Maiden Of The Splitting Moon

Somewhere in an unknown land laid a girl, a fox, and an owl. All of them were unconscious, their bodies mangled and injured, left in a half-dead state. It was a free meal to the denizens of this place but none dared to come close. Stabbed into the ground and standing upright was a sword, emanating a fearsome aura. 

Not even the brave and the strong were willing to walk forward for they knew that doing so meant forfeiting their lives. And a shoddy meal such as this wasn't worth the trouble. 

It was peaceful though.

 It would rain from time to time but the sword protected them, forming a barrier of wind over them all. The sun rose and fell, from the shining day to the shimmering night sky. Time passed by and the three were still laying on the grass. The sound of leaves and grass swaying in the wind was paired with the chirping of birds and rushing water. It seemed as if these three were asleep, not so much in pain but rather unconscious. 

But then a twig suddenly snapped as a white rabbit hopped about, staring at the scene. Its brown eyes stared intently at them before hopping away. 

But then there was a low growling in shadows of the trees and bushes before a shadow leaped out. 

"I got you!" 

A young boy's voice shouted out as he grabbed at the rabbit, pinching its bushy tail. He grinned, yanking it towards him and clinging tightly as he rolled on the ground. 

When he stopped, he looked at the rabbit happily. 

"Yay, Mother is going to be so proud of me!" 

After a short celebration, his senses suddenly tingled as he spun towards the sword and the three bodies. 

"Is that... a human?!" 

In that very moment, Ming Yue's eyes suddenly opened, looking at the sunny sky. She quickly raised herself up only to grab her head. 

"Agh, damn, what happened?" she muttered to herself. 

She couldn't help but groan, clutching her head in pain. Her sight was blurred and twisted, barely able to see straight. In fact, she felt pain all over her body, a dull ache in every inch and corner. It was as if she had been struck by a massive boulder. Looking down at her body, she saw the state of her equipment. 

It wasn't quite ruined but it was very close to breaking. She wasn't even sure if the repair functions on the Changing Clouds Armor was working. And if it was, it certainly hadn't repaired much. 

As she gained her bearings, Ming Yue looked around, finding the two beasts by her side. 

"Xiao Yin! Hei Yue! Are you okay?" 

She went to them both, feeling their chests for a heartbeat and relaxing once she felt it. It was weak but they were both still alive. Even then, the state they were in was just as miserable as she was. The Mistral Fox's once dark silver fur was blackened and burnt. Patches of it were gone, revealing the skin below, heavily bruised and there were definitely some broken bones. 

And the Star Owl's wings were just as injured as the wings of Gao Ri. What feathers were left was singed and the wings were definitely broken. 

Hearing her voice, the both of them breathed heavily, opening their eyes to look at her. 

"Oh, you two... Why didn't you just stay back?" 

She gently caressed them before noticing the Blood Moon and finally, the young boy, whose body was frozen and eyes were wide with shock. Despite that, he still held on to the rabbit tightly. 

And as shocked as he was, Ming Yue was equally as surprised. 

"Is that a demon?" she wondered. 

The young boy's appearance was different, he was unlike anything she had ever seen before. He looked like a human but his ears were that of an animal, a white tiger's ears most likely. His forearms and hand had short, white fur while his fingers had black claws. And his eyes resembled that of a tiger as well.

He couldn't have been any older than ten. 

However, she didn't pay any more attention to him. Instead, she focused on Hei Yue and Xiao Yin, taking out whatever medicines she had and bandaging their bodies. She then took out blankets, wrapping them before securely carrying them on her back. 

The young boy watched her carefully, moving around but he kept his eyes glued to her hands. 

"You- you're a human, right?" he asked.

Ming Yue nodded. 

"Yes, I am", she replied before glancing at him. 

"And you?"

His face showed a trace of surprise before introducing himself, his eyes were still peeled to her. 

"Me? I'm Bai Biao but you can call me, Xiao Bai. Do you need help? My home isn't far from here and it's just me and my mother. I swear I don't mean any harm, it's just... it wouldn't be right to not offer help to someone in need."

His words came out quick as the nervousness built up within him. 

Ming Yue stared at him, her eyes seemed to pierce his very being. It was just for a few moments but then she looked away and sighed, tightening the knot as both Hei Yue and Xiao Yin were on her back. 

She slowly stood up, grabbing onto her sword until she stood straight. Looking at it, she took it out of the ground before taking the sheath out of her spatial ring. Sheathing it, Blood Moon turned back to looking more like walking sick to which she promptly used. 

Turning towards Xiao Bai, she brought on a little smile. 

"Please, lead the way."

His eyes grew even wider despite looking as if they couldn't get any bigger. He stood up and puffed out his chest. 

"Don't worry! I'll take you there!" he proudly said.

Xiao Bai then walked into the lush forests as Ming Yue quietly followed. Their pace was quite slow because of her injuries. She took each step carefully, supporting herself with Blood Moon. Although she tried to recover as much as possible, her possible was a mess.

Even the Eternal Heart Ring could not heal her that fast. But there was no doubt that it was one of the reasons she was still alive. And it was almost certain that she should've died considering all of the damage that she had sustained. Ming Yue would've succumbed to her injuries if not for the ring. 

Their journey was quiet, moving through the forests with ease as Xiao Bai led her through a pathway. 

She looked around, finding her surroundings to be extremely beautiful. Everywhere she looked, there seemed to be something, the fluttering of butterflies, colorful berries on bushes, and the emerald leaves of trees. 

It was like the Primeval Forest but not as colorful and certainly without that sweet scent. Rather, there was an earthiness to it. It seemed much more peaceful, more natural as if this was how the world should be like. 

Despite the situation she was in, Ming Yue felt at peace, relaxed even. 

"Where is this?" she wondered. 

Was it another part of the Demon Continent? a place she had yet to explore or was she somewhere else?

Soon enough, they reached a clearing where a small spring crossed from one end to the other. At the center of the clearing was a small house made of wood. It wasn't incredibly big but it looked very cozy. 

"This is it! Home!" 

Xiao Bai pointed at it before running forward to open the door. 

"Mother! I'm back! Look what I caught!"

He ran inside happily, holding the rabbit he caught up for his mother to see. Ming Yue followed before stopping at the entrance, listening in. Echoing from within was a woman's voice, somewhat weak but very happy. 

"Ah, Xiao Bai, that's wonderful! And I see that you've brought a guest too!"