The encirclement tightened. Fewer than eight thousand remained among the Crown Prince’s personal guard and the Northern Army’s elite. Zili and Liu Jue gazed at him coldly. In that instant, the Crown Prince burst into laughter—laughing at himself for never having commanded troops in real battle before, at how all his talk of manly passion had been nothing but hot air. Laughing that in the end, Father had always favored his other sons—without his father’s decree, Prince Anqing and his son would never have thrown themselves so wholeheartedly behind the Fourth Prince. He laughed until tears streamed down his face. “Liu Fei! Go ahead—give the order to kill your useless elder brother!”

Liu Jue felt a pang of reluctance. They were brothers, after all. He sat motionless on his horse, though his gaze flicked sideways toward Zili. This man was about to become King of Ning Guo; everything that had happened was preparation for his ascension. Whatever he decided would stand. Liu Jue sighed inwardly—brothers turning on each other was never something he wished to witness, but releasing a tiger back into the wild was something no ruler, of any era, would ever willingly risk.

Zili looked at the Crown Prince, that familiar smile surfacing once more. “I won’t kill you. Surrender.”

The Crown Prince’s fine features twisted. Surrender? To this younger brother who had always been so courteous, so deferential before him? Kneel at his feet and call him king? A wave of humiliation rose within him. He was the rightful Crown Prince, the legitimate heir to the throne! He closed his eyes. The wind blew from the north—spring winds on the plains always carried grit, and now it struck his face like a slap. It rippled through his clothes, sweat soaking through, drying, soaking through again, leaving only a bone-deep chill. He opened his eyes, pride flaring in them. “To the victor go the spoils! You’ve endured in silence for years! I have nothing more to say—come and take me, then!”

Zili stared at him blankly. In truth, this elder brother had never treated him badly. But it was a pity—a pity that his mother had been poisoned by your own mother for the sake of her position, and a pity that you, too, were a child of the Wang family! A pity… Hatred had coiled in his heart for years, lurking in its coldest, darkest corner. How much effort had it taken him to build, day by day, the wall that held back those blood-soaked vines? How many years had he waited for this very moment! He let out a long sigh, and with his own hands tore down that wall, watching as the twisted vines grew wild and fast in the newly opened space, hatred consuming every corner of his heart. He gave a great shout: “I will avenge my mother! Kill!”

At his cry, the cavalry surged toward what remained of the Crown Prince’s forces.

Blades rose in sprays of blood; swords punched black holes into flesh. No pain registered—only bodies collapsing without awareness, strength draining away, life extinguished.

Eight thousand men fought desperately to protect the Crown Prince as they retreated toward the gorge. The strange black-and-white cloud swept down, and the patch of gold woven through the green grew steadily smaller. Just then, a gust of wind blew in from the north, carrying smoke. Liu Jue startled, scanning the horizon—fire, carried on the wind, sent smoke billowing dozens of zhang high, reaching them within moments. He shouted a warning to cover their noses and mouths! The smoke carried a pungent, disorienting fragrance—a plant that, when burned, induced unconsciousness.

The green-armored guards around the Crown Prince cried out in delight, calmly producing masks and handing one to him. “We’ve finally waited for the wind to change! Victory is certain!”

The Crown Prince, both startled and overjoyed, realized this was Wang Yanhui’s hidden trump card, and hastily donned the mask over his nose and mouth. But the Eastern Army had no such protection—some tore strips from their clothing, while others, too slow, collapsed where they stood.

The Right Flank Army and Southern Army suffered the same fate. When the smoke finally cleared, fewer than ten thousand soldiers remained standing across the vast plain. Both Liu Jue and Zili felt a chill settle in their hearts. Not only had the soldiers been decimated—they themselves were exhausted. Would they truly die here at Yellow Water Gorge? Zili laughed softly. “I refuse to believe Heaven means to treat me this way! All these years of enduring in silence, cultivating my strength—I won’t let it be destroyed in a single stroke!”

Liu Jue pulled a small wine flask from his robes, took a deep swallow, and tossed it to Zili. Turning back to the black cavalry and the Southern Army troops, he shouted, “By Prince Ning’s final decree, the foreign consort clan must be purged! The Crown Prince now walks a lawless path, in league with the Wang family—shall we stand by and watch a woman seize power, shall we bow beneath her skirts like cowards?”

The ten thousand remaining soldiers’ eyes burned with humiliated fury; they roared as one: “We fight to the death!”

