If the existences beyond the fourth wall were expecting me to open Natal Palaces or negotiate with the enemy (even though I had no authority and was in no position to do so), or any of all that bullshit, they would sorely be disappointed. We were skipping straight to the invasion. I mean, seriously, would your enemy wait around for five to ten days for high-level experts to arrive while you hold their most important members hostage?

And would you leisurely go level up and open Natal Palaces when the enemy was right at your doorstep and you had no idea when they would just forego and attack?

Besides, the Martial Arts Alliance knew they were on a ticking clock. If they delayed, the Imperial Guard would finally come and they would be too late. Already they heard rumors that the Diet had reached a decision and were preparing to mobilize troops, especially after they watched the video of the three fools' confession that was circulating online on social media.

Social media could be a very powerful weapon, heh.

That was why the main powers and leaders of the various sects had been arriving in force. Dropships and other airborne transports (I mean, we had flying buses, so they were more like hovering cars and buses rather than modern aircraft) swooped by, depositing their cargoes of troops and masters, the highest-ranking martial artists hurrying to the command tents that were set up as field headquarters to oversee the war effort.

The first of the transports had delivered the leaders of various sects, but they continued in a steady trickle. Even as more martial artists gathered, the sizeable army didn't attack Tushan City and instead waited for reinforcements. They were waiting for enough manpower to conquer the city in a single wave, a single attack that would bring Nine-Tailed Fox Sect to its knees.

Twelve hours ago, a flying limousine had landed, and the Grand Sect Leader of Dark Asura Sect, Fu Zhuo Hui, had disembarked from one of them. Another one had arrived four hours later, and the sect leader of Cloud Sky Mountain Sect, Jiang Yuan, had arrived along with the last of the Three Stones, Fu Chang. Two hours ago, the other sect leaders of the Six Valley Sects had arrived as well, in drips and draps and their various luxurious personal tranports.

Finally, the sect leader of Snow Valley Sect, Yin Xue Sheng, had arrived along with his brother, Yin Xue Di. The Snow Valley Sect had been located a bit further from Tushan City than the other sects, which was why they took a bit longer to arrive.

Except Di Shi Jiu of Divine Shadow Sect, all the leaders of the first ten sects had finally arrived. As they didn't have anyone held hostage, the sect leaders of Green Dragon Sect, Heavenly Way Sect and Kunlun Sect had not come personally, instead trusting their competent subordinates to do the job in their stead. As major sects, even their subordinates were as powerful as the sect leaders of lesser sects, which was why the original ten sects present did not complain.

"This is Bai Xue's arm."

Feng Lin handed a refrigerated container over to Yin Xue Di, who looked extremely pale when he accepted it and cracked it open. He immediately recognized the arm, and would still have even it wasn't adorned with the Spirit Rings and other accessories belonging to his wife. Being so close to his wife, and married and intimate for so many years, he was familiar with every crook and nanny of her body.

"Xue'er, Xue'er.."

Yin Xue Di closed the case and set it down, on the verge of weeping. He gritted his teeth, his expression murderous and ferocious, and glanced at his older brother.

Yin Xue Sheng raised his head and turned toward Cloud Sky Mountain Sect Leader Jiang Yuan, Dark Asura Sect Grand Sect Leader Fu Zhuo Hui, and the representative of the Six Valley Sects, Jiu Liu Yu. "No matter what you guys decide, my Snow Valley Sect will definitely kill all the elders and disciples of Nine-Tailed Fox Sect! I will leave nothing behind!"

"Wu Tuo's arm was also cut off. My Cloud Sky Mountain will use of all of our strength to help Brother Yin attain his revenge!" Jiang Yuan declared coldly.

"Six Valley Sects are also of the same opinion!" Jiu Liu Yu sneered.

"Liang Yang Zu has also died, Di Shi Jiu has also disappeared, so I believe that Divine Shadow Sect will also desire vengeance." Yin Xue Sheng nodded, satisfied, and then turned toward Fu Zhuo Hui. "What about you, Brother Fu?"

"I'll leave it to you guys to decide." Fu Zhuo Hui smiled in reply.

"Then what about the three major sects?"

The representative of Green Dragon Sect, Long Shen, merely shook his head as he viewed the whole exchange in amusement.

"Do you have something to say, Master Long?" Yin Xue Sheng asked stiffly.

