Sword Snow Stride Episode 16 Recap
> Sword Snow Stride Recap
Shu Xiu approaches Lyu Qiantang and Li Chungang, admitting she joined Xu Fengnian's entourage not out of loyalty but because everyone around him is getting what they want. She proposes they watch out for each other. Addressing Li Chungang, she implies he too is with Xu Fengnian for specific reasons, as he and Xu Xiao are not related.
She openly asks Li Chungang if he knows of the martial technique "White Emperor Esoterica of Simplicity," revealing that she joined the Xu family solely to acquire it and would willingly switch her allegiance to him if he could teach it to her. Li Chungang sternly tells her to get lost. Lyu Qiantang then notes that Shu Xiu's open ambition actually makes the group more at ease with her.
Xu Fengnian frantically rushes into the forest, finding trees snapped and blood splattered across the ground. He discovers Jiang Ni unharmed, standing before a mortally wounded Hukui. Jiang Ni recounts seeing a "black-and-white" beast flash by, carrying a person with a sunflower on their back, too fast to discern details. Xu Fengnian observes the Hukui's distended abdomen and realizes it's pregnant. Wei Shuyang declares it a rare opportunity, as Hukui cubs recognize the first creature they see as their parent.
However, Xu Fengnian asserts that while fortune can be won, a mother should not be taken from her children. He uses a dagger to carefully deliver two cubs, a female and a male. He then gently presents the newborns to their dying mother, urging them to remember her. The mother Hukui sheds a single tear before passing away. The two Hukui cubs immediately show extreme submission to Xu Fengnian, rubbing their heads against him.
He playfully denies being their father and names the female cub "Bodhisattva" and the male "Vajra," noting the sister is already looking after her brother. The cubs appear to understand. Despite Wei Shuyang's suggestion that Hukui scales could be crafted into impenetrable armor, Xu Fengnian requests that he bury the mother Hukui without taking anything from her, stating, "She gave me her children. That's enough." The group decides to travel by water to Qingzhou.
Before departure, Zhao Yutai warns Xu Fengnian to be extremely cautious of Zhao Heng, the Lord of Jing'an. She recounts Zhao Heng's past ambition during the "eight sons' fight for the heirship," where he nearly ascended to the throne, describing him as a scheming and resourceful man whose strategic prowess is no less than the emperor's. Xu Fengnian remains confident, believing North Liang's 350,000-man army protects him, to which Zhao Yutai replies, "I hope so."
In Qingzhou, the city's richest man, Wang Linquan, reports to Zhao Heng that the Lin family's assets are under control and vows to "weed them all out." Zhao Heng’s son, Zhao Xun, then introduces Zhao Kai, a student from Shangyin Academy. Zhao Kai suggests that killing Xu Fengnian would trigger a rebellion by Xu Xiao, plunging the world into chaos and giving Zhao Heng an opportunity to fight for the throne.
Zhao Heng, recognizing the same ambition in Zhao Kai that he once had, dismisses the plan as "fallacies" and orders Zhao Kai to be kicked out, threatening decapitation if he returns. Zhao Heng also grows suspicious of Zhao Kai's motives, noting they share the same surname. Dejected by his father's refusal, Zhao Xun is approached by Zhao Kai, who points out a plainly dressed man nearby.
He identifies him as Wu Liuding, the new sword prodigy of the Wu Family Sword Cemetery, a family with a historical grudge against Xu Fengnian's mother. Believing he can exploit this feud, Zhao Kai approaches Wu Liuding and offers to provide Xu Fengnian’s location in exchange for witnessing his swordsmanship. However, Wu Liuding flatly refuses, stating he is busy buying salt. In Lingzhou, Chu Lushan has been waiting for days at the mansion, as instructed by his godfather, Xu Xiao.
When a hawk finally arrives with a tassel, Chu Lushan immediately mobilizes his cavalry to reinforce Xu Fengnian in Qingzhou, brusquely overriding the need for a formal tiger tally and ordering his men to change into their armor on the way. On the boat, Jiang Ni and Li Chungang talk. Li Chungang reveals he stopped wielding a sword not because of his defeat to Wang Xianzhi, but because his beloved was killed by his own hand.
He admits he wants to teach Jiang Ni swordsmanship because her dynamic with Xu Fengnian reminds him of his past, and he hopes she can become strong enough to keep Xu Fengnian in check should he ever go astray. When Jiang Ni asks if he is ready to face Wang Xianzhi again, Li Chungang is unsure of victory but is eager for the fight.
In a gesture of support, Jiang Ni lends him her Divine Token dagger, a national treasure of the former Chu state. In return for the favor, she humorously asks him to instruct Xu Fengnian, as his earlier criticism had caused Xu Fengnian to stop her from reading martial arts manuals, thus cutting her income. Li Chungang begins instructing Xu Fengnian, explaining that practicing Dahuangting without martial moves is useless.
He has Xu Fengnian practice flicking his blade to smash a walnut without marking the deck, urging him to grasp the balance he once demonstrated by breaking red armor with a water droplet. Xu Fengnian quickly succeeds and moves on to the difference between "Blade Gust" (an inner force projected through a weapon) and "Blade Move" (an imperceptibly fast series of strikes). Li Chungang clarifies that his instruction is merely to repay Jiang Ni.
Soon after, Xu Fengnian manages to produce a weak Blade Gust, astonishing Li Chungang with his rapid progress, who admits, "He improves faster than I did." The entourage's boat enters the vast 800-li Spring God Lake, a strategic waterway controlled by the Qingzhou navy. Their journey is interrupted by two massive Yellow Dragon Towered Ships approaching from both front and rear. Unbeknownst to them, one ship is commanded by Zhao Xun, who had intended to attack.
However, upon seeing the second ship, which carries Wang Linquan, Zhao Xun mistakenly assumes it is part of his father's plan, remarking, "It seems so," and orders a retreat to avoid interfering. Meanwhile, Wang Linquan approaches Xu Fengnian and kneels, revealing his true identity: a longtime servant of North Liang, planted in Qingzhou by Xu Xiao. Shu Xiu confirms she has been his secret contact for years.
Wang Linquan explains that with Xu Xiao's backing, he gained Zhao Heng's trust and took control of Qingzhou's finances after the Lin family's fall, proving Xu Xiao to be the superior strategist. He declares that Xu Fengnian's arrival marks the reinstatement of his North Liang identity and reveals he also controls Mount Mu, an island in the lake. Astonished, Xu Fengnian muses, "How many more secret chess pieces does Xu Xiao have that I don't know about?"
