Moonlight and Ocean

Under Huan Wei's astonished gaze, the thick-horned demon tore at the ground with its claws and lunged towards the girl. Everything it touched turned the color of embers and began to burn.

Yuchi Meizhen rushed towards the demon at the same time. After ducking to avoid a claw to the head, she slashed at its leg. The demon didn't even feel it. The flames enveloping its body intensified and spread in all directions. The girl quickly jumped back and escaped. An area several meters in diameter, centered on the demon, was engulfed in flames. The gravestones were shattered, the ground blackened.

Huan Wei crawled farther away. The blood loss was a little less. Tying a knot with a piece of clothing had helped.

Yuchi Meizhen stretched her fingers forward. "Death Voltage!"

The lightning moved swiftly and struck the demon. Only sizzling sounds came from the creature. It didn't even moan. It didn't seem to be in pain. It shouted in rage and started running towards the girl. By this time the young man had ducked behind a distant tombstone. It was safe for now as all the natural monsters nearby had fled.

Seeing that her lightning had not even scratched it, the girl gripped her sword tighter and summoned the flying sword. After boarding it, she soared upwards and dived at full speed. Huan Wei was looking over the edge of the tombstone.

As Yuchi Meizhen came towards it, the demon raised its claws and prepared to kill her. The girl realized this too. She changed her direction and sidestepped. The creature's attack had burned a few strands of her hair, but it hadn't killed her.

She rose once more. As she ran away, the demon opened its huge mouth and took a deep breath. Suddenly the flame it blew out reached meters high, forcing Yuchi Meizhen to run even further away. Demon flames were dangerous. They used a corrupted Qi. Coming into touch with their flames could cause trouble even for strong people.

Finally the girl stopped somewhere in the sky. She started twirling her sword in her hand. Huan Wei was watching her. He was memorizing her every move. He had seen many moves that he had never used in shadow training before. This girl also had good control over the sword. There was much to learn from her moves.

Yuchi Meizhen kept twirling her sword. The lightning bolts on the metal disappeared. Instead it began to glow with a golden light. "Dawn Light!"

The light emitted by the sword dazzled Huan Wei's eyes. Yuchi Meizhen was a Path of the Divines cultivator. Although the young man didn't know it, light was her basic element. For demons, it was their weakness.

The demon in flames shielded its eyes with one arm as it stared at the light. At the same moment Yuchi Meizhen dived and with one blow severed one of its arms. This time the creature let out an agonized scream. Its severed arm fell to the ground and turned to ash. Its shoulder glowed with light.

The demon dug its claw into its own chest and spilled its own boiling blood. As the girl ascended into the sky, its blood spattered after her. The blood spread everywhere, and by the time it reached the girl with the flying sword, a few drops were in her arms.

Yuchi Meizhen leaned forward in pain, shielded her face and dived again. Huan Wei understood that these flying swords were not just for traveling. If she was still on the ground, the demon would definitely have the upper hand, but since she was up there, the demon was at a disadvantage.

The girl with the sword approached from the demon's armless side. So she reached it before its attack and cut deep into its torso. Another cry of pain rose from the creature. Only one more blow was needed.

Yuchi Meizhen dived again. She was preparing to deliver the final blow, but something unexpected happened. The demon lowered its head and struck her with its horn, knocking her off her flying sword. Gasping from the impact, the girl was thrown for meters. Her sword also fell from her hand.

Coughing and trying to sit up, Yuchi Meizhen saw the demon charging towards her. She immediately looked for her sword, but it was too far away. She didn't have time to get on the flying sword either. Because the sword would not appear in time.

She filled her arms with lightning again. "Lightning Explosion!"

When she swung her arms, the attack she had used against the monkey reappeared. Lightning struck in all directions, creating a large explosion that engulfed the demon. The demon, struck many times by the lightning bolts, didn't stop, even though it hurt, and swung its claw at Yuchi Meizhen.

The girl was tired again. She took a step forward to avoid being torn to pieces. This move saved her life. Instead of the demon's claws, she was hit by its arm.

