The Hongwu Swordsman Chronicles

As the Hongwu dynasty is founded, blades flash across the land. In this bloody age, with the newly established Ming realm still unsettled, the boundary between the martial world and the imperial court has never been so blurred. The imperial knight Li Fei wields a long sword to protect his homeland, but after killing the tyrannical Imperial Uncle Weng, he is thrown into a death cell, awaiting execution. At this dead end, the Ming dynasty’s brilliant strategist Liu Bowen and founding hero Xu Da join forces to enact a scheme called “Hide the Truth in Plain Sight,” rescuing him from the executioner’s block. From then on, Li Fei sheds his identity as a Embroidered Uniform Guard and becomes the Ming dynasty’s shadow, tasked by imperial decree with investigating a palace treasure vital to the fate of the empire: the Twelve-Hour Golden Incense Burner. As his investigation deepens, Li Fei crosses paths with Tian Qiping, an eccentric martial artist known as “Pointy Head,” and a shocking conspiracy that will engulf the entire martial world slowly comes to light. From the bloody battle between Zen Master Bai Lian and Mantis Stronghold, to the seemingly convivial gathering of heroes at Six Harmony Inn, and the deadly clash of sword energy at Jade Emperor Temple, Li Fei is tempered by courage and conviction, walking the line between justice and the law. When “Marvelous Pole” meets “Divine Pole,” and the Pure Yang Master of the present age ushers in a golden era of martial arts contests, Tian Qi’s wild slaying of Mu Linsen, Er Meathead’s strange duel with the Crutch, the old Vulture’s climactic match against Kunpeng, and the looming threat of Chou Hen Tian’s night raid on Wudang, all herald the collapse and reshaping of the martial world’s order. Even in these troubled times, there is love: the heartfelt search for a husband by Black Jade Maiden and the morally ambiguous exploits of the two-faced hero Shy Rakshasa bring a touch of tenderness to this bloody world. When the martial world’s conflicts enrage Zhu Yuanzhang and he sends troops to quell the unrest, Li Fei must fight his way through the imperial army and his fellow martial artists alike. But the story does not end with the Golden Incense Burner restored. Atop Purple Gold Mountain, the winds of change gather, and a contest postponed for twenty years is only just beginning...