The Black Cloud Clan's relentless pursuit forced Li Wei to leave the valley. With Elder Bai's reluctant blessing and Xiao Mei's stubborn insistence on joining him, they journeyed to Iron Ridge City—a lawless hub where minor clans vied for scraps of power. To the world, Li Wei was just another nameless wanderer, his cultivation level deliberately suppressed to the 3rd Stage of Qi Gathering. But beneath the facade, Zhao Tian's centuries of wisdom simmered.
Iron Ridge City's streets teemed with mercenaries and rogue cultivators. At the Broken Talon Inn, Li Wei overheard a commotion: a young girl from the Crimson Sparrow Clan—a dwindling faction—was being harassed by members of the Silver Fang Clan.
"Hand over your clan's territory deeds," sneered a Silver Fang disciple, gripping the girl's wrist. "Or we'll break more than your pride."
Li Wei set down his tea. Xiao Mei whispered, "Don't. We're here to hide, not play heroes."
"Heroes make noise. I'll be a ghost," Li Wei replied.
Li Wei slipped into the crowd, his voice disguised. "The Silver Fangs are so desperate they bully children? Pathetic."
The Silver Fang leader turned, sneering. "Who said that?!"
Li Wei tossed a hidden Soul-Distracting Talisman—a basic tool, but thrown with Zhao Tian's precision. It exploded into smoke, and in the chaos, he whispered to the girl: "Run. Claim your clan's deeds are hidden in the Western Archives."
The Silver Fangs took the bait, storming the archives. Meanwhile, Li Wei led the Crimson Sparrow girl to safety.
"How did you know about the archives?" she asked, trembling.
"Lucky guess," Li Wei said, though he'd deduced the archives' layout from the city's architectural patterns—knowledge only a seasoned strategist would recognize.
Days later, the Silver Fangs publicly challenged the Crimson Sparrows to a duel in the Bloodstone Arena. Outmatched and outnumbered, the Crimson Sparrows faced annihilation—until a masked figure (Li Wei) appeared in the crowd, his voice amplified by Qi:
"The Silver Fangs' Thunderclap Fist has a flaw. Strike the third rib when their leader's right foot pivots inward."
The Crimson Sparrow champion hesitated, then followed the advice. The Silver Fang leader crumpled mid-strike, his technique backfiring. The crowd erupted in shock.
"Who is that?!" someone yelled.
Xiao Mei, disguised nearby, smirked. "Just a passing scholar."
Rumors spread of a mysterious strategist guiding the weak. Clan leaders scrambled to recruit him, but Li Wei vanished after each intervention, leaving only cryptic notes written in ancient Murim cipher—a language forgotten for centuries.
At the Moonlit Pavilion, a tavern frequented by scholars, a drunk elder squinted at one of Li Wei's notes. "This script… it's pre-Heavenly War era! How does a vagrant know this?!"
Li Wei, eavesdropping from the shadows, murmured, "Bedtime stories."
But anonymity came at a cost. The Black Cloud Clan tracked Li Wei to Iron Ridge, led by Jin Rou, a cunning lieutenant who'd begun piecing together the relics and rumors.
"You're no ordinary boy," Jin Rou cornered Li Wei in an alley, her dagger gleaming. "The sword, the strategies—who are you?"
Li Wei feigned ignorance. "A farmer's son who reads too much."
Jin Rou lunged. Li Wei sidestepped, using a Qi Thread Technique to trip her—a move so archaic, even she didn't recognize it. By the time she recovered, he'd melted into the crowd.
That night, Xiao Mei confronted Li Wei. "You're using Zhao Tian's tricks. Someone will connect the dots."
Li Wei sharpened the phoenix sword, its edge now gleaming faintly. "Let them see shadows. Not the man."
In Iron Ridge City, the legend of the "Nameless Strategist" grew—a phantom who outwitted clans tenfold his strength. Yet to Li Wei, this was merely the first move on a larger board. Far to the east, the Black Cloud Clan's Matriarch received a scroll detailing his exploits. She smiled. "Find him. I want this strategist alive."