Her eyes widened in pain. She could feel several bones cracking. She was knocked off her feet and flew for meters with blood coming out of her mouth. She flew towards Huan Wei.

After a few somersaults, she came to a dragging halt. The demon was still charging with all its might. Yuchi Meizhen hadn't even gotten up when it came close to her.

The flaming creature raised its fist and prepared to crush her. At that moment, the hyena corpse caught her eye. In its eye was a knife.

With a sudden move, she pulled the knife out of its holder. She jumped towards the demon, which opened its mouth to roar, and stabbed it through its mouth and into its brain. The sharp point of the metal protruded from above.

The demon stopped moving. Its body shuddered a few times and then fell to the ground. Its body slowly turned to dust and ash. It disintegrated with the wind. All that was left of it was a crimson crystal the size of a thumb. Even the young man's dagger had melted from the heat.

Huan Wei struggled to stand up, but his leg was in bad shape. He couldn't even step on it. The flowing blood had formed a small puddle on the ground. It felt colder around him now. The pain in his hand had not lessened at all. If he had thought to look at his hand at that moment, he would have seen the demon mark.

Yuchi Meizhen took out another pill from her storage ring and swallowed it. She clutched her chest at the same time. The demon's blow had cracked her ribs. She needed some time to recover.

"Are you okay?" Huan Wei crawled out of hiding. He was in worse shape than the girl.

"Is there a Corrupt Region in this forest?" Yuchi Meizhen's voice was angry. "Demons are not born spontaneously. The closest Corrupted Region to here is east of the Great Sword Palace."

Huan Wei had never seen a Corrupted Region before, but the demon's sensation reminded him of the place where he had broken through the bottleneck. "I don't know, I've never seen a Corrupted Region before."

The girl bent down, picked up the red crystal and put it in her ring. She waved her hand as if her fingers were burnt. "Gongsun Xiasheng was just a simple man who chose a path. If he had faced the demon, he would never have escaped. This thing came here later."

The young man did not answer. His thinking was getting stronger. Had this creature been born in that area? Had it then come deeper into the forest? But there were some things that didn't fit. Why would such a monster leave a town full of people and come to the forest?

"Well, are you done here?" Huan Wei remembered his pain again. The pain from the bite made his breathing quicken. "I know it's not the time, but I'm not in a good shape. You promised to take me away."

Yuchi Meizhen went and picked up her sword from where it had fallen. Then she went to the ruins of the hut and picked up a few pieces and threw them around. She picked up a book that had been buried under the stones and put it in her ring.

She also summoned her flying sword. She mounted it and took off into the sky.

"Hey! Take me with you!" She stopped when the young man called out to her. She looked up at him with angry eyes. Then she sighed and lowered herself and grabbed him by the collar. It was clear that Huan Wei could not stand on the sword. His leg was in very bad shape.

The young man was holding on to her arm to keep from falling. He didn't really think she would let him go. He still didn't want to believe it completely. He didn't want to admit he was wrong.

They flew swiftly over the forest. After a while, Huan Wei could see the town. He was filled with excitement, but it soon turned to fear. The direction of the flying sword was not towards the town.

They continued to fly along the edge of the cliff. They were meters above the ground. Huan Wei held on to her arm tighter. This made Yuchi Meizhen smile.

"So you understand, Huan Wei?" she said with a smile.

"We can talk about it. You don't have to kill me. I won't say anything to anyone." The young man forgot the pain in his leg for a moment.

"Poor Huan Wei... Do you really think I will kill you because it is necessary?" She shook her head from side to side. "No, no... I am killing you because you deserve it."

The flying sword suddenly stopped. They were flying over the cliff. Below was a gap of hundreds of meters and the bottom was full of rocks. This was where Gongsun Xiasheng had fallen.

"Wait, I didn't do anything." Huan Wei tried to convince him. "I was just scared. I didn't want it to be like this."

"Who cares?" The girl answered disinterestedly. She was also a little angry. "I came for a simple job. I had to go all over town and talk to idiots. I had to slaughter natural monsters in the forest, but the last one... A demon next to Bitter Sea Town? This is too much. I hate this place and I'll take it out on you. Farewell, Huan Wei."

