"A name spoken in blood does not fade. It echoes."
— Northern Saying
Far from the Battlefield…
In a frost-covered hall deep in the Northern Reaches, three warlords gathered around a table carved of blackstone. The fire in the hearth crackled softly, but none spoke at first. They were all staring at a single piece of parchment—delivered by hawk.
It bore a name:
Lü Bu of Zhaoling.
The parchment told of a rebel town that had held off a siege from Lady Mei, one of the southern region's fiercest commanders.
It spoke of a leader with no noble blood, no royal backing—only strength, strategy, and an iron will.
"Three days?" one of the lords said. "He held off her army for three days?"
"And counting," said the second, swirling wine in his goblet. "He's still alive."
The third, a quiet, one-eyed veteran, finally spoke.
"Then we have a problem."
Back in Zhaoling…
The fires of battle had dimmed. For now.
Lü Bu stood atop the watchtower, watching the forest.
"They'll come again," he said softly.
Wei Yun joined him, bruised but still sharp.
"Yes. But now we know something: they're afraid of you."
Below them, Zhaoling was changing. The town no longer looked like a village—it looked like the beginning of a kingdom.
Reinforced walls now held ballista towers.
Training fields were full, with fresh recruits every day.
Messengers had been sent to nearby villages, offering protection in exchange for loyalty.
The people believed now. Not just in survival.
They believed in Lü Bu.
Seeds of Strategy
Inside his chamber, Lü Bu studied a map.
Zhaoling was only one dot in the vast north. To survive long-term, he would need alliances, control of trade routes, and military expansion.
The system responded.
[SYSTEM ALERT – KINGDOM BUILDING PATH UNLOCKED]
🌟 New Objectives:
Establish a chain of 3 loyal villages.
Create Officer Academy.
Recruit/Defeat a known Northern General.
📈 Title Progress: Warlord → Lord of the North (3%)
💬Tip: Your name spreads. Use it. Or be hunted for it.
Lü Bu placed his hand on the map and whispered,
"Then let the world hear it."
In the Shadows: A Snake Stirs
While Zhaoling rebuilt, not everyone was loyal.
Inside a storeroom, a group of five men whispered.
One of them—a former merchant turned militiaman—spoke in a low voice.
"He's no king. He's a sword pretending to rule."
"You saw what he did on the field!" another hissed.
"That's the point. He'll lead us into war with everyone. No noble backing. No peace. Only blood."
Their plan was simple: send a message to Lady Mei.
Give her the layout of the inner defenses. In exchange, she would spare them when she finally crushed the town.
But what they didn't know… was that someone else was listening.
Wei Yun.
Lü Bu stood alone at the edge of the training grounds. The moon hung heavy in the sky. He held his halberd, not to swing it—but to remember what it felt like.
To lead with hands once stained with war.
Now those hands built cities, held maps, raised armies.
"The moment we fought for is here," he said.
"But it's just the beginning."
Far to the north, a warlord rose from his throne.
"Send riders to Zhaoling.
I want to see this Lü Bu for myself."