Plans

Torturer's Deep.

The air in the cold sea cave hall felt slightly tense.

Liu Qian stood before the enormous map carved into the stone wall, his fingertips unconsciously tracing the cluster of reefs marked "Tidal Reef."

His expression remained calm as he asked, "What were our casualties in the battle at Tidal Reef?"

Rollo swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing. "My lord, although we won in the end, the price was steep. Four hundred and ninety-seven of Torturer's Deep's pirate soldiers were killed, more than a hundred and thirty were badly wounded, and practically everyone else suffered minor injuries..."

He glanced at Liu Qian's stern face, then cautiously explained, "My lord, Kago is skilled at ramming tactics. Many of our dead were men who fell into the water when their ships sank and were shot by Kago's men with crossbows..."

Liu Qian nodded. The pirates' casualties were terrible, but they were not the heart of the matter.

He looked at Jelena beside him. Understanding his meaning, she said gravely, "Seventy-three Dragon Spirit Guardians were killed."

"Seventy-three..."

In the corner, Jorah Mormont silently repeated the number to himself.

He had fought on countless battlefields and seen mountains of corpses and seas of blood, yet the deaths of those silent warriors struck him especially hard.

Those Dragon Spirit Guardians, clad in Valyrian armor and wielding Valyrian steel swords, were Torturer's Deep's sharpest fangs and strongest shield.

The loss of seventy-three Dragon Spirit Guardians far outweighed that of nearly five hundred pirates.

He abruptly looked at Liu Qian, wanting to know how he would respond to such a loss among his core forces.

At that number, Liu Qian's fingertips stopped tapping the nautical chart.

That night, Kago had deployed more than thirty oared ships, including five or six large, double-decked warships.

The disparity in manpower had been even greater. Including Rollo's men, Liu Qian's forces numbered only two thousand, with just five hundred Dragon Spirit Guardians among them, while Kago had more than three thousand pirates.

Even though he had seen through Kago's ambush and achieved some success by circling around to attack from behind, the enormous disparity in ships and soldiers had still cost him dearly.

Jorah had only spent about a month training these pirates. There had been no time to turn them into a formidable fighting force.

Had the Dragon Spirit Guardians not been so tenacious, the casualties would likely have been even worse.

He closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, every emotion in them had frozen over, leaving only composure.

"And the ships?"

"Kago fled in utter disarray, leaving behind seven oared ships that can still be repaired. We towed them back."

Rollo answered hurriedly, trying to offset the losses with their gains. "But our own losses... Four medium-sized oared ships had their keels snapped clean through. They can only be dismantled for firewood. The damage to the Abyssal Noose extends deep into its internal structure, so it needs major work. The Crab's Nest and the Reefbreaker each have one side shattered and their decks in ruins. They'll take time to repair as well."

Liu Qian nodded, then turned. His gaze swept over Rollo and Jorah before finally settling on Jelena and Janice in the corner.

"Jelena, Janice, let's go see the fallen Dragon Spirit Guardians. Lead the way."

Questions crowded Jorah's mind. He followed in silence, wanting to see what Liu Qian intended to do.

Rollo had learned before that Jelena and her sister could resurrect the dead. Now he followed close behind with a trace of inexplicable fear.

Deep within the sea cave lay a vast, empty stone chamber.

The bodies of seventy-three Dragon Spirit Guardians were laid out in neat rows on the cold floor, covered with coarse linen.

The heavy stench of blood and the chill peculiar to death filled the air.

The cloth could not conceal their horrifying wounds. Death had stripped them of all vitality, silently bearing witness to the brutality of the battle.

Liu Qian walked to the front of the rows, with Jelena and Janice standing on either side of him.

"Begin." Liu Qian's low voice echoed through the empty stone chamber.

Jelena and Janice raised their hands simultaneously.

A glow suddenly shone from their slender fingers.

The temperature in the chamber soared. The torchlight on the walls flickered wildly, casting huge, distorted shadows that danced across the bodies beneath their white coverings.

An indescribable presence spread through the air, as though a crack had opened into the realm of death.

Jorah Mormont abruptly held his breath. His pupils contracted sharply as he stared fixedly at the nearest body.

Rollo recoiled a step in horror, his teeth chattering uncontrollably. Although he already knew that the two mysterious women before him could resurrect the dead, this was the first time he had witnessed the process.

