Maiden Of The Splitting Moon

Just as Zuo Er was about to begin, a white beam of light flew towards the sky aimed right for him as two blurs rushed inside. He turned around and slashed the beam apart, dispersing it into bits of life. 

"Damn, pests."

He looked at them, his two swords drawn and pointed down. Baring their fangs and claws at him, Hei Yue and Xiao Yin stared icily at Zuo Er, readying another attack. 

"It's Hei Yue and Xiao Yin! Did Ming Yue beat the elders?" Rou'er exclaimed.

The other members of the Eternal Blade Sect were confused, though they now understood that someone was protecting them. At the same time, Zuo Er seemed to pause a little after hearing Ming Yue's name called out. He didn't quite remember who she was but there was a growing hatred at even hearing her name.

The pair of beasts moved forward together, one on the ground and the other in the air. Black fog puffed out at every step of Hei Yue's as the dark-silver furred fox rushed forward. Swiping forward, he attacked the ankles, clawing and biting away before vanishing into the dense and black fog. Simultaneously, Xiao Yin readied her claws before releasing numerous arcs of light energy. Formed from the energy of the stars, these crescent moon strikes rained down on their enemy like cannonfire. 

Their teamwork was nearly impeccable, leaving barely any opportunity to strike back or even move. The black fog made it difficult for Zuo Er to anticipate where the attacks would come from. He could only cross his sword and defend against them. However, he wasn't going to be defeated so easily. 

He moved forward, bearing the brunt of the attack as he emerged from the fog. The power of these attacks were strong but they weren't enough for him to care that much

Looking towards Xiao Yin, he sought to take the Star Owl down first. 

Zuo Er swung his right sword in a sweeping motion, it produced a flash of brilliant light before a gray colored beam soared up. It was fast and strong, reaching Xiao Yin in less than a second. She closed her wings, diving down and barely dodging the attack.

But he wasn't done yet, Zuo Er sent off another strike just as Hei Yue charged at him. The Mistral Fox had done a number to his legs, bloody and covered in scratches and bite marks. Yet, Zuo Er seemed to show no sign of backing down or even an ounce of pain on his face. He merely turned towards the fox and delivered a swift blow with his foot, kicking him out of the doors. 

As for Xiao Yin, she might have been able to avoid the first attack but it was too late for the owl to avoid this one. This gray beam of light was sharp but seemed to carry a deathly aura around it. Zuo Er's attack clipped her wings as it flew up to the roof, cutting through cleanly. What it left was an injury of strange conditions. 

Her wings were left black and almost as if decaying, like a corpse rotting in the ground. Her feathers fell as the the life within her was slowly sapped out. Her body fell, limp on the ground and breathing hard. 

Everyone saw it happen. The effects it had not only on the owl but even the building of the roof were the same, decaying and turning to dust. 

Hei Yue recovered from the kick and rushed in, finding his partner on the ground and injured. Anger welled up as the fox charged once more. At his highest speed, he was a blur and his aim was not to bite or claw Zuo Er but tear his leg off. 

Unfortunately such a thing did not come to pass for as Hei Yue's mouth latched onto his leg, it did not budge. The flesh was dense and hard like metal or stone. Zuo Er merely looked at kicked him off, throwing the beast by Xiao Yin. 

"Nothing more than a few pests."

He looked at them coldly before preparing his blades to kill them.

"No, don't! Don't hurt them anymore." 

Rou'er ran forward, shielding them from the him. 

"So, you want to be first then, the first to die. It does not matter, you will all die here and then, you will serve as a sacrifice for an even gretaer purpose than this low-standing guild."

He looked at her, not seeming to care much. He only raised his sword, aiming to kill Rou'er as cleanly as possible. A stab through the heart was all that he needed. In one fluid motion, he thrusted his sword forward. 

Fei Xian readied his own blade and was about to charge, to bear the strike when someone else came quicker than him. 

To everyone's surprise, someone stood by Rou'er, embracing her with one arm while the other was outstretched. Zuo Er's sword found only empty space but their sword found its way into his heart and it was only an inch away from piercing it. 

He looked forward and saw Ming Yue standing there. Dressed in her armor with eyes full of life, she had a few scratches but nothing more than that.

"You, so you are behind this."

She spoke coldly to him, her eyes seemed to pierce through his emotionless body. 

Ming Yue turned around and saw Hei Yue and Xiao Yin. Her two companions on the ground were injured, bleeding and breathing heavily. Most of all, she saw Xiao Yin's wings, her feathers cut up and black. Parts of it turned gray and seemed fragile, a single breath could turn even more of her body into nothing but dust. Xiao Yin looked miserable and in so much pain. 

Seeing such a scene lit something within Ming Yue as she let go of Rou'er.

"Take care of them for me, Rou'er, please."

She spoke softly towards the young girl before looking towards Zuo Er. That icy stare of hers intensified. 

"You did this."

Her tone took on a stark contrast, much colder and emotionless. That soft and gentle voice became ice in an instant. She stepped forward, pushing her sword further into his chest. The blade began to hum as Zuo Er's chest was eviscerated by the razor-sharp winds that ran through the sword. The pain would be beyond anything anyone could experience. 

Furthermore, Ming Yue forced her body and activated Pale Moon once more. Sapphire wisps of light floated from her body as a terrifying pressure came out. Her full wrath was to be unleashed and Drifting Sky began to howl from the wild wind that enveloped it. 

The power was enough to cause cracks to form on his mask. Piece by piece, it fell apart, revealing Zuo Er's face, a handsome face with white skin. Four black lines ran down his face, coming from his hair and ending down to his chin.

His expression was blank.

The pain he felt was torturous and yet, Zuo Er did not move an inch. He took the strike, even as his flesh was being ripped apart, he showed no change. More than that, the blood that flowed was black, like some evil being had placed their influence onto him. 

"So it was you, little bastard. I wonder if you have your damn bell!"

Xue Yue spoke out, remembering how he had dispelled her control over Ming Yue with the Shen Shatter Bell. 

Ming Yue narrowed her eyes as she looked at him. 

"I saw you at the Black Peak Mountains. I heard that you had lost control over your legs and yet you are standing now. Tell me, why did you do this?"

Questioning him, she needed to know what he was doing to do to this sect. At the same time, his appearance was different from when she last saw him. There was no arrogance or slyness left in him, rather there seemed to be very little of him left. It seemed more like an empty husk. More than that, it seemed that he did not recognize her, at least not fully. 

Zuo Er looked at her before looking at the sword in his chest. He grabbed it with his bare hands and pulled it out, letting the wound widen and allowing more of the black blood to spew. It began to bubble and fester before closing up, he held his swords tightly, preparing to attack. 

"You....you will be a perfect sacrifice."