Maiden Of The Splitting Moon

"Puha!"

They coughed up blood as their bodies fell back to the ground. The other three noticed this and chased after her, brandishing their swords as she rushed to knock out the fallen elders. 

Elder Jia merely watch from afar as she fought, planning his next step. 

"I have to leave and find those damned disciples!" he thought. 

The elder looked around before locating the Valerian Snake Incense, he ran to it and swipped the brass incense burner before making his way towards the doors. 

"He's leaving!"

Xue Yue spoke out, alerting Ming Yue who turned to see hs fleeing body. She changed directions, heading for him instead. In an instant, she vanished and reappeared behind Elder Jia, placing the edge of her sword on his neck. 

The hypnotised elders followed after her, readying their swords to attack. 

"What are you going to do?"

Elder Jia said, sweat began to fall down his head at the fear of losing it. However, she grabbed him and faced the incoming attack, readying him as a shield. 

"Wait! Wait, stop!"

He cried out and they stopped only inches from him. Their swords already touching his clothes, especially the Sect Leader, whose blade pricked the skin on his chest.

"You-you, what are you doing here? Why do you want to stop us? I am a member fo the Tao Feng, do you know what will happen if I die?" 

His mouth began to run but it did not deter Ming Yue. She grabbed the Valerian Snake Incense, destroying it with her Zephyr Claws. Under her vice, the incense burner crumpled up before being ripped apart.

"Where did you take him? Where is Elder Fei? Depending on your answer, you could die a painless death."

She spoke coldly towards him, not giving an inch to him. 

"Heeeh!" Elder Jia whimpered, "He-he's chained within the tower the elders guard. Take him, he's still alive but please just let me go!"

"Where's the medicine to detoxify them? Hand it over."

The elder was reluctant but he ruffled through his sleeves, being careful so as to not enrage. 

"It's...here!"

He threw something down that exploded in a white mist, surprising Ming Yue and escaped her grasp. 

"Kill her! Kill her!" he shouted out crazily as the four elders and the sect leader charged forward. 

They were too close for her to avoid it and took on the attack. The Dusk Lily Pin activated as all three uses were used to protect her, all of them combined to defend against the five swords. However, it was could not endure the impact and Ming Yue burst out of the main hall, flying across the air. 

"This bastard..."

She flipped, landing on the top of the pagoda that held both the Eonic Stance and Elder Fei. 

Coming for her were the experts of the Eternal Blade Sect while Elder Jia had seemingly vanished from her sight. 

"Damn it, Pale Moon."

Cursing once more, Ming Yue grit her teeth before entering into battles once again. Her power fully exploded as a ghostly blue aura rose from her body. She attacked, splitting the air apart as a moon shaped arc of wind flew forth. 

From a distance, Hei Yue and Xiao Yin arrived, noticing her explosive aura.

"Find Rou'er! Protect them!"

She shouted out at them before clashing swords with the five experts. If Elder Jia was going to go somewhere, it would be where the disciples were. The fox and owl departed as quickly as they came, following her instructions and chasing after Rou'er.

Fighting against them was much easier this time around. Her combat strength was nearly three times as strong and here, she managed to stay her ground. 

"You're not going to last long, Ming Yue", Xue Yue said.

"That's obvious, but what do you expect me to do?" 

Ming Yue was at her wit's end, there wasn't much she could do against her opponents. They weren't at their best and even at her strongest, she could barely push them back. 

"Free the elder, at the very least, the situation would be a bit better."

"If I can even do it, but it's worth a try."

In this quick exchange, Ming Yue sought for an opportunity. She retreated several meters back before sending off a wall of wind that drained a third of her energy. The mindless elders charged forward without a care but piercing this wall was difficult for even them. It was thick and dense, providing her with a bit of time to break into the pagoda. 

She descended and attacked the doors but they were locked shut. Even after several tries, she could only scratch it or cause it to tremble. It must have been supported through special tools and formations but there was not time to decipher it. 

"Blasting Gale..."

Floating above her shoulders, a singular lance of wind formed, condensing until it was the size of her arm but carried the power of a hundred lances. Something like this was enough to cause a Sky Realm expert to feel fear, let alone a pair of locked doors. At a time like this, brute force was the solution. 

She retreated it and send the lance forward, shooting through and crashing into the tower. The ground shook and a shockwave spread through out the sect grounds. The impact was so loud that even those within Luan City heard it. Nevertheless, the pagoda did not fall. It was created to protected a several hundred year old technique, the foundation of the Eternal Blade Sect. Even under a calamity, it would not fall. However, the doors had cracked, shattering the restrictions that binded it. 

"Yes!"

Ming Yue jumped forward with her quickest speed, just as the other elders broke past her wall of wind. None of them were quick enough for her as she burst past the doors.

"A spiral staircase!"

She immediately climbed up, ignoring what surrounded her. The walls were shelves filled with books and scrolls, each one containing a life's worth of knowledge and practice. There were hundreds of them, all for the sake of improving one technique, one stance. 

Ascending the pagoda, she noticed a haggard figure, chained up upon one of the shelves. Hanging from the walls was Elder Fei, his clothes ripped and shredded from battle and torment. There were wounds covering his body and a large gash across his chest, deep and barely healed. It was a crimson red, as if one touch could break it again. 

"Elder Fei!"

She called out to him and ran up, cutting his chains.

Outside, her five pursuers stopped in front of the pagoda, not daring to enter for their purpose was to guard this tower. No amount of hynosis or poison would change that. 

Towards the Medicinal Hall, Qi Yao and and Fei Xian led everyone there. They were in shock, surprised to see their elders appear so strangely and for them to battle Ming Yue. That was especially so for Rou'er, who was still hung up on what she had seen. 

"Qi Yao, tell me. What is going on? What does this have to do with my uncle?"

Fei Xian looked toward her, pleading with his eyes that she would tell him. 

"Sister Qi, do you really know what's happening? Why is Ming Yue fighting with the elders?"

Having heard her, Rou'er turned around and walked up to her senior sister. Her face was somewhat empty, shock still gripped her, and relunctantly, she told them what she had heard days ago. Then she spoke of what Ming Yue had planned to do. The pair listened intently, their faces showed little emotion as they tried to comprehend what they had just heard.

Before Fei Xian or Rou'er could even speak, a figure entered, opening the doors. 

His handsome face was somewhat pale and his clothes a bit scratched up, Elder Jia looked a bit miserable as he looked at the many eyes around him. 

"We've been attacked!"