At the top of a hill, astride their horses, the cultivators surveyed the empty ground before them. From there, they could see the launch of another futile attack against the city, hear the crack of stone as it struck, and smell the sweet fragrance of the field of flowers before them. The midday sun beat upon them, and Wu Ying took a swig from his water bottle. The enchanted one. Because he might as well use it.
“I’m surprised to see you here,” said Wu Ying to Bai Hu, who sat astride his own spotted mare.
“Did you expect me to run? Do you think me that much of a coward to run over the loss of my friends? You think we did not know what would happen?” Bai Hu glared at Wu Ying, his arms crossing beneath his swarthy chest.
“The opposite actually.” Wu Ying gestured to where the edges of the city met the water. Because of their angle on top of the hill, they could look into the docks, watch the ships being loaded and unloaded. A boring job, but one that allowed them to keep an eye for potential new problems that might be dropped off—or taken away. “I thought you’d be at the walls again.”
“Oh!” Bai Hu seemed mollified by Wu Ying’s words. “Brave doesn’t mean stupid. The death benefits from my brothers are enough for me to purchase what I want. Safe now is good. I have to survive long enough to pick out the style, after all.”
“Death benefits?”
“Yes.” Bai Hu smirked at Wu Ying. “Don’t worry, you’re not missing out on anything. Your Sect takes it all for those of you who die. They make sure they aren’t missing anything.”
Wu Ying blinked. That did make sense. The Sect would want the resources it had expended on the slain returned to it. He wondered if that was what the Emperor’s envoy had been negotiating, then shook his head at his own naivete. As much the Sect valued them, they were also still just bodies—until they became Core cultivators. The Sect had hundreds of members in the same stage, and all too many geniuses who never managed to make it further than Energy Storage.
Still, Wu Ying felt less treasured now.
“I’m glad to hear that you’ve gotten something out of this,” said Wu Ying. The moment he said it, he realized how callous it sounded.
But this time around, Bai Hu didn’t seem to mind. “Yes. The martial style I will purchase will help. There are a number of demon beasts that were impossible for us to hunt. Now, I will be able to do it. I will honor my brothers and progress further. I will become a Core cultivator.”
Wu Ying turned to Lady Pan and her companion, the pair watching over the river and busy with their own activities. To Wu Ying’s amusement, Lady Pan was embroidering a silk scarf while Yan Qing was playing his erhu while balancing perfectly on his equine companion. The two-stringed bowed instrument cried and moaned under his skilled hands, the tune a sad accompaniment to the thrum of war in the background.
“Us?” Lady Pan shared a glance with Yan Qing before she shrugged. “We never intended to take part in the main assaults. Unfortunately, circumstances dictated otherwise.”
“Circumstances? That vice-general just didn’t know how to take no like a gentleman,” Yan Qing said, his hands stopping. Even though his words were aggressive, and his tone was neutral.
“The vice-general?” Wu Ying’s voice sounded troubled, the implications somewhat staggering to him. He did have to admit, Lady Pan had a certain way to her. The way she teased people, the way she acted and drew the attention of everyone who saw her. The few times he’d glimpsed her in the encampment, she had been surrounded by admirers. Mostly male, many wanting to spend time with her. But still, the vice-general…
“You get used to it,” she confided to Wu Ying. “It’s one of the disadvantages of my cultivation method.”
Wu Ying slowly nodded. That would explain a lot, including his attraction to the Lady. Not that she wasn’t beautiful in her own right, but he was with Li Yao. Sort of. Maybe. Maybe not anymore. He shook his head, discarding the thoughts that threatened to make him spiral into self-doubt again. Instead, he fixed his gaze upon the city’s docks as the enemy cultivators left another ship, along with the customs guards, to row on their own boat over to the next ship.
“Why do they stop some and not others?” Wu Ying said.
“Stop what?” Bai Hu asked.
“It depends on the boat. Those with higher status, those with captains and crew who can be trusted will be allowed through,” Lady Pan clarified. “The rest of them will be tested more thoroughly.”
Wu Ying noted, letting his gaze roam over a couple of individuals, tiny dots that walked along in the river. Jade Gates cultivators. Probably sensing for auras, checking to make sure there weren’t hidden dangers.
“Hmmm.” Wu Ying rubbed his chin, trying to work out how he’d break in through the water.
Unfortunately, every idea he had come up with in the last few days had failed on further review and discussion. Swim underwater? Tried and failed. The cultivators who worked the docks were specially picked for their aura sensitivity. Also, Bao Cong had pointed out one evening, there were at least a couple of Core cultivators in the city who were close enough to the docks that they would pick out anyone trying to sneak in even if the guards missed them. So long as they were present, sneaking into the city was impossible.
Not to mention anyone who managed to make their way in had to leave again—or open the gates. Which, considering how reinforced the gates were, would require a significant force.
“I don’t understand,” Wu Ying said. “How are we supposed to get in?”
“We probably aren’t,” Yan Qing said. Having said his piece, he was playing his instrument again, hands slowly moving the bow across the strings.
“What do you mean?” Wu Ying said.
“We were probably never meant to take the city,” Bai Hu said.
“Definitely not. How would the kingdom care for it? We are too far from the border. No, I think we’ve done all that we were meant to,” Lady Pan said.
Wu Ying frowned, and the lady looked him over, considering. After some thought, she conjured a jian from her ring, replacing her needles and embroidery with the weapon, which she used to draw on the ground. She never actually touched the ground, instead instilling a small amount of metal chi into the blade and using the weapon to form the map. Wu Ying quickly understood the simple lines for the river and the city they were watching. Quick stabs added nearby cities, and he assumed the Xs were the armies. When he questioned Lady Pan, she acknowledged his guesses.
“Now here we are.” Lady Pan gestured. “And here is the reserve of the army of Wei. They are moving toward us now, making sure that we do not take and hold the city.”
“Yes.” All of that was public information now, among even the soldiers.
“Now, what would happen if we hadn’t been here?” Before Wu Ying could answer, Lady Pan continued. “Their reserve would have been free to reinforce the others. But instead, we’re here, fighting on their soil, allowing us to destroy their crops, damage their city, eat their food. Even if they come, they have no chance to trap us. We will be able to leave in good time. Maybe we’ll fight them farther down the road. Or maybe we will avoid them. But either way, their army within the city is of no use to them.”
“What if we were ignored?” Wu Ying said.
“Then we have a new city.” Lady Pan shook her head. “War is not just about what you see, nor the objective that you might see. No general chooses a single path to victory. The smart ones, and we do have smart generals, always make sure there is more than one path.”