Maiden Of The Splitting Moon

Six months came and went and at this time, it had begun to snow, some days it was light and other days it was heavy. Within these six months, the war had found itself a bit of peace but of course, that only came to be in the Boundless Beast Forest. 

Just as Kong Zhi commanded, his two kings split into the north and south, where the air had grown tenser and fights have broken out. But another battle on the same scale as before has yet to come. Even as the five armies sent in reinforcements to these regions, there have yet to be any major battles. 

And in this entire time, Ming Yue stayed in the Iron Citadel, training and cultivating. Her appearance changed little except for another inch in height but she was eighteen now. No longer a young girl but a woman, she seemed less fragile and even gained a bit of muscle.* 

Of course, that came from the training and sparring she had done. 

"Li Wenhai requests a spar!"

In one of the training fields, Ming Yue stood there, accompanied by over a hundred soldiers. They formed a circle with her in the middle and a soldier in front of her. A middle- aged woman dressed in standard plate armor and carrying a sword and shield in her hands, stepped forward and took a stance. She was one of the elites that moved with Nie Xia, a cultivator at the Earth Realm. 

"Please." 

Ming Yue cupped her fists and bowed before unsheathing Drifting Sky, as the stronger one she did not make the first move.  The other soldiers watched quietly before Li Wenhai made the first move. 

She charged forward with her shield covering the top half of her body. Several steps in, the soldier pulled her shield away and thrusted her sword forward. Ming Yue took a side step and swung from the right only for the shield to block it.

And the sparring had begun.

From the first move, it was a dance, the two moved around the circle as their weapons clashed. And then onlookers continued to have their eyes glued onto the fight, trying to learn as much as they could.

"Good!"

The soldier backed off and began to hit her shield with her blade, producing a loud clanging. But that was not for show, the air trembled and Ming Yue reacted quickly. She lunged forward to attack while the ground she stood on cracked. With each sound, the stone ground caved in.

A cultivator of the Sound Dao!

Just as Ming Yue charged forward, Li Wenhai acted immediately, running her sword on her shield and creating a screeching noise. It rippled through the air trying to push Ming Yue back but she was far too quick. Slipping through this barrier and pointing her blade at Li Wenhai's neck.

The sound stopped as the soldier raised her hands in the air. 

"It is my loss."

Li Wenhai chuckled and walked back into the group of soldiers which had only grown larger. 

Ming Yue smiled and put her sword down, she then looked around her. 

"Please."

This was how she spent her days, if not sparring with the soldiers then experimenting with the Wind and Lightning Dao.  Unfortunately, she couldn't quite merge the two daos together or rather she could, but it was not at a level she was content with. 

By the end of the day, she had fought at least a hundred times before retiring to her room, talking with the soldiers along the way. Having spent some time here, she had made a fair number of friends and acquaintances, one of them being Li Wenhai. 

"So, you're leaving now?" she asked.

Ming Yue nodded.

"Yes, I'm going to go south, for the Cerulean Serpent's Lake", she answered. 

"Really, why there? Why now?"

"...It's the last place that I haven't gone to and I'd like to explore the continent more."

"Is that so? Alright then, but you should be careful. The south seems to have become the new focus for Kong Zhi. After all, they've always held an advantage there."

"What do you mean?"

"Demons have bloodline powers which makes them unique to their own races. That includes those that thrive underwater. Unless you have a good grasp of the Water Dao, fighting there is much harder."

"I see."

"Yes but that isn't all. The Cerulean Serpent's Lake is named so for the serpent itself, a legendary beast that has yet to make its appearance. But it has certainly awakened before. Should it appear, it could be worse than what happened in the forest."

"Thank you for telling me."

"There is no need to thank me, this is something you have to know."

By then, they entered the barracks and Ming Yue spoke farewell to the soldier, returning to her room for one last night. 

Xiao Yin and Hei Yue were nowhere to be found, most likely walking around the Iron Citadel or hunting outside.

"They'll probably back by midnight."

She didn't pay much mind to it and just prepared for the baths. With the two of them together, she did not have to fear them being in danger. Even if they were in danger, the two beasts were quick and elusive, escaping wouldn't be a problem. 

She took a quick bath and had a nice meal before going back to her room. Seated on the bed, she held her hand out, forming lightning in her palm. With the other palm, a sphere of wind collected itself. 

"Hmm, how do I even want to do this?" she thought to herself. 

The two energies merged together, meshing together perfectly. But now that they were merged, she wasn't sure what direction she wanted to take with it. There were so many choices that Ming Yue didn't know which one to take. 

"The Lightning Dao should support the Wind Dao but something's missing from this. It shouldn't just be Lightning, I should focus on an aspect of it but which. My True Dao is the Everchanging Winds so to add in this second dao, what should I do?"

This was the new problem she faced. 

"What do Wind and Lightning share?"

The energy dispersed as she took out the Lightning Dao Manual, reading it and trying to see if there was something that could help her. In the end, she didn't know what to do. 

"Hah, maybe I'm rushing this. I've already made a lot of progress. Perhaps, if the inspiration comes, it will come."

She sighed and put the manual away, sleeping soundly for the night. And when she woke up, the young cultivator found herself sandwiched between Xiao Yin and Hei Yue. Both of whom were sleeping soundly. 

Ming Yue chuckled and got out of the bed, putting on her slippers and her outer robes. 

"Come on you two, wake up."

She put each hand on their bodies and shook them awake. 

"Come on, wake up, we have to get going."

It took a few minutes as the two beasts rolled around, wanting to sleep for another minute. But soon enough, they awakened and got off of the bed slowly. Hei Yue even opened his mouth wide, letting out a yawn. 

She packed her things, making sure that the bed was made and that the room was clean. Then the trio made their way towards the main hall, climbing up the level where Nie Xia was. 

"Come in."

Knocking on the door, Nie Xia called her in but he was not alone. Rather standing by him was Di Yu, the Lord of Azure Souls.

"Oh, you're still here."

He looked at her with a surprised face while she looked back somewhat coldly. 

"And you?" she asked. 

"I'm here with a few of my comrades. In case, Kong Zhi tries to attack the Boundless Beast Forest again. What about you?"

Nie Xia looked at the two before butting in. 

"I told her to stay here for a bit and recuperate. Is that any issue?"