Thirty-eight cities in the northern frontier have fallen, leaving only the isolated city of Kaiyuan. Factional strife at court has split the government, with the peace faction controlling the center. They withhold provisions and weapons, abandoning the border and its people. The previous garrison commander, Qin Lie, died in battle. The civil official Su Jin is sent in to replace him, bearing the central government's death order: "Hold the city, do not fight. Stand firm and wait for peace." The protagonist, Lin Ye, is a low-ranking soldier in Kaiyuan whose entire family was slaughtered by the barbarians. Driven by a blood feud, he rises from the depths of despair, step by step, to the very top.
