Word of Honor Episode 15 Recap
> Word of Honor Recap
Gao Xiaolian sat by Deng Kuan’s bedside in the medical hall, where he remained unconscious. She spoke to him softly, revealing that the Heroes Conference was set for tomorrow, and her father, Gao Chong, intended to announce her marriage to Zhang Cheng Ling there. She wondered if Deng Kuan would resent her if he ever woke up. Soon after, Gu Xiang stumbled in, feigning illness and collapsing.
Gao Xiaolian, concerned, helped her to a nearby bed, noting her feverish hands and chiding her for being careless. Gu Xiang secretly planned to use an "Unfaithful Nail" given by Liu Qianqiao to capture Gao Xiaolian, hoping to exchange her for Luo Fu Meng. Before she could act, Cao Weining rushed in, worriedly bringing snacks, which completely disrupted Gu Xiang’s scheme.
As Gao Xiaolian went to fetch medicine, Cao Weining attentively cared for Gu Xiang, trying to feed her sweets, much to Gu Xiang’s annoyance, who cursed his untimely arrival. At the Heroes Conference, Huang He and Qing Song pressed Gao Chong to punish Shen Shen for the murder of Ao Lai Zi. Gao Chong parried their accusations, questioning if they had witnessed Shen Shen's actions directly.
He blamed the Ghost Valley for Ao Lai Zi's death and reaffirmed that the conference was convened to avenge the fallen, cautioning everyone against internal strife. Huang He then pivoted, reminding Gao Chong of his promise to reveal the truth about the Glazed Armor.
When Gao Chong questioned his motives, Huang He, along with the leaders of the Iron Fist Clan and Eagle Claw Clan, reiterated their demands for answers, recounting the heavy losses and lost martial arts secrets suffered by their respective clans during the Battle of Mount Qingya. The crowd grew agitated, demanding an explanation. Meanwhile, Zhou Zi Shu spotted a veiled figure, Pretty Arhat, a Scorpion assassin, hastily departing the conference.
He pursued her, but she threw a hidden weapon and vanished. Zhou Zi Shu later conveyed his concerns to Wen Ke Xing, asserting that Pretty Arhat's presence signified trouble. Wen Ke Xing, however, remained indifferent, believing the situation was already dire and their only concern should be Zhang Cheng Ling’s safety. He dismissed Zhou Zi Shu’s suspicions, attributing Scorpion's involvement to their desire for the Glazed Armor.
Zhou Zi Shu disagreed, citing a pattern of suspicious events, including the theater corpses linked to Scorpion assassin Qin Song and the presence of strange drug men at the Zhao family's coffin home. He concluded that the Ghost Valley and Scorpion had colluded, with a malevolent schemer orchestrating events from behind the scenes.
Wen Ke Xing merely found the unfolding drama entertaining, likening the gathered sects to "starving animals fighting over food" in a "blood-filled play" and insisting that none of them were truly innocent. Zhou Zi Shu accused Wen Ke Xing of letting hatred blind his judgment, preventing him from seeing that Gao Chong was being manipulated. Wen Ke Xing admitted he was aware of the setup but applauded the instigator, eager to watch Gao Chong’s response.
Under immense pressure, Gao Chong finally conceded that the Glazed Armor was indeed held by the Five Lakes Alliance. He explained that after the devastating Battle of Mount Qingya, the martial arts world was too fragile for further conflict, so he and his four sworn brothers had divided the Glazed Armor into five pieces for safekeeping, awaiting an opportune moment to open the Armory for the greater peace of the martial arts world.
However, the leader of the Funiu Sect and Feng Xiao Feng immediately demanded the Glazed Armor for redistribution, accusing the Five Lakes Alliance of hoarding secrets. Gao Chong argued that the Glazed Armor had historically caused bloodshed, and the current circulation of fake pieces in Yueyang City was exacerbating the chaos, labeling the artifact a "curse."
Feng Xiao Feng provocatively suggested that the Five Lakes Alliance itself was responsible for creating the fake Glazed Armor, but other sects quickly silenced him. Huang He then proposed a new plan: first open the Armory to retrieve and distribute the martial arts manuals, then collectively attack the Ghost Valley. The crowd clamored for the Armory to be opened and the Glazed Armor to be handed over.
Gao Chong, cornered, stated that the Glazed Armor alone was insufficient to open the Armory and announced he had a witness to corroborate his claim. While the conference was in an uproar, the lax security at the Yueyang Sect provided an opportunity for action. Yu Qiu Feng and Liu Qianqiao infiltrated the dungeon to free Luo Fu Meng, only to find she was being abducted by a group of masked men. After a fierce battle, they successfully rescued her.
At the same time, as Gao Xiaolian, Gu Xiang, and Cao Weining left the medical hall, they were ambushed by Tao Hong Po and Lu Liu Weng. Cao Weining fought to protect them but was swiftly overpowered and knocked unconscious while shielding Gu Xiang. Tao Hong Po and Lu Liu Weng seized Gao Xiaolian and fled. Gu Xiang, distraught, used an emergency pill to revive Cao Weining, feeling a pang of affection for him.
