Maiden Of The Splitting Moon

Elder Shu continued to talk. 

"Tragedy is a trial of the greatest caliber, it can serve to break and crush your very spirit. To fail this trial is to become blinded by a veil of your own sorrow, a veil that which you may not even notice. That sorrow become disillusionment, misery, a lifetime of pain. But to succeed, is to be destroyed and reformed, to replace what was lost. It is to see the veil and tear it away."

His head looked down for a moment before looking at Ming Yue, who quietly listened. 

"I will not ask you of your past nor will I guide you through this trial. I can only say that you walk a fine line between ripping that veil or letting it blind you."

Once hearing his words, she was silent, mulling over what Elder Shu said. 

"A fine line..." she muttered. 

Her mind suddenly moved as memories rose out of the shadows. Her days as a young village girl gone as the destruction of her home surrounded her. It had been a few years since then. Even as she tried to get past it, she couldn't. 

The sight of her dying father weighed upon her mind. The sensation of killing that bandit was fresh, as if it happened only yesterday. At that point, she knew, she knew that all she had done was suppress those emotions. 

Studying her current expression, the Elder was silent for just a second before speaking. 

"You do not have to force yourself, it will come naturally. Tragedy is not something you can overcome in a short time but a long and arduous process."

He then placed his rough bark hand on her shoulder before looking at the manual. 

"Go on and read it. If you have any questions, you can ask me."

He chuckled before meditating in front of the pot.

Ming Yue seemingly snapped out of this state of hers. She could not obsess over it, trusting in his words. She took a deep breath before turning to the first page of the book.

Excitement sparked within her as she no longer stopped her curiosity and began to devour each and every word in this manual. The day came and passed as she asked one question after another to which the Elder answered to their full extent. 

With these methods, she found that there were many things she could try, many ways to change her medicine and perhaps improve it. If time permitted, she would most likely experiment. Such things furthered her unerstanding of medicine and would serve to imrpove her own mastery.

At some point, he began to show the many herbs in his home. From the common to the rare, Elder Shu seemed to have everything. So long as it grew in the Boundless Beast Forest, it was most likely within his possession. 

By night, Ming Yue's thirst for knowledge was satiated and she handed the book back to him. 

"Thank you for teaching me."

She was filled with gratitude for the help he provided. 

"Ah, there is no need to thank me. To pass on knowledge is one of the responsibilities of the older generation."

Elder Shu smiled at her as the door to his home opened. A young demon woman came in with a polite smile as she bowed to the two figures. 

"Ah, is she here? Good, good."

MIng Yue was curious. 

"Who is here?" she asked. 

He chuckled before getting up and stepped out of his home. 

"You will see very soon."

She followed him as he stood to his full height, being a whole meter taller than her. As for his words, Ming Yue understood what he meant. This person he spoke of was not a person at all but a beast, a fully grown, adult Hel-Fire Dragon. 

Just like the one Kong Zhi possessed, it had three heads and wings but its scales were of a darker shade of crimson. It was much older and shockingly enough, it dragged back two dead beasts. 

"Two Rank 5's, a Vigorous Hornbull and a Snowlight Hare. What a good haul! Come and say hello."

Elder Shu was quite happy and lead Ming Yue straight to the beast. 

The Hel-Fire Dragon stood with a smile on its face as it greeted the villagers, who bowed to the creature before taking away the beasts for butchering. 

One of its heads looked around, spotting the elder.

"It is good to see that you're still alive, Forest Keeper."

It spoke with a woman's voice, deep and a bit guttural. But her tone was warm and friendly. 

Ming Yue was taken aback. The only other dragon she had met was the Dragon of the Sun, Xiu Luo Yang. Although, he was a True Dragon and a Dragon Emperor at that. On top of that, this Hel-Fire Dragon was the only other beast she had met that spoke. That much showed just how ancient and powerful it was. 

"And it is good to see that you are doing well, Matron Shuang."

After greeting each other, Matron Shuang glanced over at Ming Yue before fixing her three heads onto her. 

"Another human? And that scent... Have you come across a True Dragon?"

Walking towards the young cultivator, this massive beast towered over Ming Yue, looking at her with curious eyes. They were black and gold color, the pupils were sharp and piercing. 

"How do yo- yes, I have."

"Interesting, the scent was somewhat faint but the gems on your sword emanate with a dragon's aura. Either you found it or it was given to you. For a half-dragon like me, I can even feel a connection."

Matron Shuang then turned to Elder Shu. 

"You've found another interesting human, Forest Keeper. Where is she even?"

He chuckled. 

"It was not me that found her but Hua Xiong. Perhaps it is fate or mere coincidence but she and her know each other."

"Oh, that is peculiar."

Matron Shuang clicked her tongues before transforming, taking on the appearance of a motherly woman. Contrary to the fierceness of her other form, she had a kindly expression on her face. Her black hair was tied into a bun as she was dressed in simple red robes. She was on the heavier side but had a rather curvacious body. 

"Ah, it does feel better to speak like this."

She then noticed Ming Yue's surprised expression. 

"Are you surprised? The stronger a beast is, the less time it takes for them to grasp things like language and transformations. Something like this is only possible if you have lived for several hundred years like me", she explained quite proudly. 

Elder Shu then continued. 

"Matron Shuang is one of the strongest beings in the Boundless Beast Forest. The only other beasts comparable to her can be counted on your two hands. 

Ming Yue nodded. 

"I see."

Matron Shuang walked up to them. 

"Of course, there aren't many that have lived for as long as us. The Boundless Beast Forest is too wild of a place. Although, it is not unlike the Beast Continent."

"The Beast Continent?"

Ming Yue had known of the existence of the three continents: Human, Demon, and Beast. However, the knowledge of the Beast Continent was almost non-existent. At most, she knew that they were inherently different from the beasts she had come across. After all, in the Human Continent, beasts were a general term for monsters and what not. Along with that, she only knew that beasts had their own unique bloodline powers that worked differently. 

"Come, I'm sure we can discuss more about this over a cup of tea."

Elder Shu smiled and turned only a quarter before stopping. His relaxed face turned somewhat grave. He then looked back to them before locking eyes with the Matron.

"He is coming."

Matron Shuang's eyes widened in surprise before fiery aura filled with rage emanated from her. 

"That sniveling little bastard, so he's entering the forest again?!"