Like many who survived the fall of the Old Empire, Ling Xue grew up with a spear in one hand and a sword in the other. Even before the Great Chill, her legion of elite soldiers were the terror of bandits everywhere. Unlike other border armies who bunkered behind city gates, Ling Xue's Iron Eagles preferred to go out and fight. And fight they did with devastating precision, always striking at the very heart of the enemy.
One of Ling Xue's advantages is an uncanny mastery of terrain. This often allows her to splinter and crush much larger forces by moving, for example, against an enemy camp at night to sow confusion. Most commanders would not dare to enter into so much danger. Yet Ling Xue trusts full well in her ability to extricate her men from any situation as long as they have the advantage of surprise.

And so Ling Xue became the terror of the borderlands, a fiery six-armed, three-headed hydra of outlaw folklore. The truth is that Ling Xue would not be recognized in a crowd easily without her armor. In fact, her rich and varied life outside the art of war includes a fondness for unconventional baking techniques—as awkward as that makes some grizzled veterans feel.

Ling Xue's practical childhood training with wasters was accompanied by plenty of theoretical book-study. But Ling Xue is not academic. Her skills lie more in the kind of adaptability scorned by other generals unaccustomed to spontaneous tactics. Ling Xue was never going to win any favors with the upper military establishment simply because of her ancestors. The only way to climb the ranks at the border is by proving oneself in battle. And she eagerly watched and looked forward to whenever that day would come.

There's a reason why crisis and opportunity go hand-in-hand. Ling Xue was no more than a centurion accompanying the emperor's nephew on a routine inspection as an unusually large bandit army decided to attack. Outnumbered 3-to-1, The emperor's nephew began panicking. Ling Xue looked him straight in the eye and declared the bandit leader had no idea how much trouble was in.
The bandits quickly moved to flank Ling Xue's smaller bodyguard well outside the gates. It was a fatal mistake. Ling Xue's unit immediately charged. The bandit leader had his hands tied behind his back before most of them realized what was going on. The rest quickly turned and fled at the sight of their hostage leader.\nThe emperor's nephew returned home safe and sound. And the Capitol soon sent word Ling Xue had been promoted to provincial general.