Back at the conference, Gao Chong presented his witness: the young leader of Longyuan Cabinet, Long Xiao, a renowned master of mechanical arts. Long Xiao confirmed that Rong Xuan had indeed stolen numerous martial arts secrets and tricked his father, Long Que, known as "Ban Zhu Ge," into designing the Armory, a structure so complex that the Glazed Armor alone could not safely unlock it.
When pressed to open the Armory, Long Xiao declared he lacked his father’s full inheritance and could not. He then publicly accused Gao Chong of attempting to bribe and coerce his father into opening the Armory for his own selfish gain, stating his father would never comply. The crowd turned hostile, accusing Gao Chong of planning to embezzle the Armory’s treasures.
Shen Shen vehemently defended Gao Chong, denying any coercion, while Zhao Jing, kneeling, apologized to Gao Chong for inadvertently causing him trouble. Gao Chong, after restoring order, swore an oath to the heavens, disavowing any selfish motives regarding the Armory. He promised that once the Ghost Valley was eradicated, he and Long Xiao would lead everyone to distribute the Armory’s martial arts secrets among all sects, vowing to be “cut into thousands of pieces” if he reneged on his word.
Long Xiao then quietly departed. Gao Chong proceeded to announce the betrothal of his daughter, Gao Xiaolian, to Zhang Cheng Ling. He declared that after their marriage, they would jointly lead both the Mirror Lake Sect and the Yueyang Sect, while he himself would renounce worldly affairs and become a monk. Shen Shen protested this decision, but Gao Chong remained resolute. Wen Ke Xing interpreted Gao Chong’s actions as a manipulative tactic, using Zhang Cheng Ling as a shield.
However, Zhou Zi Shu countered that since Zhang Cheng Ling had already surrendered his piece of the Glazed Armor, Gao Chong gained nothing from such a maneuver. Gao Chong then displayed the "Token of Honor," the sacred artifact of Mount Changming’s Sword Immortal, which empowered its holder to rally the martial arts world against the Ghost Valley should it pose a threat.
He urged everyone present to join a blood oath against the Ghost Valley, promising camaraderie to those who stayed and safe passage to those who wished to leave. Huang He scoffed at Gao Chong's persuasive power. As various heroes came forward to take the oath, Feng Xiao Feng interjected, demanding clarification on the fate of the "unowned items": the Combined Six Cultivation Method and the Yin Yang Book.
Gao Chong explained that the Combined Six Cultivation Method belonged to Rong Xuan's original sect and would be returned there, while the Yin Yang Book, belonging to the Healer Valley, would also be restored to its rightful owners. This explanation, however, only ignited further disputes.
Representatives from the Feisha Gang, Five Tigers Broken Knives Clan, Twelve Chain Cove, and Funiu Sect each argued their own claims to the artifacts based on friendships, sacrifices, or historical lineage, descending into a chaotic exchange of insults and threats. Wen Ke Xing reveled in the pandemonium, finding the spectacle utterly "exciting."
Zhou Zi Shu, dismayed, questioned Wen Ke Xing's true identity and whether his hatred extended to the entire martial arts world, reminding him of his earlier denial of being Rong Xuan’s son.
Wen Ke Xing maintained he had never lied to Zhou Zi Shu but reiterated his belief that the so-called "righteous clans" were no different from the Ghost Valley, merely concealing their avarice behind a veneer of "benevolence, justice, and morality" before eagerly "tearing off their human skin and starting barking and biting" at the first scent of advantage. Recognizing their fundamentally opposing views, Zhou Zi Shu declared that their paths diverged and that they should go their separate ways.
Meanwhile, in the prison, a solitary guard watched over the captives. A whistle blew, and Deng Kuan, seemingly in a trance, suddenly awoke and killed the guard. Elsewhere, Pretty Arhat conveyed Scorpion's orders to Changing Ghost, who, declaring it his turn, affirmed he would follow his "Master's" plan. Deng Kuan then appeared dramatically at the Heroes Conference, shocking Gao Chong and the assembled crowd, who believed him dead.
From the Ghost Valley side, Changing Ghost brazenly accused Gao Chong of colluding with the Ghost Valley to eliminate Zhang Yu Sen, Ao Lai Zi, and Lu Tai Chong, only to betray them after acquiring three pieces of the Glazed Armor.
Deng Kuan then stepped forward and publicly condemned Gao Chong, accusing him of disloyalty for abandoning the Five Lakes Alliance, disrespect for murdering his brothers, inhumanity for harming the Mirror Lake orphan, and injustice for colluding with the Ghost Valley. He confessed to aiding the Long-tongued Ghost in infiltrating the Mirror Lake Sect and massacring the Zhang family, all at Gao Chong’s command. To validate his accusations, Deng Kuan tragically committed suicide, proclaiming he would "die with" Gao Chong.
Gao Chong was stunned, demanding to know who had manipulated Deng Kuan to frame him. Wen Ke Xing observed with a sardonic smile, identifying Changing Ghost as the mastermind behind this "dark chess piece" and sarcastically commending him for "abandoning the dark and casting a bright future."
