This chapter's epigraph comes from the opening lines of the novel, which are: "If everything goes well, the enemy army will pass by this canyon in a half hour." This is a reference to the fact that the enemy is expected to pass through the same canyon in less than half an hour, and that the guild leader is anxious to see him alive. The cold and slippery terrain of the mountains will make it difficult for them to escape, and they must return to the city once they have passed through the "canglong mountains."