202 Chapter 201: Preparing for war (1/2)
The sky was about to brighten, the sun slowly peeking over the horizon and casting the first of its glow over the smoldering Tushan City.
Every non-combatant Nine-Tailed Fox Sect member had ascended to the higher areas of Flame Volcano a long time ago. Only a very tiny portion of outer sect elders and a massive detachment of Blood Blades martial artists were left at the outer sect. they watched vigilantly from their positions, controlling their Cybernetica Cohorts and gunning down any enemy martial artist stupid and reckless enough to charge through the front gates.
Despite the devastation the battle-automata had wrought on the ten invading sects, none of the Blood Blades were bold enough to take a single step out of the main sect grounds. They maintained in the current stalemate, withstanding the siege and repelling the trespassers with lethal force, and waited. We had enough supplies to last us for months, perhaps a year if necessary. By then even the Royal Family would be compelled to act and send their Imperial Guard to relieve us of this siege, once they cut through the convoluted red tape and conniving political bickering that saturated the Parliament. So much for Democracy.
While on paper, ideally the majority ruled and deciding everything by votes was fair, and corruption was checked by several political parties, in reality some crises require the Emperor to declare martial law and overrule the politicians so that he can mobilize the army for emergencies such as this. Unfortunately, he had fallen into the very elaborate devices that he himself had concocted to ensure the running of the empire.
Thanks to that, the outer sect elders and Blood Blades could only wait. Not just for liberation from the Great Zhou Empire we were a part of, but also for their commanders, Lang Xie and Hai Rong, to return and take charge once again.
Fortunately, we had Sect Lady Zi Da Ji to take charge and issue orders, but she was just one person, and she needed capable subordinates to delegate particular missions and territory to. Subordinates like Lang Xie and Hai Rong.
In any case, the outer regions and foot of Flame Volcano were almost deserted and few, if any, noticed that someone had just emerged into one of the old, dusty workshops that now doubled as a huge storeroom.
Having collapsed on the ground and lost consciousness, I was only vaguely aware that I had exited into a very old workshop that no one had used for many years, especially given the amount of dust that had accumulated on the floor, equipment, tools and furniture. On the same token, no one was around to help me.
Not that I cared, having fallen asleep right on the dusty floor. I was already covered in so much filth, dust and ash that I didn't care that my clothes and skin was picking up another thick layer of grime. Right now, I had more important things to worry about than cleanliness. Having expended so much qi after fighting a literal demonic army in the underground passages, I had collapsed from exhaustion and needed some rest to recover.
Behind me, the door had disappeared, transforming back into a wall and sealing the underground passageways from the surface. There was no risk of the demons emerging into the open. The secret handbook was given only to the most trusted of inner sect disciples, those who had triggered a response in the Spirit Engraved Pillars like me and Tang Qi Hong. Other than us, probably only Sect Leader Zi Shou De and Elder Hai Mo possessed a copy, and none of them had any reason to use the secret passageways.
Not yet. I had to warn them before they begin a large-scale evacuation, but knowing Sect Lady Da Ji's temperament, I was confident that we would be staying and fighting in Flame Volcano for a long time. Not to mention we had supplies and an army of battle-automata poised to defend the main sect grounds from the invaders.
If they tried to rush in, they were in for a shock! Well, actually they had already suffered grievous losses and sustained heavy casualties, but understandably I had been so occupied with my escape through the subterranean tunnels that I was completely unaware of the larger tactical picture. I only found out about it a few hours later.
For now, I just wanted to sleep.
While I dozed off blissfully on the floor of the old workshop, my presence did not go unnoticed after all.
”Eh?”
The outer sect elder, Cheng Ping, happened to be nearby when he sensed the feeble qi signature emanating from me. Having been so exhausted I had stopped trying to conceal my presence, and my faint wisps of my qi leaked out. He closed his eyes and reached out with his senses, but at the moment my consciousness was too far gone to notice someone probing at me from a distance and thus I couldn't exactly conceal my presence or qi.
”Someone is inside the old workshop by Sector S!” Cheng Ping cried out anxiously when he finally pinpointed my location, partially stunned. He gestured to two Blood Blades martial artists who happened to be close by, and the three of them rushed to the old workshop that was now serving as my temporary bedroom. They stopped outside, checking the place cautiously and ensuring that I was the only presence they could pick up.
Cheng Ping cautiously signaled for the two martial artists to spread out so that they could flank me. Not that I was in any condition to fight, but you could never be too careful. Then he took a deep breath and called out.
”Who's inside?”
Obviously I was too fast asleep to respond.
Cheng Ping frowned, and at a nod, the two Blood Blades dashed in and struck at me from different directions.
