In the upcoming days all the forces began preparing for the siege as they relaxed their training schedules and started to ration more severely as their resources start to become scarce. Chen Gong walked to the frontlines to examine the enemy and their formation to see what was going on. Despite being surrounded by Mitsuko's forces he brought his private guard with him to give him a chance to escape if they ever try anything. As he examines the enemy he overheard soldiers talking to one another as they patrol the walls. He orders his guards to keep looking at the enemy just like him to make sure he doesn't look totally suspicious.

'If our forces do fail they'll have free reign and surround the forces guarding the gate. Which is all the more reason to setup barricades at the lower levels to give our forces a chance to escape.'

'Perhaps, but you'll condemn our lady's forces in the siege as well as the rest of us though. The weird guy our lady has with him even said it would be better to leave that open to escape to regroup with the main forces and push the enemy back.'

'That maybe so but for the good of the army some sacrifices must be made even if it only accumulates to a delay. If we were allowed to retreat the enemy will simply cut us down, its better for us to go down by fighting than by retreating.'

'Even so you better not say that too many of the others, especially in the presence of that weird guy.'

'Oh yeah he freaks me out, seems pretty handy in tactics but can't compare to Chen Gong, I mean we wouldn't have gotten this far without him you know?

'Agreed though its best not to say that open as well. Anyway, c'mon we got the rest of the wall to do.' The soldiers finish their conversation as Chen Gong dastardly smirks at this. So the serpents aren't fond of that blasted hermit after all? He was pleased them confirm his superiority however they did bring up a point. Building the barricades would delay the enemy if the walls were taken, depending on how sturdy they are, could be enough for the guards at the gate to retreat. Plus Mitsuko's forces would very well be trapped, given the number of the enemy they would all surely be slaughtered. The soldier was correct, sacrifices had to be made. Unfortunately for them they had to pay the price but that's a price he's willing to pay. Two birds with one stone he thought to himself. He retreated to his quarters and started to prepare.

The next morning Cheng Gong decreed at the middle of each stairs there would be multiple layers of debris to delay the enemy. His reasoning was the same as the soldiers, to delay the enemy as long as possible. However, when Mitsuko received these orders and shows the barricades being built while she was on the wall, she was…unpleasant. Her eyes turn blood red still in their reptilian state.

'The hell is this!?' She yells out loud to the unfortunate soldiers building the barricades at the bottom of the stairs as she stands in the middle of them.

'Apologies my lady its under the orders of Chen Gong.' That didn't cheer her up.

'So my forces are supposed to go cold and hungry because of our strategist? What about looking after our own people!? We're here dying for him and our precious lord-'

'My lady please get a hold off yourself!' Zang Ba interrupted as he stands in front of Mitsuko.

'This is lord Chen Gong's will, do not worry its only a safety net. There will be no need for it once we win the battle.' Zang Ba attempted to calm her down, though he didn't succeed as she pushes him to the wall.

'No I'm tired of our forces being treated like crap! And you can say this to lord Chen Gong. Next time I see him I'll cle-' She was once again interrupted during her vent as Zang Ba put his hand over her mouth and slowly grabs her up the stairs. The soldiers didn't know what to make of this as suddenly Pang Tong appeared before them on the other side of the barricade.

'My apologies about Lady Mitsuko she's been a bit…' Pang Tong struggled to come up with the right word when all of a sudden, a loud thud could be heard. All three of them look up as Mitsuko had her right hand curled into a fist hovering over Zang Ba's body and begins to vent out her frustration on him.

'Do not EVER lay your hand on me again, understand me!?'

'Y-yes my lady I was only-' Zang Ba started however Mitsuko picks him up by the collar and berated him some more. Her face at this point was red out of pure anger.

'I do not care what your excuses were you will not do anything like that again.'

'Yes my lady!' Zang Ba sounded terrified of her as Mitsuko lets him go, dropping him back to the ground. The soldiers were petrified of the serpent, they've never seen her so emotional before. Their sights return to Pang Tong as they hear him do his signature chuckle.

'As you can see since the departure of Lady LingQi she has become a bit more…shall we say hostile. But pay no heed to her, she will calm down eventually and all will be normal. Though I must question how our troops will be fed, after all we can't fight on an empty stomach now.' Something about Pang Tong made the soldiers a tiny bit creeped out. Something about his closed eyes, jolly expression on his face exudes…an almost sinister aura around him.

'We'll deliver supplies over the barricade, again lord Chen Gong's instructions to do so.' He reiterated, not wanting to get the blame again though Pang Tong chuckled.

'I see, well that's fine. We'll hold off the enemy in the meantime. Are there any other announcements we should be made aware of?' One soldier was about to answer however they heard Mitsuko's hateful voice call out Pang Tong's name.

'Well it looks like duty calls. Do give my regards to lord Chen Gong.' He bid his farewells to the soldiers as he walked up the stairs. The soldiers walk away though not before hearing Mitsuko berate him.

