.

The soldiers’ faces looked torn apart, incredulous.

They were supposed to see this scene, but not now!

Calling in reinforcements now disrupted everything!

Liang Qiang absolutely didn’t release the whistling arrows by mistake!

He did it deliberately!

“Chase—” The soldiers galloped after him, staring at the young general racing ahead, full of fury. “This damned puppet—he wants to die! This time we’ll let him die!”

The cold stares and angry shouts from behind—Liang Qiang paid them no mind. Having shot all five whistling arrows into the sky, he felt as if he’d shed a heavy burden.

His body, once always weighed down, became light. Riding on horseback, he felt as if he could fly.

He slung his crossbow over his shoulder and raced forward recklessly. After crossing several ridges, he heard sounds of slaughter and saw troops in chaotic combat.

His entire being burned with excitement.

Just now, he had finally understood one thing.

He had a valiant heart—this was a fact everyone saw, even he himself believed.

But all he had was just a heart.

If a valiant heart couldn’t become valiant action, it was actually nothing at all.

Also, how could there be no loss? If Zhong Changrong died, if Da Xia’s border army commander died, Da Xia’s military morale and popular support, Da Xia’s prestige—all would be damaged!

He could indeed replace Zhong Changrong.

But would that person who replaced Zhong Changrong be him?

Just a Liang Qiang with only a heart full of valor and ambition.

Would such a Liang Qiang become Da Xia’s glory, the people’s blessing?

Could such a Liang Qiang have his name recorded in history?

What did such a Liang Qiang have to do with him?

The troops fighting ahead were now clearly visible—the chilling gleam of blades, flying blood and flesh—in the gradually drawing night curtain, it was like the Palace of Yama.

Let that kind of Liang Qiang die in this Palace of Yama.

Fire kindled in Liang Qiang’s eyes. He swung his long blade and shouted.

“Reinforcements have arrived—”

“Reinforcements have arrived—”

“Xi Liang thieves, meet your death—”

……

……

Reinforcements? The soldiers in chaotic combat heard this sharp cry tearing through heaven and earth.

Zhong Changrong swung his blade to cleave open a great axe. Without stopping, the blade continued forward, falling upon the soldier gripping the axe. The Xi Liang soldier let out a miserable cry and fell to his knees. His head rolled off as blood gushed and splattered.

Through the blood mist, Zhong Changrong saw a young general racing toward them in the distance, then leaping without hesitation into this boiling slaughter.

Like a pebble falling into the sea.

One reinforcement?

He looked again—there were about a dozen more in the distance—

This still wasn’t enough. But whether there were reinforcements or not didn’t matter.

Not a ripple stirred in Zhong Changrong’s heart. His long blade swung, cutting down an enemy soldier lunging from behind.

……

……

Even if it was a small pebble thrown into the sea, it still created ripples.

The shouts of reinforcements caused some panic among the Xi Liang soldiers who had launched the ambush.

“There’s only one—”

“A dozen—”

“Don’t be afraid—”

But soon the shouts became chaotic, because the ground was trembling. The night in the distance became bright, as if fire serpents were burrowing up from beneath the earth.

They writhed forward, then split into several, spreading across the earth, encircling.

“Reinforcements—”

“Da Xia’s reinforcements have arrived—”