Promise and Betrayal: A Mo Dao Zu Shi (the Untamed) Story

Chapter 14

The next morning breaks cold and clear. The war council convenes once again, this time discussing defense in the event of an attack. Preparations for a counterattack begin as we wait for the Wen Clan to make a move. For days, we hear nothing of their whereabouts. Their troops amass in Qishan, but the messaging routes are silent beyond that. But one day, a week into our stay at Qinghe, we are brought news of a different, graver kind.

A breathless messenger skids to a stop in front of the war council. With a rushed bow, he delivers his message: "News of the Jiang Clan, my lords. There has been a massacre. The Jiang Clan leader, the madam, and three fourths of their cultivation force were wiped out. The Wen Clan has taken over Lotus Pier, naming it an outpost of the Wen Clan. And the three Jiang heirs are missing. No word of them. No survivors saw them fight. They have simply disappeared. Rumors grow of one being held captive, but we cannot be sure."

Whispers break out amongst the room, likely forming their own opinions. Lan Zhan tightens his grip on the table's edge, no doubt resisting the urge to leave and go search for Wei Ying himself. Either that, or he holds his tongue from asking any questions.

"Where are the survivors?" Clan Leader Nie says, bracing his hands on the table. "What of them?"

"They are refugees now," the messenger replies. "They are headed here."

"How many are left?" Clan Leader Lan says, his voice containing an undercurrent of uncertainty.

"There were approximately two hundred Jiang Clan cultivators, some one hundred residing at Lotus Pier. I would estimate about twenty-five remain of them, though I can't speak for the one hundred that were not present."

The room gasps. I ache for my swords and their comforting weight on my back as I process the extent of the damage. My fists tighten in frustration and sorrow, sorrow for a great force lost to the Wen Clan. The Jiang Clan will offer us little help in our crusade now. With the Lan Clan in exile, the Jiang Clan decimated, we have only two main clans remaining with enough force to besiege Nightless City.

"Twenty-five remaining," someone whispers.

"How can we fight the Wen Clan with such few numbers?" another cries. The clan leaders silence the despair with a look.

"We have our wits," Clan Leader Jin says. "And we have our forces."

"And we have each other," the Lan clan leader chimes in. "We are a team. We are far more coherent than they are."

"But what of the Jiang Clan heirs? The remaining forces of their clan cannot be of use if there is no one to lead them," says Jin Zuxian. "Will they roam clanless until their leaders are found?"

"We shall house them," Clan Leader Nie says. "They seek refuge in my city, and I shall give it to them, as long as they agree to follow my orders until their leaders return."

"For now, we cannot waste manpower attempting to find them," says Clan Leader Jin. "We can only hope they will find their way back on their own. Instead, we must concentrate our efforts on the Wen Clan."

With that, clan leaders thank the runner for his message and he leaves, dismissed. The war council reconvenes, now discussing the logistics of accepting so many new people to the Unclean Realm. I lean against a wall, arms crossed, only partially listening. I am devising ways to find the Jiang Clan heirs, ways that require no people, save for at least three, but my mind thinks of nothing useful. I am unskilled in the art of cultivation; I was taught only the cultivation in relation to the sword and the spirits, never the theory, never the literature. The Xiao Clan is a clan of oral history, not written. I learned to read, but I had never read any formal writings until Cloud Recesses.