'I'm really glad she's on that side of the barrier.' One soldier spoke up, the rest nod in unison as they made their way back to the other stairs to block them with loosely stuck together debris like spare pieces of wood and furniture. That took all day for the soldier, they exhaustedly returned to Chen Gong to report their success. When he heard the news he arrogantly smirks while stroking his moustache.

'Good, good. And did the serpent have any objections?' He questioned out of curiosity. All the soldiers looked at each other with dumbfounded expressions on their face, unsure of what to say. Chen Gong stares at them with anticipation. One musters the courage to speak up afraid of what Chen gong will do if no one answers him.

'Sh-she did my lord. She was…less than pleasant about the whole thing and s-started to attack even her officers.' He stammered. Chen Gong grins at this news and dismissed them. Alone with his thoughts Chen gong thinks he's won. Now that the serpent woman is losing it her soldiers will lose morale and get overrun by Cao Cao's forces when the besiegers begin their attack. With their lives being given and delaying the enemy they can regroup and make an effective counter attack. Though Chen gong would prefer the enemy come in waves as they lure the enemy in, splitting them up and slaughtering them a bit at a time. Though he would need Lu Bu's permission to do so since the army ultimately follows his orders. He packs up his handy bright red scroll and walks to Lu Bu's quarters. He opens the door to see Lu Bu strike down a fellow officer with a flask in his hand.

'I told you to not bring me any wine!' He shouted at the corpse in anger, he looks to his side to see Chen Gong.

'Hmph, what do you want Chen Gong?' Lu Bu asked not really caring. Chen Gong didn't take too kindly with this tone but for the sake of his own ambitions like everything else he had to suffer through Chen Gong let it slide.

'It would be about the strategy for the upcoming battle my lord. Our numbers do not match the enemies and we run the risk of our enemies overwhelming us.'

'Tch, let them try. Our forces will scatter them like dust!' Lu Bu declared. Chen Gong wasn't taking Lu Bu's thirst for battle well. He's doing his best, but this damn brute just does not get strategy.

'Of course my lord, however we must consider using the castles defences to lure the enemy in, delaying their advance until Yuan Shu's reinforcements arrive to perform a pincer attack.' Chen Gong recommended. However Lu Bu starts to walk away.

'If our forces are to be victorious we can't just wait for the enemy to attack our forces will be overrun. We need to delay the attack as much as possible until Yuan Shu arrives.' Chen Gong pleaded however Lu Bu keeps walking, Chen Gongs feelings suddenly burst out, the frustration of dealing with the Serpents forces and being ignored by his Lord was too much for him.

'Master Lu Bu!' Chen Gong yelled at him. Lu Bu stops at in the middle of the doorway. Silence filled the room now which was replaced by Lu Bu's sudden declaration.

'I have no use for strategy or tactics. I will fight like I always do, with my might and crush all before me!' He curls his hand in a fist before walking away, infuriating Chen Gong. Talking to Lu Bu was like talking to a brick wall at times. The inability to comprehend strategy made Chen Gong have doubts about Lu Bu. However his might was of no equal and as long as he doesn't slay him, Chen Gong can put his strength to good use. If it wasn't for his might Chen Gong would never have considered leaving Cao Cao's employment. He remembers the blasted hermit and finds himself feeling better after remembering how he and the serpent will be dealt with so that will be one less thorn to deal with. Chen Gong hopes that after this battle due to the amount of losses they'll receive that Lu Bu will at the very least open his mind to his strategies. Lu Bu's strength will be put to good use whether he likes it or not.

The next couple of days were business as usual, supplies were given to Mitsuko's forces, begrudgingly by Chen Gong to keep army cohesion. If the rest of the army finds out he was starving Mitsuko's forces morale would drop and Chen Gong needs all the help he can get, though he still can't allow Mitsuko or the hermit to survive. Chen Gong couldn't help but feel anxious about this siege, they're delaying the attack on the castle for quite a while. He wondered what Cao Cao is plotting. He knows if he delays the attack much longer the possibility of Yuan Shu attacking from behind increases. Sure they travelled far and must be fatigued but they must know their numbers outnumbers them and they would take the castle pretty quick if he wasn't allowed to use any of his strategies.

Meanwhile a strike force led by Xiahou Dun made their way to the eastern floodgates They marched their way towards them with their weapons drawn ready for a fierce battle. When they reached the point with the floodgates they just find dead bodies. A lot of them. The corpses were even fresh, not more than a few hours ago.

'What happened here? Everyone be on your guard and check if any of them are alive! We're not alone here.' Xiahou Dun ordered looking around with his sole eye all around. The soldiers did as they were told, they found bodies with all sorts of injuries, holes the size of fists in their torsos, necks snapped and various decapitations. The place was littered with so many bodies it was almost impossible to step onto some ground not stained with blood. The soldiers return to Xiahou Dun.

'My lord everyone here is dead.'

'All of them?' Xiahou Dun questioned. He would've thought whoever did this would've at least slipped up once. He chuckles slightly.