Zili’s cold gaze swept over his men. “Today, even in death, we will not disgrace the honor of Ning Guo’s Right Flank Army!” He slowly raised his sword toward the enemy. There, thirty thousand green-armored soldiers marched forward in orderly ranks—fresh, well-armed, having conserved their strength while waiting. The Crown Prince quickly hid himself within the ranks; after such extremes of despair and elation, he felt an overwhelming surge of emotion and called out loudly, “Liu Fei, we are brothers after all—surrender, and I’ll spare your life!”

Zili laughed aloud. “What is there to fear in death? Ever since my mother was poisoned, I have faced death a thousand times over—and still I haven’t been killed by the likes of you! Do you truly think you’ve already won?”

The green-armored Northern Army, fifty thousand strong, combined with the Crown Prince’s remaining forces, now numbered only forty thousand—but the newly arrived thirty thousand were fresh, well-equipped, and rested. By contrast, Zili and Liu Jue’s ten thousand troops were drenched in blood, exhausted from their wounds. The disparity in strength was stark. The green banners fluttered, and five thousand cavalry charged toward the ten thousand remaining troops. Zili silently counted the distance—two hundred meters, one hundred, fifty: “Loose arrows!”

Arrows flew, striking down a portion of the charge, but the cavalry didn’t slow. Gritting his teeth, Liu Jue led the black cavalry to meet them head-on. Zili said nothing, simply raised his sword and charged in as well. Ten thousand against five thousand—outnumbered two to one, amid flashing blades and clashing steel, Zili could hear his own pulse pounding in his ears. From the hour of the dragon until the hour of the sheep, the wretched sounds of slaughter never ceased, echoing across the sky above, drifting through the plains.

This land no longer grew grass—it grew blood and hatred! Flowers bloomed with drifting souls, singing songs of sorrow! The bodies of fallen soldiers and the unconscious formed another kind of terrain entirely—no longer a green plain, but a wasteland paved in black and white, dotted here and there with blooms of gold! Such eerie, seductive colors could only belong to the realm of demons—a garden of death carved from hell itself!

After their charge, the Northern Army sounded a hasty retreat, leaving three thousand corpses behind as they withdrew. On this side, only five thousand remained standing. Zili’s face was grim as stone, though a faint smile touched his lips. The green banners rose once more—this time, no charge, just a slow, methodical advance in tight formation. The Crown Prince smiled at the ragged remnants ahead of him, pulled a signal flare from his robes, and fired it into the sky, where it burned brilliantly, lingering in the air.

The Northern Army’s formation advanced like an enormous stone, steady and unstoppable, regarding the five thousand men before them as mere ants, intent on grinding them down step by step into dust.

Xuanyi and Mingyin of the black cavalry called out together, “We shall escort our lord to safety!”

Liu Jue let out a long sigh, looking toward Zili. His face remained composed, though the faint twitch of his jaw muscles betrayed him. Better to preserve their strength and retreat than to lose everything. Zili didn’t move an inch. Liu Jue sighed inwardly—if Zili wouldn’t leave, there was no way he could withdraw either! Just then, the sound of thunder rose again. From the directions of both Feng City and the border town came roaring battle cries at once: “Kill!… Charge!…”

The green army halted, looking around in alarm. The Crown Prince startled, seeing dust rising along the horizon in the distance—even without pressing an ear to the ground, the thunder of a great army’s approach was unmistakable.

The green army, clearly well-disciplined, immediately moved to shield the Crown Prince and retreat toward the forest without hesitation. The Crown Prince shouted, “Capture them first!”

One Northern Army general spoke with respect but paid him no heed. “Your Highness’s safety is paramount—you must not risk yourself. Our master’s orders were clear: killing the Fourth Prince and Liu Jue comes second; the Crown Prince’s safety comes first.”

But they hadn’t gone far before a formation of white-armored troops appeared ahead. At its head, a man laughed heartily. “The old prince ordered me to cut off your retreat—I’ve been waiting quite a while. Charge!”

Within moments, white-armored Right Flank troops appeared from behind as well, encircling the Northern Army completely. Liu Jue watched in astonishment, then turned to Zili. “You brought the entire Right Flank Army here?”

Zili smiled faintly. “I prefer overwhelming numbers!”

“You left the border city undefended?”

