In the present time, Elizabeth regarded the Featherwind Sect with a look of incredulity. To be perfectly honest, she was not sure they would uphold their end of the deal. She assumed their intentions and goals despite them never confirming they were right. She operated on a human's thought process, which may not be applicable to birds like themselves. Not to mention, there was the glaring problem of whether it was an elaborate trap. The Sword King was not present to corroborate his side of the story after all. They might be the pawns of the Imperial Council through and through! Hence, Elizabeth rejected the prospect of a contract-type spell. She was not willing to walk into a trap of her own doing. That was why she was amazed to see Unit Commander Haea and the others present. It was the most direct display of their intentions possible. The Featherwind Sect had really fallen out with the Imperial Council!
"All soldiers, stand down," Elizabeth shouted.
"Your Highness, could you explain the circumstances?" the Legion Generals were confused.
"Later. Elder Argo, are they unharmed?"
"They're simply unconscious. Shall I wake them up?"
She nodded, to which the bird sent a whisp of Martial Energy through the twelve people. Within seconds, they began to recover. The last scenes they recalled was the Featherwind Sect attacking and slaughtering all their guards instantaneously! A huge sense of regret and resignation washed over them, as they thought the same fate would fall upon them too. They thought they died! So, to realize that they were not dead, but in fact healthy and alive, they were immediately overjoyed; however, that feeling soon faded when they saw what kind of situation they were in.
Unit Commander Haea grimaced, realizing what had happened. The only question was when? When had the Featherwind Sect switched sides? The Sword King fought the Featherwind Sect in Guanhuang in a battle that overturned heaven and earth! It was hard to imagine that was orchestrated. Then was it after that battle? No… It must have been earlier! Of course, why had she not realized it before? The glaring problem of Princess Elizabeth and the Imperial Princesses surviving the Battle of Liguang! It would have been impossible to survive on their abilities alone, meaning they must have done it with the Featherwind Sect's help! There was no doubt about it. Even in the Battle of the Maelstrom Gulf, they did not deliver the final blow. Everything looked suspicious in hindsight. She regarded Elizabeth coldly. To be outmaneuvered by someone less than half her age was truly humiliating! The Imperial Council fell into their trap completely!
Elizabeth felt awkward being stared at this intently, so she went straight to the point. "Unit Commander Haea, I demand your army's surrender to the Alzar Kingdom immediately. I don't want to make this any more painful than necessary."
"You've already captured us, so do what you will but don't assume that you've won yet. The Imperial Council has almost three hundred thousand soldiers at the ready. We won't go down without a fight!" she snarled. Her courage had to be commended, considering her perilous situation.
"An army without a leader isn't an army at all. It's nothing more than a random mob," General Petra said. "Rallying three hundred thousand soldiers around a new command quickly is nothing short of impossible. You should understand that too. Moreover, a large fraction of your 'army' belongs to the Jian and Jun Families. With their generals missing and their territory endangered, what would they do next? Once we cart your bodies out and announce our alliance with the Featherwind Sect, this battle is as good as over!"
"You dare!" Unit Commander Haea and the other generals were incensed.
"I'll have to stop you there, General Petra," a voice drifted in from outside. The crowds parted to reveal the Imperial Princesses and Imperian Qiang. Princess Ming then continued, "As we've discussed before, anything related to the empire will fall under our authority, and we haven't given our decision yet."
"That was for domestic policies, not military ones, and as such, it does fall under my authority," the general retorted, annoyed that she was being questioned in front of her soldiers. Unfortunately, this left Ming speechless as neither side wished to compromise here.
"Sister, let's calm down, shall we?" Xiuying whispered.
Imperian Qiang stepped up and said, "General Petra, we understand your reservations, but we did have an agreement previously. Killing Unit Commander Haea and the others would only further stoke the flames of conflict, worsening the situation and thus preventing a smooth takeover of the Quiton Gates. It could have catastrophic effects on our planned timeline. Please reconsider."
"Men, escort our guests back to their quarters. We will proceed as planned!"
"Understood!"
"Stand back! You will not touch Her Highnesses while we're here!" Protector Chang unsheathed his sword, followed by Lady Mingyu and Cardinal Hui. The oppressive power of three Perception Realms washed over the crowds, stifling the solders' momentum. No one wanted to step across the line!
"Everyone, stand down! Let's not forget our true enemy here!" Elizabeth shouted. The soldiers glanced at one another and retreated, prompting the Protectors to do the same. Once that was resolved, she exhaled and looked to General Petra. "I agree with Imperian Qiang's opinion that killing Unit Commander Haea could potentially worsen the overall situation. Unit Commander Haea is the Third-In-Command of the Tai Feng Army, while General Tang and Goumeng are the generals of the Jian and Jun Families respectively. The others are also Unit Commanders or Army Generals, extremely high positions in their military. They have more value alive than dead. I believe their disappearance should be more than sufficient for the effect you desire, General Petra."
"…Very well. We shall obey."
As Unit Commander Haea and the others were chained up and led away, she left one final scalding remark, "Princess Ming, you traitor of the empire! You should feel ashamed for what you're doing!"
"Why you! We saved your lives!" Xiuying yelled.
"In my eyes, you're the ones who betrayed my parents and the empire first," Ming replied.
"Ha! Time will tell who gets the last laugh!"
"Move it! And someone gag their mouths!" a captain shouted.
When they finally left, Ming sighed because what the woman said was true. Her alliance with the 'enemy' was inexcusable in the minds of the people. She would be labelled the greatest sinner who ever lived. Her reputation would be forever stained, forced to suffer the scorn and mockery of people forever! It was a bitter truth to swallow, to realize that her efforts would never be recognized. She would simply be recognized as a tool of the kingdom… At times like these, she doubted whether she was doing the right thing at all. She could only pray that she was right in the end.
"Prepare for attack! We'll strike the Quiton Gates before they can recover!" General Petra shouted to the roaring of her soldiers.
Meanwhile in the Quiton Gates, it was a state of absolute pandemonium. The sudden appearance of the Featherwind Sect, followed by the sudden disappearance of their leadership, generated mass confusion and panic. People were frantically searching for Unit Commander Haea and the others to no avail. They were nowhere to be found and not even their bodies remained! The Division Generals wanted to keep the news from spreading, but they were too fragmented without a leader. They shouted random orders, sometimes contradictory, which added to the confusion. Normally, they had procedures for when their commanding officers became incapacitated, but for all their Unit Commanders and Army Generals to disappear simultaneously was unheard of. It was a gigantic power vacuum that needed to be filled! These poor Division Generals were used to commanding five thousand people, nowhere close to the three hundred thousand required. They were completely at a loss for what to do. Unfortunately, things went from bad to worse when they heard that the kingdom's forces were on the move again! Their enemies undoubtedly wished to capitalize on their moment of weakness! Their worst fears were confirmed when they heard General Petra's voice projected throughout the valley.
"Attention, soldiers of the Quiton Gates! We've allied with the Featherwind Sect and captured Unit Commander Haea, Unit Commander Duan, General Tang, General Goumeng, as well as eight other Army Generals. We're demanding your immediate surrender, otherwise, we will be forced to attack!"
"What?"
"They've allied with the Featherwind Sect?"
"Impossible!"
By now, they understood the Featherwind Sect was responsible for the destruction of Guanhuang. There was no way they could contend against that power on their own! And to make matters worse, their leaders were captured by the Alzar Kingdom. Without a leader to rally behind, they seriously contemplated surrendering, despite the advantages they held. Their confidence whittled away when they saw the flying ship in the sky. It was over!