Yanmen Pass
When another group of "jinyiwei" arrives to arrest Qinglong, he fights and kills them but unknowingly reveals his identity as a former "jinyiwei" himself. Fearing more trouble than they bargained for, the owner offers to return Qinglong's money and asks to be left in peace. However, Qinglong is determined to fulfil his duty to the emperor so he takes Qiao Hua as a hostage. The pair arrive at Yanmen Pass, where Qinglong hopes to gather information. He discovers that his enemies intend to sell three provinces to fund their cause. While Qinglong investigates and plots his next move, the duo encounters the Heaven's Eagles Gang, a group of bandits led by the self-proclaimed "Judge of the Desert". The leader is a strong warrior who fights Qinglong, proving that they are evenly matched. Qinglong proposes an alliance to raid the outpost at Yanmen Pass; the gang will get their full cut of the booty while Qinglong gets to satisfy his personal objectives. Standing in Qinglong's way are Jia Jingzhong's henchmen and his former "jinyiwei", who have come to broker a deal with the gang. Before the raid is executed, Jia Jingzhong is betrayed and killed by Xuanwu, who intends to directly serve under Prince Qing.