(Diao Chan POV)
And so we gained a new sister.
I believe most of us here have some kind of history or other that we have yet to share.
I believe I speak for all the girls when I say that none of us care about each other's past outside of whether it will be a threat to Master or not. What matters the most is how we will serve Master in the present.
Through Princess Guiying's memories, we have confirmed her sincerity and that she bears no ill will towards Master and that is already good enough for us.
Just when we were getting in the mood of sistership, there was a loud bang on the door.
All of us turned back to stare at the still frozen door.
Most likely someone tried to rush into the room but because Kiyomi's ice had frozen it solid, the door did not budge in the slightest.
Kiyomi raised an eyebrow at Lian Li who gave a nod in return.
The fox youkai waved her hand over the door and the frozen door shattered, revealing a stunned guard who was just in the midst of getting up from the ground.
"Prin… Princess? Where… Where is his Majesty?" He stammered.
Guiying frowned at him, "He is occupied. What is it? To try and barge into the room like that, it better be important."
Probably spurred by her commanding tone, the guard bowed, "Apologies Princess! I have a report from our spies regarding the Dongs! They have enlisted the help of a large group of rogue Earth Practitioners that are helping them excavate the tunnel!"
A large group of rogue Earth Practitioners? So sudden? This is definitely the work of that damnable Dark Sect no matter how you look at it.
They must have come up with this contingency plan after Eris killed off their miners on this side of the mountain, offering some of their own Practitioners as 'mercenaries' for the Dongs.
Guiying gave an uncharacteristic growl, "How much time do we have?"
The guard gulped, "The… The scouts estimate at about… Five days… Five days before they breach our side…"
Five days… That is not nearly enough time to mobilise a proper army from here to Death Pass town. Not to mention the fact that Bei Yang's standing army was barely in the ten thousands.
It was a well known fact that the Dongs were a militaristic country, their military power far outstrips Bei Yang's even should we mobilize every man woman and child.
We could not even count on the Sects since most of them here are not beholden to the Royal Family, some of them having existed before the nation's founding. If the price is right, they might even aid the invaders instead.
For Bei Yang, engaging the Dong army right as they are exiting the tunnels would be the best action to limit the number disadvantage for this war.
However, I have no doubt that should Master choose to take the field of battle, even if we had to face millions of enemies we would still come out on top.
But to involve Master in this without his consent is definitely not something we as his disciples should do.
Manami immediately activated her telepathy Technique and tried to call Master.
All of us waited for her but she only turned back and shook her head after a few moments.
"I am not able to connect to Master… Either Master has blocked off all telepathic communications, or there is something that is blocking such means of communication."
This isn't good… Does this mean that Master is in trouble?
No, the tracking Spell that I had placed on Master without his knowledge is still working fine. It would have notified me if Master was in distress in any way.
That means Master must have cut off communications for a reason.
"If the Dongs invade us… They will surely destroy Master's home as well… I do not think Heaven Sect will side with the invaders, especially if the Dark Sect is aiding them…" Brendan pointed out. "Though I am well aware of my shortcomings… I will fight them if I have to."
I nodded, "The Dongs were never known for showing much mercy, especially after the stupid Feng Xian killed the previous king. Now the entire country is run by a few generals who think nothing of killing civilians should it further their own cause. Those dumb Sects who refuse to aid this war think they can avoid this war by staying neutral are just naive."
Eris bit her thumb, "If we were to gather everyone… Could we stand a chance?"
I shook my head, "If the Dongs were serious in their invasion, we'll be facing against at least a few hundred thousand men coming through those caves."
Princess Guiying gritted her teeth before turning towards the guard, "Give the order for emergency mobilization! I am authorizing contingency plan Death Wall! If we get everyone we can to move out now, we might still make it! We did not plan for this to fail!"
The guard's eyes goggled, "You… You knew? But… But the King…"
"Father is already dead! We have no time for this! Give the order or our entire country will be brought to ruins!"
The guard scampered off to obey.
"Death Wall?" Kiyomi asked.
Guiying sighed, "We always knew the Dongs would come sooner or later but not without warning. We had several preparations already in place to defend against them though most of them come at a price. This plan would be conscripting and arming the civilians with the most basic of gear to be sent to the front lines. We can have a sizable force ready within the day to move out."
"An untrained peasant with a sword is no better than a child with a stick," Kiyomi pointed out.
The princess gave a wry smile, "True, but a large enough group of said peasants with their spears pointed the right way can still stop a cavalry charge."
I turned towards Elaria, "You mentioned you had the things ready?"
Elaria sighed, "I didn't think we'll have that little time to prepare as well… I need to go back and get everything ready to move towards Death Pass town, that in itself would take about five days…"
"I can teleport you back," Manami offered. "It is only a shame that I am yet strong enough to move entire armies around…"
Kiyomi placed a hand on her sister's shoulder, "It is no fault of yours sister, we will get through this for sure."
"In that case… I should be able to make it there in five days!" Elaria squealed in excitement. "If you guys can get them to gather up, I can bring in my own cavalry to smash right into them in one go!"
Guiying raised an eyebrow, "You have a large enough cavalry force in that small town of yours to turn this battle around? How did you even find that many horses?"
Elaria gave her a mischievous smile, "I have been preparing for quite a while."
"For good I hope?"
Elaria pouted at her, "It is all for Onii-sama's sake! Without Onii-sama I would not have gotten here!"
"Onisamar?"
"She means her brother," Eris explained helpfully. "Master is her adoptive brother before he became a Practitioner."
Guiying's eyes widened, "Oh! Where are my manners! I apologize for not knowing this sooner! Of course Master Lin's family would be as gifted as he is! You have my greatest respect!"
"Ehehehe~ Onii-sama is indeed the greatest!"
Manami clapped her shoulder, "We have no more time to waste, I will bring you back to your town and you can prepare your cavalry to move. The rest of us will gather our followers and move to Death Pass town as soon as we are able."
Lian Li turned to Guiying, "Would you be able to unite the Sects and Houses?"
Guiying blanched, "Without my father and my brothers… They would see this as the prime opportunity to overthrow the Royal Family instead…"
"Opportunistic fools… They will rule over nothing but smoke and flames should the Dongs have their way," I cursed.
"What about your second brother? He's still here right?" Brendan pointed out.
She gritted her teeth, "That bastard who would give away this country to the Dark Sect… I will execute him with my own hands before the day is done. But I don't doubt my third brother had already arranged for him to be taken away with his own followers. That just leaves me to deal with this."
"We will help you in any way we can. Heaven Sect will at least stand by you for this coming war," Lian Li assured.
"You can speak for the entire Sect?"
Lian Li grinned and nodded, "There is no way we will leave our newest sister high and dry."
That is true for all of us. If one of us is gone, Master will be sad, and there is nothing else that is worse in the world than Master being sad.
That is why, the Dongs shall be added on our purge list. All of them will know and regret what transgressions they have done this very day.
Not to mention that stupid Dark Sect as well, I think it's high time that we got rid of them once and for all.
But for now, we will be marching to war.
