Maiden Of The Splitting Moon

Ming Yue immediately tensed up and watched them carefully, gripping her dagger tightly. Both Hei Yue and Xiao Yin did the same, readying themselves for a confrontation. But the one who spoke did not look in her direction. Rather, they looked elsewhere. 

"I know you're hiding, you cannot escape my senses."

Without even a warning, this disciple, a young girl threw out a line of seven daggers into the grass. Before it hit, a shadow flew out, revealing themselves to the Tao Feng disciples. 

"To think I would be found. You, humans, are quite strong."

Dressed in black clothing were a group of demons, all of which were of the same bloodline. They were all tall and lanky, with tattoos covering their face. Their skin was smooth and light gray, resembling that of ash. 

Unlike that of the Yao Clan, it was not tribalistic and simple but intricate instead. What was painted on their faces were patterns upon patterns, melding together into a larger scene. But most of it was obscured by their clothing, which could only end with a question. 

How much of their body was covered?

Among them was the one that spoke, their leader, looking at the Tao Feng with curious eyes.

"Since you've found us, I suppose I can only ask you a question. What are you doing here and why should I let you go?" 

Despite his carefree voice, his words were laced with confidence. 

The six remaining disciples of Dai Mian all reached for their weapons before the demon stopped them. 

"You could try to fight but we do have you surrounded. You may be able to fend off against these ten but I doubt you can be sure when there are more of us lying in the wake", he warned. 

The disciple from before scoffed. 

"I've long noticed them. Did you think we are afraid of you?"

But they were stopped with a hand as the masked disciple stepped forward. Showing nothing but his red, gem-like eyes, he looked at these demons coldly.

"And who are you? To have been watching us?" he asked. 

"Oh, I didn't think you'd ask for our name. Well then again, I doubt it matters", the demon chuckled before bowing. 

"I am Chen Shu and these are all my brothers and sisters. We are the Hui Clan, subjects to Lord Kong Zhi. And since we've gone this far, I am also known as the Mist King, one of the newly appointed", he introduced. 

"You are?" 

Chen Shu looked at this man, although he seemed relax, his eyes showed a sense of readiness. It was obvious that this hooded figure was not to be underestimated. 

The masked man then took off his hood, revealing hair that ran down below his shoulders. And the moonlight had fell upon him as such an angle that his red eyes twinkled. 

"I am the first disciple of the Tao Feng, Ling Hun. Everyone else here are my juniors and I'm sure anything else does not need to be explained. We are not here to have any conflicts with you or your lord. We just want our Sect Leader back", he answered honestly. 

However, Chen Shu did not seem convinced. 

"Your sect leader? And you believe it to be the Idol of Chaos from the Hundun Clan... Interesting."

The demon walked forward before circling Ling Hun. 

"Why do I not believe you? In fact, why do I think that this is just some ploy of the humans to trick us?" he asked. 

"Just as you have your clans, we have our own groups. Everyone has a different agenda from the other, is that not the same for you and your lord?" 

Ling Hun looked at him, his red eyes continued to follow. 

Chen Shu stopped and looked back, taken aback by the answer before breaking out in laughter. 

"Interesting, how interesting! Indeed, everyone has their own goals and plans, that includes me and my lord. In his search for power, he sought to restructure his forces, make them stronger. To do that, he needed subordinates, talented and obedient. And I am both, so I became his underling as did many others. But unlike them who sought the title or the power, I searched for something else. What do you think it was?" 

The demon walked back in front of Ling Hun and met his eyes. 

"Rather than the title or power, I sought amusement, something I find within this group of humans before me." 

"I see, and what do you plan to do?" 

Staring at each other, there was a brief moment of silence then Chen Shu stepped back. 

"Well, I've told you all of this. What do you think? There are only two paths, aren't there?"

"Allies or enemies... and what do you choose?" 

At this moment, all of the disciples except for Ling Hun slowly reached for their weapons.

The demon smiled, it was cheerful and vicious.

"You mean... prey."

As soon as he spoke those words, all of the Tao Feng charged forward to strike at him. But the moment, their weapons landed on his body, he turned into a haze, spreading around. Soon enough, a thick fog enveloped the area, including Ming Yue and her beasts, who watched from a safe distance. 

"I am the Mist King, surely you would have expected this?" 

Chen Shu's voice echoed in these plains, where there was nothing but black grass. 

"Stay together! Don't go off on your own!"

The six disciples formed a circle, looking into the dense fog. With their weapons out, they watched carefully, searching for a trace of the enemy. 

But just as they could not see out, Ming Yue could not see it. She didn't know what was happening within the fog. At best, she could only sense their presence. 

"I can't come closer without risking both sides noticing me. I should back away and prepare."

Seeing a situation like this, there was only one thing she could do.

Take advantage.

Slipping away, she sneaked out of the edges of the fog before glancing back. The clashing of weapons and explosive energies caused the fog to swirl furiously. She could hear it, the clashing of two powers. 

She continued to watch from afar, waiting to see if the fog would settle. As far as she knew, it was a fierce fight.  Even with the fog containing these six disciples, it could not keep the shockwaves and powerful winds from escaping. The ground trembled and the grass swayed violently as Ming Yue and her two beasts moved further away. 

"Would I even need to make a move against them?" She thought, "These Hui Clan Demons might just kill them all."

After all, the Mist King himself was like the Red Empress, both at the level of a Sky Realm Expert. 

"By the looks of it, this fog is their bloodline power. But if that were true, then those six disciples were more than strong if they had to force the demons to use it immediately."

Studying the battle, Ming Yue tried to learn as much about them as possible. Unfortunately, the battle did not last as long as she had thought. 

"Something's happening!" she noticed.

The fog suddenly turned to a reddish black before multiple figures quickly ran out, stumbling to the ground and clutching their throats. 

"Poison?! To think that one of you was so adept at it."

Chen Shu spoke while coughing out blood, there were a pair of daggers in his hands as was the same for the rest of his clan. But they were all in a poor state. 

"You demons, you think that you're stronger than us?! Impudent."

Among the disciples was an old woman carrying a lamp that billowed poisonous smoke. She revealed a toothy grin at the demons before waving her lamp about. 

"Come on then! Prey, are we?" she taunted.