Maiden Of The Splitting Moon

Due to her dream, Ming Yue made quite the commotion. While it was nothing compared to the Amaranthine Lion and the Golem, it was enough to attract attention. When she vanished, the hidden beasts were all overcome with surprise, not expecting this to happen. 

As for what came next, they were all dead before they even realized it. And once it was finished, the light of the sun peeked over the horizon, slowly lighting up the land. 

A new day had begun. 

Ming Yue came out in bloodied clothes, nonchalantly finishing a massacre. 

"I was expecting something stronger but... oh well."

Taking off her armor, she washed off the blood by the waterfall, cleaning herself while she was there. After that, it was her morning training. 

Hongyu soon awakened, lifting herself up and rubbing her eyes as she looked around. Her eyes were still a bit droopy but soon enough, she was wide awake. The little girl looked around before finding the giant cat beast nestled by her. 

Her eyes widened as she smiled and hugged the beast. 

Feeling movement, the cat awakened and looked down at her before going back to sleep. It might've stopped the bleeding but internally, it was still quite injured, certainly more than a few broken bones. 

Letting go of the cat, Hongyu stood up and walked around curiously, exploring this new home of theirs. 

Apart from the encirclement of trees, they were by a cliff face where a small waterfall cascaded from above, collecting into a little pond with fish. It was quiet and peaceful, perhaps even more beautiful compared to the Halcyon Meadows. 

She had quite a bit of fun roaming around, all of that tiredness and exhaustion seemed to have left her body. Partly due to the excitement but mostly due to a good night of sleep. 

Ming Yue had already noticed her moving while she practiced her swordsmanship. There was a small smile on her face as she watched the child happily run about, playing with Hei Yue and Xiao Yin. 

But once she finished, she got to work, examining the place further. 

"Let's see... I need two things, a home and a garden. There's wood and stone so it shouldn't be too difficult to do. We already have water and meat isn't a problem.  I just need to pick a location", she muttered. 

Ming Yue then stopped in front of a particular part of the area, where there was a trail of destruction left by the serpent. 

"Hmm, what should I do about this?" she wondered. 

"I don't want more beasts to come here, it'd be dangerous for Hongyu. How do I get them to steer away from this area?" 

She furrowed her brows while thinking about it. Moments later, there was a light in her eyes as an idea came. 

"If it is all about territory, I just need to make it known that this is my territory! I need to set up was warning sign just like before!" she muttered. 

Making her plans, the young cultivator got started, starting with marking her territory.

"Let's see here, just the heads should be enough but it should be a clear sign right so... let's do this." 

From her spatial ring, she took out the heads of every beast she had killed on the way here, including that of the giant serpent and the ones she just dealt with. And from there, she made a boundary of sorts, tall stakes with a head stuck right on top. Each one was placed not too far from each other, just a few trees apart. 

Once finished, Ming Yue looked at her handiwork, showing a rather mixed smile on her face. 

"This will certainly work but... it's like a barbaric monster lives here or something", she thought to herself. 

The sight of various beast heads getting skewered and put up as a warning certainly wasn't a pleasant sight to see. But it worked and she left it like that. 

What came after was working on a home which ended up being a shoddy hut made of the smashed tree trunks and branches from the serpent. There was only one room and enough space for everyone to squeeze in and nothing else. While she wasn't trained in crafting, she did learn a bit from helping the other craftsmen in building the Cerulean Fortress. 

But the garden was excellently done, ten neatly made rows with six dedicated to medicinal plants and another four for vegetables. This was something Ming Yue was more knowledgeable in. 

And once she was finished everything, there was a satisfied look on her face. It wasn't much but it was a start.

This was their new home!

"Alright, Hongyu! Let's go eat dinner, you three as well, come on!" she called out. 

Soon enough, a little girl returned, followed by the three beasts. After a full day of playing and exploring, Hongyu was tired but still carried a happy smile on her face. Dinner was meat stewed with whatever Ming Yue could scavenge outside, filling and good.

After that, she went to wash off the dirt and grime from Hongyu's body, giving her fresh clothes. 

Just as the moon rose up, the child went to sleep, resting over a bed of leaves and a simple blanket inside the hut. Ming Yue and the others were outside, tending to the fire. She watched the fire with a blank stare, lulled by this sense of peace. 

The giant cat beast approached her, sitting behind the young woman and curling up around the fire. The two tails waved around in the air happily. 

As if awakened, she suddenly looked up and turned towards the cat. 

"Ah you, I guess you want to stay here is it?" she asked. 

The cat looked back at her, meeting her gaze with its own. It then opened its mouth to yawn, closing its eyes and lying down. 

"Heh, I guess so. But I'll have to give you a name like those two over there."

She snickered and spoke although it seemed that the cat didn't quite understand her. But Ming Yue continued on. Turning around, she looked at the cat in its entirety. Apart from the white fur, there were a few spots on its body, some black, and some beige. Then there were its two tails, twisting about. 

"Mm, then Liang Wei, for your tails!" she suggested. 

The giant cat didn't seem to react, only resting around her and the other beasts. It didn't seem to mind that name. 

"Liang Wei it is then!"

It was then that the beast meowed as if to agree to this name. Ming Yue couldn't help but smile, finding this beast very cute. When she's had to battle deadly serpents and walking mushrooms, something like a friendly giant cat was a welcome change. 

After that, she took in a deep breath and breathed out, looking up at the sky. 

Now that night had come, the thing she dreaded was coming, sleep. Her dreams or perhaps nightmares at this point, whatever they were, although they were getting less frequent, they were certainly getting worse. 

Especially with this new one, fighting copies of herself. On one end, it was good training but on the other, it was unnerving to do so. 

What was the point of this dream? 

How was it connected to her past dream?

And finally, would there be more different ones?

"Would there even be an end to it?" she muttered. 

After a bit, she took out a map of the continent, one marked up by the Four Claws. If Ming Yue couldn't sleep yet, she would plan out her next move now that she had found a place to rest. 

"Hmm, I definitely need to check out some of the ruins but which one should I go to first?" she thought to herself. 

Then her eyes hovered over a certain name.

"The White Sword's Remains, was it?"