“If I can’t win the throne, the border city isn’t my territory to worry about anyway.” Zili finally relaxed, suddenly winking at Liu Jue. “Your old man’s idea!”

Liu Jue was furious, cursing inwardly at having worried himself sick for nothing. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner? I nearly went soft killing all those men! Such heavy losses!”

“If the Wang family’s hidden elite forces hadn’t come out, we’d have had to fight to the death regardless. Besides, we knew the Crown Prince would send up a signal eventually—only once that flare went up could the attacks on the palace and Feng City begin!” Zili said casually. “This prince also had to fight until his hands went soft! There, look—thousands more lying unconscious on the ground. Once they wake, the casualties won’t be so severe after all.”

With that, he spurred his horse forward. Liu Jue called after him, “I’ll leave things here to you—I’m heading back to Feng City to help the old man!”

Zili didn’t look back, but the smile on his face deepened. He raised a hand and waved it in agreement.

Just as the Crown Prince departed, Prince Anqing, fully armored, was stationed in Feng City keeping watch on activity beyond the east suburbs when several dozen shadowy figures broke into the manor. The Cyan Group held the defense, and after the alarm was raised, another fierce battle erupted before Songfeng Hall. The attackers were numerous and clearly skilled. Amid the chaos, one shadow slipped into the hall.

Hearing the sounds of fighting outside, Sihua stood sword in hand, guarding A’Luo, refusing to leave the room. Then came a thunderous crash—the door was kicked open, and a figure in black leapt inside. “You’re the Right Chancellor’s third daughter, aren’t you? My master sent me with a message: if you want Xiao Yu to live, come with me into the palace.”

A’Luo startled but kept her composure. “Just a servant girl? Kill her if you like! Who is your master, anyway?”

The man in black paused, then chuckled softly. “If my master doesn’t care, one servant girl won’t be enough. We’ll take the little princess too.”

A’Luo laughed along with him. “Has Wang Yanhui gone soft in the head? Xin’er isn’t even my child—kill her too, why not!”

The man’s face darkened with anger. “How can you be so cold-hearted? Not even willing to save a two-year-old child?” He added, “Well then, whether you want to come or not, you’re coming!” His sword flashed toward her. Sihua raised her blade to block. “Young lady, run!”

A’Luo shouted, “Take care of yourself!” and leapt out the window like a startled rabbit. Her heart pounded with mounting dread. Heavens, when had Wang Yanhui captured Xiao Yu, and where had Liu Ying gone?

She dashed into the forest, desperate to find somewhere to hide. Suddenly she spotted someone dressed as a member of the Cyan Group and ran toward them in relief. But when the figure turned, their face wasn’t covered. A’Luo froze, then spun around and fled the other way, silently cursing the Cyan Group as a bunch of useless fools—where had they all gone? As she ran and shouted, the figure behind her laughed softly, closing the distance in a few quick leaps, and struck a pressure point. A’Luo’s body went rigid, then crumpled. The man scooped her up, gave a low whistle, and left the manor grounds.

A’Luo wanted to cry but couldn’t. She didn’t want to become a hostage in the palace. Liu Jue, you’re worse than a pig! Look at the people you left guarding the manor! Suddenly, a flash of sword-light cut through the darkness ahead: “Let go of the young lady!”

Her heart leapt. She opened her eyes and saw—Qing Ying! Though the black cavalry always wore face coverings, having spent so much time at Songfeng Hall, she’d grown familiar with Qing Ying’s voice and build.

At that moment, the other men in black and the rest of the Cyan Group arrived. The man holding A’Luo moved his sword, pressing it against her throat; a slight increase in pressure drew a thin line of blood. A’Luo felt a sharp sting on her neck. Terrified, she stared wide-eyed at Qing Ying. “My master said: if I can’t bring her back, kill her. Even if we lose, let the two princes grieve for the rest of their lives.”

Qing Ying stared coldly at the man. Blood was already trickling down A’Luo’s neck. He lowered his blade, stepping aside to let them pass. “My master also said: if she loses so much as a single hair, he’ll flay your master alive, one strip at a time.”

The man chuckled. “That all depends on whether your master makes it back alive!”

A’Luo’s heart clenched with fear—Liu Jue, could something happen to him? She was too anxious to even register being led away by the men in black.

Qing Ying watched helplessly as A’Luo was taken away. His composure cracked at last; he slashed down a nearby sapling in fury, cursing bitterly, “When my lord gets back, I really am done for!”