Yuchi Meizhen let go of the young man. Filled with fear, Huan Wei unconsciously stretched out his hands and grabbed onto the flying sword. She lost her balance a little, but did not fall. She stared at him as he stared fearfully into the hundreds of meters of space.

"Don't do it, Huan Wei. Die like a man. You are already living a ruined life. Think of it as me doing you a favor."

Huan Wei said nothing. He just stared at her with eyes wide with excitement. Yuchi Meizhen also lifted her foot and started to stomp on his right hand.

Huan Wei pulled his hand away before his fingers could hold on any longer. He was now holding on with one hand. His left hand was the only thing standing between him and the void.

"Don't kill me," he said. "Don't do it."

"Oh, yes, I will."

An indescribable rage was building up inside the young man against this girl. As if his life wasn't bad enough, now this was happening to him. She was killing him because she was stronger. Huan Wei...

Didn't accept it...

"Then..." he said as he put his right hand inside his clothes. "You will come with me!"

He took out the bottle of tar and threw it at her face. Yuchi Meizhen, still injured, was unable to react, not expecting such an action from the young man. The glass bottle shattered against her head and her face was covered in tar.

"What the hell!"

She lost her balance and fell over the sword into the void. As he fell down the cliff at high speed, Huan Wei, his heart pounding with excitement, made one last effort to climb up the sword. He was about to pull himself up when a blue energy enveloped it and the flying sword disappeared.

Huan Wei was falling screaming into the void. He saw Yuchi Meizhen. She was trying to clean her face. The young man could do nothing. He had no flying sword, no technique to use.

As he screamed, his life flashed before his eyes. He thought of all the bad things he had done. All the evil life had done to him. He didn't want to die. He didn't accept death. Then why was he dying? Was this what fate was like? Was the cliff where he had killed everyone else going to be his end too?

He tried to regain his balance but he couldn't stop tumbling. He was screaming as if his throat was being torn. The world was spinning endlessly in his eyes. Until a hand grabbed him by the throat.

He couldn't breathe. He raised his arms and tried to open the hand on his throat, but it held him like a vise. Her fingers couldn't even move.

He saw Yuchi Meizhen. She had wiped the tar from her eyes. Her hair, her clothes, everything was black. She stank. "You little bastard," she said as she grabbed the young man by the throat. "You couldn't die pretty, could you? You're always going to make things worse than they already are. You miserable piece of shit!"

She squeezed Huan Wei's throat a little tighter. The young man's face was turning purple. "I made you see things you would never see in your miserable life. I was ending for you this life of selling your pride for two copper coins, but no! You couldn't accept it!"

She drew her sword and stabbed Huan Wei in the chest. The young man could feel the blood filling his windpipe, but because he couldn't breathe, no blood came out of his mouth.

"Now let's see you accept it."

Yuchi Meizhen let him go. Huan Wei began to fall straight down. He could see the girl in the sky. He had already lost a lot of blood. Now there was excruciating pain in his chest. He coughed a few times, but nothing but blood came out of his mouth. He continued to fall as the girl flew away, ignoring him.

That was it. Huan Wei's story was over. He had only taken one step on the path he wanted to take. Perhaps he had dreamed out of his depth? He had made promises he could never fulfill? Everything was meaningless as he fell into the void. But Huan Wei...

Didn't accept it...

He shouldn't have died like this, but what could he do? The fall was too long. Maybe it felt too long because he was dying. He could hit the rocks at any moment now. Probably his body would have been torn to pieces by the impact. The ocean would drag his organs to lands unknown. Sea creatures would feast on his flesh. Who could have known?

When he hit his back, he didn't know whether the crunching sounds were coming from his bones or the tree root he had fallen on. His body tumbled forward and fell into the water.

From under the water he could see the moonlight shining on the ocean. The light was getting farther and farther away. He closed his eyes in silence as he sank deeper and deeper. The demon mark was in his left hand.