Chapter 359: The thousand dao city 28.

Su Lian leaned over her shoulder. "But there should be one."

"There is," Mo Yuxin said. "Someone erased it from the record."

Ning Shuyue’s hand tightened around her sword.

"Why would someone erase the anchor?"

Mo Yuxin looked at Su Yubing.

Su Yubing understood immediately.

"To make the repair fail."

"Yes."

The four Battle Maiden disciples exchanged looks.

This was no longer just a robbery.

Someone had been tampering with the sect’s defenses for a long time.

Before anyone could continue, a voice came from the road.

"Ruyan."

Ji Ruyan turned.

Sect Master Ye Qinglan was approaching with several elders. She had arrived quickly after receiving the emergency signal, and though her face remained controlled, the tension around her eyes made it clear that she had been worried.

Ye Qinglan stopped near the ruined wagons.

"Report."

Ji Ruyan immediately bowed.

"The convoy was attacked by masked cultivators. They destroyed the communication talismans first, then targeted the medicine and spirit stone wagons. There were at least thirty attackers. Most were at the Golden Core stage. Three appeared to be Nascent Soul."

Ye Qinglan’s gaze moved to the injured disciples.

"Casualties?"

"No deaths. Twenty-seven wounded. Four unconscious."

Ye Qinglan closed her eyes briefly.

"And the supplies?"

Ji Ruyan hesitated.

"Most of the spirit stones are gone. We lost almost seventy percent of the medicine intended for the outer disciples."

One of the elders behind Ye Qinglan muttered an angry curse.

Ye Qinglan did not react. She simply looked at the destroyed wagons.

"How much do we have left?"

An older woman stepped forward. "Enough for perhaps six weeks if we ration everything. Less if there is another attack."

Six weeks.

The number hung heavily in the air.

Su Yubing looked toward Mo Yuxin.

Mo Yuxin did not need to ask what she was thinking.

The situation was worse than the rumors they had heard in the city.

This was not a sect that had merely lost some political influence. Its daily survival had become a logistical problem.

Ye Qinglan’s eyes finally landed on Mo Yuxin and Su Yubing.

"Thank you for helping my disciples."

Mo Yuxin shook her head. "We were nearby."

Ye Qinglan looked at the damaged barrier. "I heard you found something."

Mo Yuxin nodded.

"Someone interfered with the formation before the attack."

Ye Qinglan walked over.

Mo Yuxin stepped aside and let her examine it.

Ye Qinglan studied the mark for several breaths.

Her expression became harder.

"This pattern should not exist."

"No," Mo Yuxin agreed.

Mu Qingru, the Battle Maiden Sect’s First Elder, arrived behind her.

The older woman was tall and severe, with silver-streaked hair tied tightly behind her head. Her eyes were sharp enough to make younger disciples nervous even when she said nothing.

She looked at the mark.

Then at Mo Yuxin.

"Where did you learn to read this?"

Mo Yuxin answered naturally. "I have studied formations."

Mu Qingru stared at her.

She did not seem convinced, but she did not press.

Su Yubing stepped closer to Mo Yuxin and quietly said, "You have been standing in one place for a while."

Mo Yuxin looked at her.

"My wife is tired."

Mu Qingru blinked.

Ye Qinglan’s lips almost curved upward.

Su Yubing gave Mo Yuxin an amused glance.

"I am not tired."

"Then I am tired."

"You are not tired either."

"I am emotionally tired."

Su Yubing laughed.

The tension around them eased slightly.

Even Mu Qingru looked like she was fighting the urge to sigh.

Ye Qinglan turned toward the injured disciples.

"We take everyone back. The convoy is finished for tonight. We will repair what we can in the morning."

One of the elders hesitated.

"Sect Master, if we bring the remaining supplies through the city gate, the Azure Cloud inspectors will see how low our reserves have become."

Ye Qinglan’s expression went cold.

"Let them see."

The elder looked surprised.

Ye Qinglan continued, "We have spent too long hiding how bad things are. Every time we pretend we are fine, someone takes another piece from us because they know we will not respond. I will not let the disciples starve because the other sects might gossip."

Mo Yuxin looked at her for a moment.

That answer told her a lot.

Ye Qinglan was not ignorant of the danger.

She had simply been trying to preserve the sect’s dignity while buying time.

And now there was no more time to buy.

The convoy returned to the Battle Maiden branch before dawn.

Their city branch was much smaller than Mo Yuxin had expected from its reputation. The main gate was still impressive, built from pale stone with the sect’s silver-and-red crest carved above it, but the surrounding buildings showed clear signs of neglect. Several roof tiles had been replaced with cheap materials. The courtyard formations had missing sections. Even the spirit lanterns along the walls were dimmer than they should have been.

The most troubling part was the silence.

There were many disciples inside, but they spoke quietly.

Everyone seemed to know that something had gone wrong.

When the wounded arrived, dozens of young women came running to help.

Some brought water.

Some carried medicine.

Some helped clean the broken wagons.

There was no panic.

That impressed Su Yubing.

The sect was under pressure, but its disciples had not become disorderly.

Mo Yuxin noticed too.

She leaned slightly toward Su Yubing as they walked.

"They have good discipline."

Su Yubing nodded. "They have probably needed it for a long time."

They entered the main courtyard.

Ye Qinglan immediately began giving orders.

One group would inspect the defensive formations.

Another would inventory the remaining supplies.

A third would investigate the missing outer disciples.

A fourth would contact the few merchant clans that still traded with them.

Mo Yuxin stood quietly while the sect moved around her.

Then she noticed Luo Qinghe approaching at speed.

The healer looked tired.

Her green robes were stained with medicine and dust, but she still smiled when she saw Su Yubing.

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TO BE CONTINUED.