"Of course," he replied with a smile. "Allow me to sum everything up. You attacked and invaded Nine-Tailed Fox Sect because you wanted first priority to their blacksmiths, wealth and resources, slaughtered their outer sect disciples and elders as well as killed many of their Blood Blades, and then when they took hostage of your three commanders, who failed to conquer the sect despite ganging up on them with forces from ten different sects, and cut off their arms as a warning, you go mad with rage and decide to annihilate the sect."

"What did you say?!" Jiu Liu Yu growled dangerously. As he was stronger than her, Long Shen was not intimidated at all.

"Shall I put it in simpler terms so that you can understand me then?" he closed his eyes, and then adopted an exaggerated fa?ade. "'Hey, guys, be nice and surrender. We'll just kill everyone in your outer sect, the Blood Blades, and enslave all your blacksmiths and Spirit Engravers.' In order to stop you, the Nine-Tailed Fox Sect chops off the arms of your three important people."

He then started screaming.

"'AAAAAAAAAAAH! HOW DARE YOU?! WE CANNOT LIVE UNDER THE SAME HEAVENS! ALL OF YOU MUST DIE!'"

Long Shen then calmed down and smiled in a derisive manner.

"What did you expect Nine-Tailed Fox Sect to do? Lie down and let you kill them? Accept slavery without a fight? You knew the risks when you volunteered to be the vanguard for the invasion. Did you think you can easily get hold of their wealth, resources and blacksmiths without making any sacrifices?"

His expression then darkened, and his aura shimmered, causing everyone in the vicinity to tremble from fear. Even the icy Jiu Liu Yu couldn't help but take a single step back, her face being drained of color.

"I will not allow your adolescent behavior to ruin the plans of the Martial Arts Alliance. Not to mention, I find your hypocrisy disgusting."

No one said anything for a long time, until Yin Xue Di finally spoke up.

"They have our impotant family members and subordinates as hostages," he said hoarsely. "Hypocrites or not, I can't forgive them for hurting Xue'er. If I'm a hypocrite, then so be it. I will avenge her for this."

Long Shen's expression softened. "I don't care what you do as you attack the city, but when we reach the main sect grounds, and I call for a ceasefire after we conquer Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, you will stop fighting. No exceptions. If any of you or your subordinates continue to attack and kill Nine-Tailed Fox Sect even after I give the order to stop fighting, then my Green Dragon Sect and I will hunt down those perpetuators and kill them. Is that understood?"

All the leaders exchanged glances and nodded reluctantly, knowing that it wasn't wise to incur the wrath of the major sects and Martial Arts Alliance. Even though Yin Xue Sheng and his Snow Valley Sect were similarly a major sect, they were beholden to the commands of the Martial Arts Alliance, and they couldn't go against orders just because of a personal grudge.

"Are you telling us to abandon Xue'er and the others?" Yin Xue Di asked weakly, his shoulders slumping in despair.

"We will not leave Wu Tuo to his fate!" Jiang Yuan growled.

"Don't worry," Long Shen assured them. "The Martial Arts Alliance is already aware of your dilemma and is putting together a plan to rescue them. You should just be patient." He smiled. "They are sending an expert from the three chief clans, and an elder from the Heavenly Way Sect will also be joining us shortly."

Everyone sighed in relief when they heard that.

Six hours later, right when it was the wee hours of the morning, a single hovercraft swooped over the froest, skimming the top of the trees and abruptly stopping in front of the command tent. The command tent itself was a few hundred meters away from the gates of Tushan City, so the Blood Blades serving as sentries there were able to spot it. And they could sense the potent aura that the single passenger in the hovercraft exuded.

The man disembarked from the hovercraft, not bothering to wait for it to land. In a single motion, he jumped out from the gradually opening ramp and landed gracefully on the ground. As he rose to his feet, the leaders of the various sects stepped forward to greet him.

"It's the elder from Heavenly Way Sect! He's finally here!" Cloud Sky Mountain's Ji Liu exclaimed excitedly.

"Cloud Sky Mountain's Jiang Yuan greets the Heavenly Way Sect's elder." Jiang Yuan immediately approached the recently disembarked elder and bowed respectfully.

"Snow Valley Sect's Yin Xue Sheng greets the Heavebly Way Sect's elder." Yin Xue Sheng also mirrored the action as he strode forward, his brother by his side lowering his head in deference to the newly arrived elder.

"Hello." The elder waved his hand. If he looked familiar, that was because I had met him before earlier. This was Elder Shen, the Heavenly Way Sect elder who smacked Jiang Jun Hao and brought him to line when the brat got overly uppity and tried to rob Zhu Jiao and kill him. "I'm Shen Tian Yi. How is Young Master Jiang Jun Hao doing?"

