When the remainder of the group that had defended the sect arrived, everyone had already been briefed about the outcome of the attack. One of the enemy elders had been killed by Tengfei Ye, two more had been severely wounded before managing to escape alongside the others.

  Two of the defenders had been wounded as well, one during their chase of Xing Zhou, another in the battle at the sect. Much worse was the fact that Elder Ding Xiao had been killed as well. She had been one of the sect’s most prominent elders and her demise would undoubtedly cut deep, especially at a time when their matriarch had been severely wounded as well.

  Liu Wei hadn’t known the woman too well. She had been around his age, but he had never had too much contact with the elders outside of his sect’s sphere of influence. Someone of her age and power was bound to occupy important positions in a sect however, so he could imagine the impact of her death.

  Besides killing an elder, the attackers had stolen an ample amount of treasure and done a great deal of harm to the sect’s architecture. Liu Wei could imagine that it was rather easy do the latter, considering that most of the sect was made up of structures suspended high in the air, supported by nothing but ropes and wooden stakes. They hadn’t made it into the sect palace though, so the sect’s most valuable possessions were still safe.

  All of this had naturally sparked heated discussions, but now that the new arrivals entered the building, everything was dead silent. At their head was Tengfei Ye, his expression still darkened with wrath. When he saw Jinjing Liqiu’s breathing, he sighed with relief.

  But few eyes were on him right now, because they were drawn to the woman walking next to him. Elder Liling Xiao’s face was filled with a deep sorrow, yet it didn’t show any signs of uncertainty. In her arms she carried the limp body of her mother, Elder Ding Xiao. When she started speaking, her voice was quiet and resolute, untouched by her visible grief.

  “Honorable Elder Ding Xiao has given her life to defend the young, innocent disciples who have stayed behind in the sect from the attackers. One of her killers has been killed herself, the other has escaped like a coward. She lived long enough to see this happen.”

  For a long while, nobody spoke up. Normally, their Matriarch was the one who would be expected to respond here, but that was impossible for obvious reasons. Finally, Elder Boqin Kang, the oldest of the sect’s elders stepped forward. The old woman’s raspy voice rung through the silence in a solemn and reverential tone.

  “Elder Xiao was valiant in her conviction and loyally served the sect to the last breath. She will be remembered as a true hero for a thousand generations to come, and her death shall not remain unavenged.”

  Patriarch Ye nodded slowly. Some of his usual thoughtfulness had returned to his expression, but there was still an ample amount of wrath on display. His tone was cold and distanced, void of emotions, but resolute nonetheless.

  “There is no forgiveness that could ever be possible for the shameless treachery of the Roaring Thunder Sect. Their reckless transgressions demand punishment and I, Tengfei Ye of the Serene Plains Sect, hereby swear that my sect will walk on this path alongside the Parting Clouds Sect. There is no way forward but war!”

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  Several elders from both sects nodded along.

  “I agree with Patriarch Ye. Our sect shall walk the path of war!”

  “The Falling Petals Sect shall join your cause!”

  “The Silver Blood Sect shall join your cause!”

  “The Charging Boar Sect shall join your cause!” …

  As the many allies of the two sects declared their participation one by one, those unaffiliated with them could only stand there with several kinds of expressions. The few that were truly independent and wanted to remain that way mostly looked at the ground in embarrassed silence. Those under the Lunar Peaks Sect looked towards Patriarch Zhao who was himself silently watching the procedure.

  But without a doubt, those beneath the Roaring Thunder Sect were the most uncomfortable. Their expressions ranged from uncertainty, over fear, to outright panic and several jumped onto the train of supporters, promptly switching sides.

  When the stream of supporters had finally dried up, the old Boqin Kang spoke up again.

  “Patriarch Ye, as the highest-ranking cultivator between us and a trusted friend of our Matriarch, I think it would be appropriate for you to make the announcement to the crowd.”

  “Is that what everyone here thinks?”

  Nods and words of agreement came from all around him.

  “Then I shall do so.”

  …

  With the long time that had passed since the incident, the crowd had settled down a little and hushed conversations about what might’ve happened had started to pop up everywhere. Qiao, still standing on the central stage, couldn’t partake in any of them and was growing increasingly uncomfortable with her position. Being at the center of the attention had felt great when her fight was actually the most interesting thing happening, but now she just felt exposed and wanted nothing more than to disappear into the anonymity of the crowd and share her thoughts with Zixin and Chonglin.

  She could reasonably guess that the flash everyone had seen was an attack by someone from the Roaring Thunder Sect, but that led to more questions than it answered. What had led to it? Who had it been directed at? What was going to happen now?

  At the very least, Elder Wei had seemed okay. Qiao hoped that the same was true for the other elders of her sect, especially her grandfather. She might’ve been disillusioned from his methods, but she didn’t want to imagine the challenges her family would face should he have been hurt.

  After what felt like an eternity and a half, finally someone showed up from the loge once again. It was Patriarch Tengfei Ye, and his presence immediately shut the crowd down. Everyone looked up to him with bated breath as he began speaking.

  “I’m sorry for all the chaos and confusion you have had to deal with, but the situation that we were met with is without precedent in the current era. I will be blunt with you all: The Roaring Thunder Sect has attacked the Parting Clouds Sect without warning.”

  A murmur rang through the crowd. Qiao swallowed. This confirmed her theory.

  “The thing all of you saw and felt was the side effect of Xing Zhou launching a sneak attack against Matriarch Jinjing Liqiu. She is severely hurt and still unconscious at this time. Her life was preserved only due to the concentrated effort of several elders.”

  A sneak attack? That was dishonorable to the extreme, considering the sects hadn’t been at war.

  “While Xing Zhou escaped, the Roaring Thunder Sect’s elders attacked the sect, plundering and destroying whatever they could before we arrived to stop them. Esteemed Elder Ding Xiao sacrificed her life to protect the disciples who had remained at the sect.”

  Another murmur, louder this time. The death of an elder was a great loss to any sect. Qiao could barely imagine how it would look like if, for example, her grandfather would suddenly be killed. It would leave the sect in utter chaos!

  “The elders of the Parting Clouds Sect and the Serene Plains Sect have come to the unanimous agreement that this treachery can only be interpreted in one way: as an act of war!”

  He paused for a moment, suspension hanging in the air.

  “Our sects, alongside many others, have pledged not to let this injustice stand. And so, we shall answer their provocation in kind: We hereby declare war on the Roaring Thunder Sect!”