Maiden Of The Splitting Moon

Chapter 424 - The Red Empress's Kin

A powerful beast and one recorded on the catalog, known as the Hua Mu Panther. It is both a rare and dangerous creature, equal to that of a rank 4 beast. Not only was it swift but the white tree bark on its body acted as armor, protecting the panther's body.

And its third eye was capable of stunning their enemy. 

Considering the beast's power, a fight would be difficult for Ming Yue, especially without her sword.

However, this was what she wanted, a sufficient challenge, a harsh test that she forced upon herself. Not to mention, she wasn't looking for a fight, she was looking for a kill. 

Hidden away within the bushes, she watched the Hua Mu Panther carefully as it laid by the water, resting.  From one angle, it seemed as if it was asleep but when facing it, you would find the panther's eyes wide open. 

"Hmm, I have to be quick enough, kill it in one strike and without it even noticing", she thought. 

Readying herself, the young cultivator took her stance, holding onto her dagger tightly. 

"Reaping Blade."

Her body seemed to meld into the shadows before the Pearlstone Dagger appeared out of nowhere, piercing the panther by the neck and running across it. 

The beast died without even noticing it and Ming Yue emerged from the darkness, pulling out her dagger. 

Unlike Phantasmal Wind, Reaping Blade was truly silent. The former left behind no trace and only a feeling of dread while the latter technique was pure stealth. As soon as she used phantasmal wind, the panther would've noticed that something was wrong. 

That was the drawback to this technique, as fast as she was, there would always be a trace of her left. This was a weakness that Reaping Blade did not have but this technique also had its own drawbacks. 

She looked at her dagger with an unsatisfied look before glancing at the panther. 

Although it was dead in one strike, it was not a clean cut. It was a bit jagged as if the dagger could not cut through it so it tore through. 

"No, it's still not perfect yet. I can't use Reaping Blade unless there is some amount of shadow. Even then, being quiet and quick is something I still need improvement on. Reaping Blade might produce the results but the conditions are difficult to fulfill. I still need more practice and I need to be familiar with this area if I want to kill the Vore Demons." 

Holding her hand out, she took the panther into her spatial ring and moved on. 

Moving through the marshes, Ming Yue searched alone. Xiao Yin and Hei Yue were not with her this time. 

Quietly, she headed deeper into this place, the heavy air and buzzing of insects covered her presence. 

It was humid and the sun was out albeit there were some clouds. Ming Yue wandered through the forest, unable to find any other living creature. Rather, it was devoid of any life here. Something similar to the last time she came here. 

And then, she heard it, the sound of hissing gradually growing louder. 

"A Vore Demon? Wait, it's not the same one from before, not the leader but one of the underlings", she figured. 

Compared to Qing Chai's hissing this was not as powerful or rather terrifying. With her, Ming Yue felt a shiver down her spine but here, she barely felt a tinge of fear. 

Thus, she crept closer and closer to the origin of the sound before seeing who it was. 

It was a woman with pale skin and three horns on her forehead. Her eyes were light red and unlike Qing Chai, she did not wear a mask but a thin scarf to obscure her mouth. 

This demon was dress in a red uniform coupled with a pair of daggers by her hips. 

She stood in the middle holding up a rabbit in her hands. Its eyes were fearful but it did nothing to escape, the rabbit knew that such a thing would be impossible. 

As for the Vore Demon, the scar covered her mouth but it did not cover everything, revealing a silhouette of her gaping mouth. Rows of sharp fangs lined her jaws as a bit of drool even escaped. It grew wider and wider until not even the scarf could cover it all. 

But that did not matter for she untied one side of it, allowing it to fall to the other side and fully revealing her mouth. 

Not even Ming Yue could look at it without feeling some sort of disgust and horror. It was like a shark's mouth stretched to unnatural lengths. As for those teeth, they were jagged and sharp, hundreds of little blades ready to tear apart flesh.

The hissing sound grew louder before the demon held the rabbit up and over her mouth, ready to drop it in. 

"Thanks for the meal."

Her grip loosened as she let go of the rabbit, having it fall into her mouth. At this moment, the Vore Demon cared for nothing but this meal, readying herself to savor it. 

"Reaping Blade."

With her guard down, she did not notice the glint of a dagger piercing her neck before cutting her throat apart. A shadow came over her as a hand grabbed the rabbit just inches from its demise. In the next instant, she chomped down on nothing as blood sprayed out of her throat. 

It even began to well and bubble up into her mouth as she choked and fell to the ground. Her hands tightly, holding onto the fatal wound on her neck. 

Her eyes were wide open as they glanced from one direction to another, trying to find who it was that attacked. 

"Heuk- wh- killed- me?"

As the blood flowed, she uttered those words before drawing her last breath. But her eyes were still wide open, still wondering who it was that assassinated her. Moments after her life was extinguished, Ming Yue appeared from the shadows with the rabbit in her arms. 

Kneeling down, she let the rabbit go before walking up to the dead demon and examining the body. 

"Still not clean but... at least I know now."

And just like the panther, she took the corpse into her spatial ring before moving on.

There was a lot to unpack from that kill. Most importantly, it was possible for her to assassinate.

"So long as they're distracted, I can strike. Their necks work too but that spot is a bit dangerous, maybe it's too dangerous. I wonder if there's another way... the back of their neck maybe? No, wait, now that she's dead, the others are sure to know... But if she's just a scout of some sort, it might be fine."

Ming Yue then stopped and looked up at the sky, find it darker by the second as the sun was setting. 

"I should get back, show Commander Zi Jing the corpse. Maybe he will have something to say."

With that she turned back, arriving at the just as the moon had fully risen. As soon as she appeared, the other soldiers stopped and bowed out of respect before going back to their patrols. She did the same, greeting them before moving on. 

And while moving, she caught the eyes of the Jadewood Sext disciples, all of whom were exploring the camp. 

"Is that her? The Fairy of the Moon?" one of them pointed out. 

The others looked, their eyes following her as she entered the Commander's tent. 

"What do you think she is doing in there?"

"Probably reporting something, right?"

"Maybe, still, you all saw her, she's pretty right?"

Jian Yi looked at them with stern eyes. 

"We're not here to ogle someone. Let's finish up on the barriers and train afterward", she instructed. 

Her juniors all straightened up and nodded following her dutifully.. Still, none of them could help but take glances at the tent, curious about what was happening inside.