"He's still alive," Ji Liu informed him lazily, having seen the spoilt brat participate in the war earlier before pulling back when Cheng Ping threw Wu Tuo's arm at them. "Got a big fright when he was shot at by the battle puppets of Blood Blades, but otherwise he's pretty lively and noisy."

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"I apologize for his behavior." Shen Tian Yi smiled ruefully. "We've done our best to discipline him and straighten him out, but to no avail. Sect Leader is hoping that this experience in war would help him mature."

"It probably just revealed his true, cowardly nature," Ji Liu muttered.

"Maybe." Shen Tian Yi was diplomatic enough not to get into a childish argument. Instead, he focused on the matter at hand. "What's the situation like now?"

Jiang Yuan and Yin Xue Sheng exchanged glances. The elders of Heavenly Way Sect were well respected, and there were supposed to be nine of them. Each of them was as powerful as the sect leader of a lesser sect, and their combat strength was said to equal entire regiments on their own. They weren't sure if they were exaggerated, but they didn't want to find out.

I was glad Zhu Jiao and I didn't have to fight him when he showed up to drag Jiang Jun Hao by the year all those months ago.

"You probably already know the gist of it," Jiang Yuan told Shen Tian Yi bitterly. "They have Su Bai Xue and Wu Tuo hostage, along with Shi Jing Yun from the six Valley Sects and Xie Zhi Zhang. We dare not move recklessly against them."

Shen Tian Yi chuckled. "Interesting. It seems that Nine-Tailed Fox Sect is not to be undermestimated. Even Xie Zhi Zhang has been defeated. As much as I disagree with them, I guess the Martial Arts Alliance is right to move against them now. If they had given them another ten years or so to develop, Nine-Tailed Fox Sect will grow beyond the other major sects and become a superpower in the Great Zhou Empire."

"You disagree with them?" Jiang Yuan asked carefully.

"You don't?" Shen Tian Yi raised an eyebrow. "In this modern, civilized era, to resort to war and conquering a sect in order to plunder its wealth and resources, to murder and enact genocide over one's greed and selfishness..is this truly what orthodox martial arts sects should be doing? How does this make us any different from the demonic sects we condemn?"

"The strong eat the weak, the weak submits to the strong. That has always been the way of life." Yin Xue Di was stubborn and hypocritical as always.

"And Nine-Tailed Fox Sect has proven themselves to be strong, and yet you refuse to submit to them?"

"We can't allow them to become stronger, or we'll be the ones who get eaten! Kill or be killed. That's the way of martial artists!"

Shen Tian Yi sighed. "The original concept of martial artists is a way for the weak to protect themselves from the strong..not a weapon for the strong to subjugate the weak. But let's not argue here." he then glanced at the command tents of Dark Asura Sect and the Six Valley Sects. He caught sight of Xie Jing Lian, and recognizing her, his lips curled into an amused smile. "Now that Xie Zhi Zhang has been taken hostage as well, how has the Xie Clan reacted?"

"They have ceased all movements and are waiting for reinforcements to arrive," Yin Xue Sheng replied.

"I see." Shen Tian Yi looked thoughtful for a moment, and then came to a decision. "Let us continue waiting with them. I want to see who the Martial Arts Alliance will send over. For now, I'll go check on Young Master Jun Hao."

With that, he departed and headed toward the Heavenly Way Sect tents.

Jiang Jun Hao was grumbling to himself as he occupied a huge space in his luxurious tent. Thanks to his status, he had all the privacy and luxuries he needed, an entire tent to himself as well as fresh food delivered by air instead of rations that were issued to the bulk of the Heavenly Way Sect forces.

"Young Master Jun Hao, how are you doing?"

Shen Tian Yi lifted the flap of the tent and peered inside. Jiang Jun Hao balked at his appearance, not because he was outraged by the blatant invasion of his privacy but because he was shocked.

"Sect Leader actually sent you?!" he exclaimed.

Shen Tian Yi nodded. "Yes. The situation has been assessed as being extremely dire, so they thought it wise to send a single elder. And since I have been assigned to serve as your bodyguard before, and you're here fighting on the frontlines to earn much-needed experience, they decided that I was the best choice."

"They made the right choice." Jiang Jun Hao gulped, knowing just how powerful Shen Tian Yi was. He smirked. "Nine-Tailed Fox Sect is definitely doomed now."

