This delays his escape plans, angering Tovar, who nevertheless assists William despite Ballard's protests.ĭuring the next attack, the Tao Tei are numerous enough to cause Lin to resort to using arrows equipped with black powder, whose capabilities had been kept secret from the Westerners until now. To test the hypothesis, William suggests they capture a Tao Tei alive and agrees to help. Wang believes the stone William carries enabled him to slay the Tao Tei he fought at the cave. Around this time, an envoy from the capital arrives with an ancient scroll which suggests that the monsters are pacified by magnets. General Shao is killed, placing Commander Lin in charge of the Nameless Order. That night, two Tao Tei reach the top of the Wall. The three Europeans secretly plan to steal gunpowder and flee during the next monster attack. William and Tovar display amazing battle skills, saving the life of young warrior Peng Yong, then slaying two monsters, which earns the Order's respect. Detained, he now serves as an English and Latin teacher. During the battle, William and Tovar are freed by Ballard, another European who ventured east twenty-five years earlier, searching for gunpowder. Both sides sustain heavy losses before the monsters' queen aborts the attack. Shortly after, a monster horde assails the Wall. While examining the severed monster arm, the Order's commanders are surprised by the monsters' first assault one week early. The Nameless Order exists to combat alien monsters called Tao Tei, which attack once every sixty years. Reaching the Wall, they are taken prisoner by soldiers of the Nameless Order, led by General Shao and Strategist Wang. They sever the monster's arm and bring it with them. A few miles north of the Great Wall, they are attacked by a monster.