Alisha's plan was being carried out perfectly. The current state of the battlefield was completely within her expectations. Her decisions in the past for dealing with the bandits were questionable at best but her strategy for attacking the bandit army today was ingenious, far beyond her years and experiences. It was as if she was born for this, to lead cultivators in battle. It was unfortunate that she was stuck on the frontier of a small human kingdom.

How the Duanmu Clan reacted next was also within expectations. After the first army group dissolved, the remnants fled every which way but eventually made it back to the second army group. At the same time, the third army group poured down from their camp to the north. Only a small number was left to guard the prisoners in the pit mine.

The opening acts of the battle had finally awoken the entire bandit army. They had been beaten badly but it wasn’t over yet. Despite heavy losses, the combined bandit forces still numbered around two thousand five hundred.

Seeing this, the guard captains implemented the next phase of the plan. They did not retreat behind the walls. Instead, they remained on the battlefield to draw the bandit's full attention away from Alisha, Anand, and Gray.

The defenders rapidly reorganized and deployed a battle line between the two trenches. They covered the distance of around a hundred strides, standing shoulder to shoulder. The strongest guards were assigned to the front with heavy iron shields. Those with bows readied themselves in the rear, supplanted with plenty of arrows through the north gate.

It was a formidable defensive position. The sides were protected by the two sets of sieges trenches. These would delay any flanking maneuvers as the deep ditches were almost death traps. Their backs were to the northern walls so they only had to contend with straightforward attacks from the front.

The bandit army also arrayed itself into a line and prepared to attack directly. Their situation was not great but it was not bad either. Although the defenders achieved some successes, they were still outnumbered. Since they had left the walls and opted for a pitched battle, there was no need for sieges or fancy strategies. All the Duanmu Clan had to do was wipe out the defenders on the open field and they were confident in doing so.

“Are they going to be okay?” Gray asked, watching the impending clash in the distance from atop a hill.

Alisha quickly pulled him down, “They are doing their duty so that we can do ours.”

The two of them had left the walls and were now circling around the battle on the eastern side. They were heading to the bandit camp to rescue the prisoners from the pit mine. Anand Patel was doing the same but from the west. They had split into two just in case the bandits had any more tricks.

This was her complete assault and rescue plan. It was a multipronged, multiphased plan that so far, had gone accordingly. And now, it was up to them to finish the job.

“Stay down, stay alert.” She said.

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“Yeah…”

They jogged through the tall grass and rolling hills. The sound of battle soon escalated from their left, signifying that the final clash between the two armies had begun. They picked up their pace, both of them understanding that it was only a matter of time before the defenders were overwhelmed by sheer numbers.

They arrived a few moments later at the eastern edge of the bandit camp. It was almost deserted. At the very center was the pit mine and only a handful of ordinary bandits were visible from the outside.

Gray was about to jump the dirt wall but Alisha held him back.

“Get ready to fight.” She said softly.

“Hahaha, good spiritual sense!” A voice cut into the air.

Four men stood up from behind the wall, four Duanmu Clan elders that Gray recognized. There was the first elder who was the lead demon in disguise, the other elder who was also a demon, the elder who had murdered Foreman Kang, and Tang Duanmu. They were all wearing the same jade-colored robes and kind of armor blocky metal armor beneath that.

They didn't seem surprised to see Alisha even though she was no longer wearing her veil. Like the Southern Seas Trading Company, they had probably also made some educated guesses over the years.

The bandits had expected Alisha’s sneak attack and sent four elders to stop her. The other two elders were still with the prisoners to prevent an uprising. With only four elders here, it was clear that they were not prepared for Anand. This was also within Alisha's plan as almost everyone in the Jade Plains believed he was a crippled old man.

“Pssst!” Gray whispered in her ear. “The other target is also here.”

“Which one?”

“The one next to the main guy, the clean-shaven one that looks a bit younger.”

“Good, saves me the trouble. You take the other two, I will take the targets!” She said as she drew her sword.

Their enemies responded by drawing their own swords. There was no need for idle words or taunts between foes; between the Patel family and the Duanmu Clan, between Gray and Tang, between humans and demons.

Alisha charged. Her sword danced in her hand as she slashed at the first elder. Her aura was a brilliant shade of cyan like the sky.

“Come here, little lord!” First Elder Xing Duanmu yelled and rushed up to meet her.

Dong!

Sword met sword but it was their spiritual energies that clashed together, struggle for dominance. This went far beyond a banal scuffle between strengthening realm fighters. It was a true battle between cultivators who were able to wield spiritual energy outside of their bodies. Their swords almost didn’t matter as it was a clash of the spirit first and foremost.

Their auras swirled around each other, spinning and whipping around like a pair of tornados. It slashed and cut, ripping the elder's robes and screeching against the armor underneath as well as scratching grooves into Alisha's jade bison leather.

At first, it was the first elder pushing forward, then it was Alisha, and then it was the elder again. Back and forth it went. The others did nothing but watch, waiting for something to change.

Eventually, Alisha began to gain the upper hand. Her energy was just a bit sharper, just a little bit more resilient. Her strands of spiritual energy started to slice apart the first elder’s and pushed him back steadily. All of this lasted only for an instant but from Gray’s perspective, it had been a prolonged struggle.

The demon in disguise gave up and broke away. He leaped back thirty strides to give himself space. Alisha gave chase but he steadily retreated.

“Canglan, help me!” He called out.

Canglan Duanmu, the second elder and also a demon in disguise, joined him to face off against Alisha together. This was the catalyst for the remaining two elders to enter the fray as Tang and the last elder started towards Gray at the same time

“Two against one? Sounds about right for a bunch of despicable bandits.” Gray taunted as he raised his pickaxe above his head.

Tang's placid expression turned dark, “I’m so sick of your fat ass always getting in my way! I’ll kill you!”

“Hahaha, come on then. I’m waiting!”

Tang gave a furious shout and charged.