Beneath the linen covering one body, the cold, rigid outline gave an almost imperceptible twitch, like a sleeping beast being awakened.

Then came the second body, and the third...

Within wounds so deep that bone lay exposed, muscle fibers, broken bones, and even fragments of shattered organs began writhing and knitting together frantically beneath the glow, as though drawn by invisible threads.

Shattered bones rejoined themselves with teeth-grating cracks, while torn flesh forcibly fused like melting wax.

The entire process was silent, yet filled with a reversal that made the soul tremble.

A few minutes later, the glow receded like an ebbing tide.

Seventy-three Dragon Spirit Guardians rose to their feet in perfect unison.

Their movements carried an inhuman stiffness, and their eyes were colder than before.

The scars on their bodies had not vanished. Instead, they remained branded into their flesh like medals, making them look even more fearsome.

They silently turned toward Liu Qian and the sisters, as though they had never fallen.

"Return to your ranks," Jelena and Janice commanded calmly.

The resurrected guards left the chamber in silence, their steps heavy and precise.

Only Jorah's ragged breathing and the chatter of Rollo's teeth remained in the stone chamber.

Jorah felt a chill shoot from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. His palm, wrapped around his sword hilt, was slick with cold sweat.

This blatant resurrection of the dead on such a scale struck his soul like a heavy hammer.

Watching Liu Qian's terrifyingly calm back, he felt fear of the young man rising from the deepest reaches of his soul for the first time.

Jorah could not help asking himself, Was this power a gift from the gods?

Beside him, Rollo was even paler, his legs weak.

At last, he understood why those guards were silent, why they felt no pain, why they fought without fear of death...

They were walking corpses.

Amid his shock, Rollo's loyalty to Liu Qian instantly rose to the height of fanaticism.

Liu Qian ignored their shock and asked, "What's the situation on Cleftjaw Island since Kago returned wounded?"

Rollo jolted and took out a parchment nautical chart. His voice carried profound reverence and a hint of trembling. "M-my lord, our patrol ships scouting near Cleftjaw Island sent word that after Kago fled back, his left arm became a mass of ruined flesh. He's lost his nerve completely and spends every day jumping at shadows.

"He has fewer than thirty ships still fit to sail, and they're all cowering in Cleftjaw Island's main harbor. Meanwhile, the hidden shipyard on the island's western side has received his orders and is repairing ships like mad. It looks as though he wants to recover some strength as quickly as possible."

Jorah took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the turmoil the resurrection had stirred in him. The Bear Island knight's resilience and tactical discipline overcame his fear.

"My lord," he said gravely, his voice rougher and hoarser than usual, "Kago is holding fast in the main harbor. If we attack head-on, his advantage in terrain will make it difficult for us to gain the upper hand."

His finger jabbed at the main harbor on the chart, then quickly slid toward an inconspicuous mark nearby-the shipyard.

"But his eagerness to repair his ships is his greatest weakness right now. The shipyard is some distance from the main harbor, and its defenses are relatively weak. We can feint in one direction and strike in another."

"Feint in one direction and strike in another?" Liu Qian's gaze instantly fixed on the mark.

"Have Rollo lead a fast squadron." Jorah pointed toward the main harbor and made a feinting gesture.

"Make a great show of force, creating the illusion that we've committed everything to a full assault on the main harbor. The greater the commotion, the better. We must make Kago believe all our forces are concentrated there and draw in every reserve he can muster."

His finger then tapped the shipyard. "Meanwhile, my lord, you personally lead our true main fleet straight here. While his ships are still in the yard, destroy his last hope in a single blow. Seize his ships and craftsmen where possible, and burn everything we can't take. Once the shipyard is destroyed, Kago will be a fish on the chopping block, waiting for the knife."

Liu Qian stared at the fatal weakness marked on the chart-the shipyard-and agreed with Jorah. "A good plan. We'll do it."

Then he said to Rollo, "Rollo, make your performance convincing. Don't let Kago see through it."

Driven by fear and fanaticism, Rollo was eager to prove his worth. He thumped his chest, cunning and ruthlessness flashing in his eyes. "Rest assured, my lord. I may not have many talents, but bluffing is what I do best. I guarantee I'll scare Kago into wetting his breeches and keep his eyes glued to the main harbor."