'My lord?'

'Looks like whoever did this was really efficient. Looks like they want us to succeed it seems. Come let's destroy the floodgates and drown the castle.' The soldiers nodded in response and went their separate ways. As they dispersed he heard something behind him, no louder than a whisper.

'I didn't do all this for you.' The demonic voice shook him to the core, he didn't know what it was and slashed his sword behind him as he turns around. Only to find nothing at all. He looked around frantically, he knew he definitely heard something just now. Frustrated Xiahou Dun returns to what he was doing, unaware of the snickering Demon on the mound above him before promptly disappearing.

A few hours later the guards at the east gate were just standing around, keeping guard however as he took some steps he noticed a sloshing kind of sound as well as his feet feeling wet. He looked down and saw that water suddenly appeared on the ground.

'How is there so much water?' He asked out loud. He looks to his left and sees that the gate is…leaking water? That can't be right. More water starts to suddenly burst from the water, by which he then realised what's going to happen. He quickly retreated as his other soldiers stand there dumbfounded and ask him what's going on.

'A water attack! We need to get to higher ground!' He announced panicky. The soldier stare in horror at the gate with more and more water leaking into the castle. Some attempt to get up the higher levels immediately while others went to warn the others. However they soon realise that they have to push this heavy debris that lord Chen Gong ordered to erect. Before they could do so the sudden tide of water bursts through the gate engulfing those on the stairwells close to the gates before the debris could be dismantled or climbed over. Only to be washed away with the tide. Several soldiers manage to get up to the higher levels however most were washed especially as they attempted to climb the stairs only to be met with the debris.

One set of guards that were stationed near Mitsuko had some time, not much but just enough to escape if they were quick. They reached the debris and found a couple of Mitsuko's spearmen on watch on top of the stairs. They saw the struggling soldiers and went down.

'Ahh thank you so much, help us please!' The soldier in front begs as he extends his hand out. One of the spearman stabs him in the left eye and pushes him back. He screams in agony as he plummets to the bottom of the stairs as he falls back landing on the heads of several soldiers who push him away.

'What's the meaning of this!?' One shouts.

'By orders of Lady Mitsuko none of you are permitted to come up here.' One of the spearmen replied.

'Why? This is absurd, help us or we're going to die.'

'Ahh well that's a shame isn't it?' They look up above to see Mitsuko crouched over the edge.

'My lady please! Permit us to come up!' another soldier in the back yelled, fearing for his life. Mitsuko puts a hand on her chin feigning the idea of thinking about this.

'No.' She abruptly responded.

'Why!?'

'This is what you get for trying to starve our forces and make us sacrificial lambs!' She shouted at them angrily but then demonically smirked as the tide came in.

'This is treason!' Another shouted.

'Treason?' Mitsuko couldn't help but demonically laugh at this, horrifying the soldiers to their core.

'This is vengeance!' Before they had a chance to respond the water slammed them next to the wall, swallowing them whole. The bustle of the soldiers was replaced with flowing of the water as it slowly sinks to the ground level as the water leaks from other gates. Some like the hidden west gate break open. As soon as the water dissipated Mitsuko's forces went down to ground level and looked around at the hundred or so bodies that have been littered all around. She looks at the troops as they descended the steps.

'Make sure the bodies here are actually dead. Can't have anyone surprising us can we?' Mitsuko ordered.

'Yes my lady.' They all say in unison and stab the bodies to make sure they're actually corpses. Mitsuko can hear a familiar chuckle getting closer to her.

'Looks like the plan was a success though I am curious how you knew they would use a flood attack?' Pang Tong inquired.

'It was from d-' Mitsuko stopped herself as she coughed as naturally as possibly.

'I mean call it a woman's intuition.' She answered. Pang Tong chuckled at this.

'I see, well that's fine. So I'm guessing you will get to the main castle now?'

'Yeah…I can't allow that man to live any longer and this is really the only chance I got.' Mitsuko grasped her scythe tightly, steeling herself for what she's about to do.

'I see. In that case our forces will await your return and hold off the enemy in the meantime. The other survivors will only hold out for a short amount of time before they're eventually overrun. You'll need to deal with Lord Lu Bu quickly.' Pang Tong told Mitsuko who nodded.

'I'll be back as soon as I can, once I return we can retreat via the hidden west gate.' Mitsuko responded.

'Don't worry, we'll hold off the enemy till you get back, you have our word.' Zang Ba declared as he pounded his chest once proudly as he stood besides Pang Tong with Wu Zi on his other side.

'Good I'm counting on you all.' Mitsuko stated before she makes her way to her former lord. Her thoughts are filled with anticipation with a demonic smirk on her face.

'I never thought I'd actually be doing this, even though I hate you so much Lu Bu that I can't wait to see the blood flow from your corpse! I'm still actually excited about this, I don't know if this is normal or not but I'm going to make sure this is your last day living, enjoy it while you can!'