The outer sect elder also barged in, brandishing a spear and getting ready to thrust it at what he thought was an enemy. The moment he caught sight of my prone form, lying on the floor unmoving and unconscious, he pulled his weapon up in reflex.
”Stop! Don't attack!” he desperately shouted.
The two Blood Blades were well disciplined and had great control over their bodies. They were able to halt their blades just centimeters away from my neck or spine, strikes that would have undoubtedly proven fatal if they went through with it.
Fortunately, they recognized me, being comrades I occasionally fought alongside for the defense of the sect, and they were ready to stop even if Cheng Ping didn't tell them to. They were even prepared to deflect his spear if he couldn't break off his attack in time.
”Fei Wu? Hey, Fei Wu!” Cheng Ping knelt beside me and began shaking me awake. ”Are you all right? What happened? Why are you here?”
I couldn't remember what dream I was having, but it probably involved me firing my laspistol into a horde of purestrain Genestealers while wielding a chainsword and bellowing, ”For the Emperor!” while soldiers of the valiant Draconian Armored infantry fired a barrage of las and plasma into swarms of Tyranids, supported by squadrons of Leman Russ Executioner tanks that spat superheated plasma and decimating their numbers while incinerating the larger bio-forms that held the 'Nids together through synapse powers.
As it was, I opened my eyes and stared groggily at Cheng Ping. For a moment, I didn't remember where I was, and vaguely registering the hard, dusty and incredibly uncomfortable floor, reflected bitterly on how I somehow tumbled out of bed and wondering why Elder Cheng Ping would personally come wake me up for school.
”Elder Cheng Ping?”
”Yeah! What happened?”
”What do you mean?” I muttered blearily. ”Is it time for school yet?”
”Huh?” Cheng Ping was stunned by my response. While I struggled to wake up, nightmarish memories hit me in the gut, and the horror of it all washed the drowsiness away from my mind. Following which, I was able to situate myself in the larger context, which was Nine-Tailed Fox Sect being under attack.
”This is the outer sect, isn't it?” I sat up instantly, looking around worriedly. ”What about the ten invading sects? Have they…?”
”We fought them off,” Cheng Ping told me bluntly, and smiled. ”Thanks to the battle-automata and battle puppets you brought back, we were able to destroy their lines and kill a good number of them. The survivors were forced to retreat and lick their wounds.”
”Oh.” I felt relieved when I heard that. Well, that much was obvious. Otherwise Elder Cheng wouldn't be here to help me. Instead, I would be murdered in my sleep by roaming assassins from Divine Shadow Sect and Dark Asura Sect. Seriously, though, I never expected the battle-automata I brought back to the sect to come in useful in such a manner, but Fate had a way of screwing with you.
In this case, I was glad it worked out for us.
”Fei Wu, how did you end up here?” as glad as Cheng Ping was, he couldn't overlook the possibility that there was a breach in our lines, and that someone could infiltrate into the sect through the same way as I did. He glanced at the two Blood Blades and gave one of them an instruction. ”Get a medic here.”
”I'm fine.” I briefly told him about my journey underground. ”I've to inform Sect Leader immediately. We can't evacuate through the underground passageways anymore. They have been compromised.”
Cheng Ping stared at me in disbelief, not knowing of the existence of the underground network in the first place. I wondered if I had made a mistake telling him about it, but right now I couldn't care less. Even if he knew of their existence, without the secret handbook and holographic map, he wouldn't know where the entrances, exits and passageways were.
”All right. We'll get you to Sect Leader later. But first you need to rest. You look absolutely terrible.” He studied me, and was relieved to see no wounds, other than the mess of foul fluids splattered onto me when I fought my way through demonic hordes. ”You should return to your room and rest before anything else.”
”And take a shower,” the remaining Blood Blades martial artist added. I scowled, and he shrugged with a smile.
The medic arrived, and did a preliminary inspection on me.
”No external wounds that I can see,” he declared after probing me and testing my joints. He then shone a light into my eyes and I flinched. ”Can't say for sure he didn't suffer any head trauma. Got to make sure.” He waved a couple of fingers in front of my eyes. ”How many fingers?”
I showed him my middle finger. The medic chuckled.
”Yeah, he's fine.”
”Can I return to my room now?” I asked tiredly, wanting to just collapse onto the bed and fall asleep.
”Yeah. Let's go.” Cheng Ping nodded at the Blood Blades, who went on either side of me as an escort. I frowned.
”I don't need an escort. I'm a member of Blood Blades myself.”
”Just making sure you don't collapse on your way back,” the smart-mouthed Blood Blades martial artist pointed out, and I conceded that he had a point. Especially since I was swaying unsteadily on my feet.