Sword Snow Stride Episode 14 Recap
> Sword Snow Stride Recap
As Xu Xiao prepared to depart for the capital city, he instructed Chu Lushan not to accompany him but to remain at the mansion gate. He was tasked by Xu Xiao to wait for a sword tassel delivered by a hawk. Upon its arrival, Chu Lushan was to immediately lead his cavalry to Qingzhou. Chu Lushan, concerned that this would be an act of rebellion, was reassured by Xu Xiao that Xu Fengnian would provide specific instructions later.
However, his mood quickly soured when Xu Xiao declared that the military command of North Liang would be entrusted to Chen Zhibao. Despite his displeasure, Chu Lushan promised Xu Xiao that with the North Liang Army on guard, he could rest easy in the capital. The first heavy spring rain fell as the group traveled. Their progress was halted by a figure ahead: a Fujiang Red Armor, a legendary ancient battle armor long thought lost.
Wei Shuyang recognized it, recalling that the wearer of the Fujiang Armor was once one of the world's four Great Masters. He explained that the original armor-bearer had been executed after a failed assassination attempt on the late emperor. The infamous "Human Cat" Han Diaosi had personally stripped him of his armor, and both the body and the armor were publicly displayed to announce its end. The armor's reappearance was puzzling.
This Fujiang Armor was impervious to the combined attacks of Shu Xiu and Lv Qiantang, and Wei Shuyang noted that as a "Water Armor," its power was at its peak in the heavy rain. Realizing the armor was specifically targeting Xu Fengnian, Li Chungang calmly intervened. With a flick of his finger, he sent a water droplet flying, which coalesced into a sword that pierced the armor's chest.
As the armor fell, Li Chungang stepped out with his umbrella and, using it as a sword, gathered the rain into a massive water dragon that utterly obliterated the Fujiang Armor. Observing from a distance, Zhao Kai acknowledged Li Chungang's overwhelming power, concluding that a direct assassination attempt on Xu Fengnian was impossible for now. Upon inspecting the armor's fragments, Xu Fengnian found the wearer barely alive.
Li Chungang explained that the armor's interior was carved with runes that circulated and stored genuine qi, channeling it directly into the wearer's mind. This turned them into "death guards" incapable of surrender, which was why he had delivered a fatal blow. Li Chungang also revealed that three other Fujiang Armors had been waiting in the nearby woods but retreated out of fear of him.
Shortly after, a gravely wounded Ning Emei arrived, reporting that a single Fujiang Armor had attacked the Fengzi Battalion, resulting in over forty casualties. Despite the heavy losses, Ning Emei praised his soldiers for holding their ground without a single man retreating. Recognizing their valor, Xu Fengnian declared the Fengzi Battalion meritorious, ordered Ning Emei to take the survivors back to North Liang, and promised to wait for their return.
He also reflected on his desire to change the tradition of soldiers dying unquestioningly for their lords. During the journey, Jiang Ni identified the old man as Li Chungang, the legendary Sword God. Li Chungang confirmed his identity, recounting how his famous sword, Mumaniu, was broken by Wang Xianzhi’s two fingers during their duel. He clarified that his subsequent seclusion was not out of fear or shame from the defeat, but from the realization of his own past foolishness.
He was now traveling to Wudi City not necessarily to challenge Wang Xianzhi again, but simply to retrieve his sword box. The group reached Mount Qingcheng and took shelter in a Taoist temple where Xu Fengnian and Old Huang had stayed three years prior, a place marked by trees they had cut for firewood. During dinner, Yu Youwei’s attempt to arm Jiang Ni with a stick for an escape was foiled.
Later, a new group of bandits burst in, but Shu Xiu effortlessly subdued them. The captured men confessed they had taken over from the previous occupants, Old Meng's group. They recounted that Old Meng and his men had been wiped out by the Qingyang Sect while trying to rescue a teenage girl named Xiaoque'er, who had been abducted by the sect's leader for his perverse cultivation practices.
Deeply affected, Xu Fengnian went to the Yin-yang Pavilion to sketch the mountain's topography from memory. Meanwhile, Lv Qiantang, standing guard, overheard Yu Youwei's renewed escape plan with Jiang Ni but chose not to interfere, stating his only mission was to protect Xu Fengnian. However, Jiang Ni decided against fleeing and also refused Li Chungang's offer to teach her martial arts.
Saddened by the fate of Xiaoque'er and the other women Shu Xiu discovered imprisoned in the bandits' camp, Xu Fengnian ordered the bandits to be executed and buried on the spot instead of being handed over to the authorities. He explained that the imperial court often protected North Liang's enemies, and these men deserved no chance of escaping justice.
He lamented that the previous group, Old Meng's men, were not true bandits but struggling villagers he and Old Huang had befriended. Wei Shuyang urged caution, reminding Xu Fengnian that Wu Lingsu, the Qingyang Sect's leader, held an imperial title and served as a royal spy monitoring North Liang. Antagonizing him was politically unwise.
Despite this, Xu Fengnian, declaring he was not one for strategic patience when an old promise was on the line, resolved to storm Mount Qingcheng to save Xiaoque'er, whether she was still alive or not.
