Backlash Part 1

Chapter 126: Organizing the Evacuation

It was impossible to protect everything. No matter what, Jiang Yanli knew she did not have the time or ability to take every scroll and every relic. No matter what, the YunmengJiang sect was going to suffer a heavy hit to their resources. Even if they reclaimed Lotus Pier later some of those resources would never be returned. They might be used or taken back to Nightless City. Even if the sects all banded together and defeated the QishanWen sect, it wasn't like they'd be able to prove how much gold was taken from them or which relics belonged to them.

Jiang Yanli focused her efforts. Three places were the most vital to visit. There was the treasury, which held the YunmengJiang sect's wealth. They would need money to feed and arm their disciples. They would need money to reclaim their home. The other two locations housed spiritual tools. Two locations, because not all spiritual tools were created equal. The most dangerous and most revered relics were in a special vault. The entrance was in the ancestral hall, sealed so only those of the Jiang Clan could enter it. In an emergency the seal could be strengthened, and this was an emergency.

Jiang Yanli's first stop was to the ancestral hall. As the oldest child of Sect Leader Jiang, Jiang Yanli had naturally been taught how to open this vault and how to seal it. The intention was that in an emergency she was supposed to take her brother and hide inside of it. It had been years ago that she was given such instructions. Jiang Yanli had no intention of hiding in a vault while the rest of their people were slaughtered.

Jiang Yanli made a small cut on one of her fingers. Just enough to let a few drops of blood begin to gather. The process required only a tiny amount of spiritual energy, even as a child with little cultivation she could have done it. She bent down and touched the floor of the ancestral hall. A pale lavender glow passed across the floor in a wave before vanishing from sight. Jiang Yanli nodded her head in satisfaction. Their most dangerous relics would not be falling into the QishanWen sect's hands.

Jiang Yanli turned on her heels and made her way to the armoury of spiritual tools. Jiang Yanli did not waste time. She began to grab as many of the powerful tools as she could and pack them swiftly into the qiankun pouch. Jiang Yanli was still at it when she saw a bright purple light shoot into the sky. She moved towards the door and saw a glowing pillar of light reaching into the air, creating a purple dome that covered the sky with a distinctive glow.

'They've raised the barrier.' Jiang Yanli realized. Jiang Yanli had only seen the barrier of Lotus Pier activated a handful of times. Unlike Cloud Recesses, the barrier of Lotus Pier was not constantly active. It was raised only in defence and fuelled by the spiritual energy of several senior disciples. The times Jiang Yanli had seen it raised previously, had been training exercises. There was a flash of light as something impacted the barrier. One bright flash was soon followed by another. Each flash of light was accompanied by a sound, a distant hollow thud from the impact against the barrier. The attack had begun.

Jiang Yanli began making her way through Lotus Pier. There was a list in her head of all the places she should look for stray kids and servants that might be hiding. They had an evacuation plan and she wanted to make good use of it. An evacuation plan only helped if you actually evacuated. If they had informed the entire sect of the evacuation plan, Jiang Yanli might have been less worried. As is, only three people knew about the evacuation route and two of those three would most definitely be fighting on the front lines if the barrier fell.

'When.' Jiang Yanli corrected solemnly. Wei Wuxian was confident they would not hold off the QishanWen sect, and she had no reason to doubt his assessment. The QishanWen sect had been the most powerful cultivation sect in the world for a long time. Why else would they have willingly sent their disciples to the QishanWen sect's indoctrination?