"That remains to be seen," Shin Tian Yi countered indifferently. He glanced outside. "They have defeated even Xie Zhi Zhang. I have no idea what other hidden dangers and masters they have concealed behind their walls. Not to mention disturbing rumors about an extremely powerful demon the likes of which the Martial Arts Alliance has never seen before."

Jiang Jun Hao scowled. "I took part in the siege earlier and I saw no monster. Surely they must be exaggerating."

"Then who do you think defeated Xie Zhi Zhang?"

Jiang Jun Hao was unable to answer. Shen Tian Yi smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry. We'll find a way to turn the tide." He sighed. "It is a pity that the Martial Arts Alliance is so short-sighted and blinded by their greed. To think they would resort to false fabrications and engage in criminal warfare just to plunder a member sect's resources and wealth."

"You disagree with the Martial Arts Alliance's decision, Elder Shen?" Jiang Jun Hao sneered. "It's has always been this way with regards to martial arts. The strong eat the weak. If you don't have the strength, then you can only wait to die!"

Shen Tian Yi scowled, realizing the futility of stamping out such horrible mentality from the young master of the Heavenly Way Sect. Instead, he decided to turn it the other way around.

"What happens when the Martial Arts Alliance turns on us?"

"Huh? Why would they?" Jiang Jun Hao looked shocked. Shen Tian Yi shook his head, wondering why the young master could be so talented in martial arts, yet so stupid and na?ve when it came to common sense.

"The Martial Arts Alliance attacked and invaded Nine-Tailed Fox Sect because it was becoming too powerful, too strong and too rich. They were afraid of it growing beyond control, and they coveted the wealth, resources and blacksmiths of Nine-Tailed Fox Sect." He looked sternly at Jiang Jun Hao. "Now, when the day comes when Heavenly Way Sect becomes just as strong and powerful as Nine-Tailed Fox Sect, what do you think the Martial Arts Alliance will do? Will they leave us alone so that we can grow to become a potential threat like Nine-Tailed Fox Sect? Or will they make a move and eliminate us before we can become powerful enough to threaten them?"

"..that's.." Jiang Jun Hao faltered. Shen Tian Yi smirked.

"Suddenly your whole principle of strong eat the weak, the strong can do whatever they like and weak must submit to them doesn't sound very appealing, does it?"

And thus, after the conversation between the two, everyone continued waiting. Fortunately, they didn't need to wait for too long. Another two hours passed, and just after the sun had floated above the horizon, a new gunship arrived.

Just as with Shen Tian Yi, a middle-aged man jumped off the gunship the moment the ramp lowered, without even waiting for it to land, and landed gracefully on the ground. The gunship veered off, and after circling around, flew off in another direction. Well, despite being a gunship, it didn't actually have guns, because guns weren't invented in this world. Not when martial artists could shoot qi projectiles with their band hands.

"Song Si Yuan!"

Upon seeing the newcomer, Shen Tian Yi laughed heartily as he approached. "It seems that the Martial Arts Alliance really doesn't intend to hold anything back."

"Who?" Jiang Jun Hao asked blankly, but before anyone could answer him, a female figure rushed past him.

"Uncle Song!" Xie Jing Lian cried out before she stopped in front of the newly arrived man in white robes. She bowed respectfully.

"Ah, Lian'er." The man she called Uncle Song smiled and reached out to pat her head and caress her hair. "It seems that you're doing well."

"..um.."

Xie Jing Lian hesitated for a moment, but Song Si Yuan immediately understood her apprehension. He offered a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry. Now that I'm here, we'll be able to solve the current crisis." He glanced in the direction of Tushan City. "When I was leaving, your father specifically instructed me to rescue your second uncle no matter the cost. He said that the rescue of your second uncle is to be of utmost priority. You can be rest assured that I will not ignore Brother Xie's safety and move recklessly."

Xie Jing Lian sighed in immense relief. "Thank you, Uncle Song."

"Brother Song, from what you've just said, I assume you already have a plan for rescuing the hostages?"

Ignoring the nearby martial artists from Dark Asura Sect, the Seven Valley Sect, Divine Shadow Sect, Cloud Sky Mountain Sect, and even Green Dragon Sect and Kunlun Sect, Shen Tian Yi focused his gaze on Song Si Yuan.

The Song Clan expert grinned. "Yeah. Leave the rescue to me. You guys just focus on fighting and taking the city later."

He then literally vanished from everyone's sight, leaving no trace of his presence except a thin wisp of spiritual qi that drifted in a ghostly manner in the air.