"The casualties these past few days have been far too heavy. So many of those who joined the earlier searches never returned, and those conscripted afterward keep dying too..."
Another day came, and a fine drizzle fell over Golden Wind Ward. Beneath the leaden sky, a woman in a purple-and-teal dress stood forlornly beside a crenel on the city wall, a sword in hand and no umbrella, watching a new search party depart.
She was Fang Qianyuan's daughter, Fang Yue, a young swordswoman who believed in justice, like so many promising youths born to the Righteous Path.
The party she watched was another of those setting out that day, numbering around three hundred.
Before them, several other parties had already split into different routes and ventured deep into the battlefield.
Like their comrades before them, they would break into smaller groups and continue throwing themselves into the dangerous search.
Fei Ren agreed. "Yes. These past few days, the Heavenly Dao Alliance has sent far too many people out in the name of the Righteous Path, half luring them with rewards, half deceiving them."
Raising bounties, concealing mission details, controlling public opinion within the ward, monopolizing the paths to advancement...
The Righteous and Demonic Paths had far too many methods at their disposal.
Fang Yue said, "These people are caught in the game. They know only that the fighting ahead is desperate, that they might be wounded or killed. They don't know it's a mill that grinds human flesh. Those sent into battle have nine chances of death for every one of survival, and that is no exaggeration..."
"Fei Ren, tell me, is there truly any distinction between good and evil among those Heaven-Tier Powerhouses perched so high above us? If even they won't protect justice, where are those of us