Maiden Of The Splitting Moon - Chapter 743: Serpents of the Depths

After what seemed like forever, he finally turned around to face her, showing a gentle gaze. Cheng Wei smiled before leaving the work table and standing before Ming Yue.

“It has only been several years but you’ve grown at an astounding pace. If I’m correct, you’ve broken the record for being the youngest to reach the Sky Realm. In fact, you’ve outpaced the former by nearly ten years.”

He looked over his shoulder, gazing at the Evergreen Heart.

“I’m sure that part of that success was because of this.”

Ming Yue only looked at the elder. Her eyes seemed to pierce into his being like daggers.

“When I first discovered it, I was overjoyed and used it, absorbing the power of the Evergreen Heart. But as I learned more about it, I realized that it was dangerous. It would put the world into chaos”, she said.

“And yet, you couldn’t bring yourself to completely destroy it. Instead, you cut off a branch of it and bring it to me, asking if I could make something out of it. The moment I saw that branch, I knew that it was something special. The academic within me couldn’t bear to destroy knowing the secrets I could uncover.”

As Cheng Wei spoke, he pointed at the Eternal Heart Ring that Ming Yue wore.

“When I made that, I only use a tenth of the material. The rest I kept for myself. It wasn’t hard to keep it alive but to nurture it and let it grow, that was the challenging part. I practically drained all of my wealth trying to grow it. But as I made progress, I had become enamored with it and after a year of constant research, I finally figured out what it was, a Penzai.”

The old man circed around her, continuing to talk.

“I was in shock and then I started to suspect you. I had originally believed that you were a good person but I began to think… what if you wanted to destroy it because you wanted to be the only one to reap its benefits. Clearly, you gained quite a bit from this plant.”

Looking straight at her, the old man laughed in contempt of her.

“And now here you are. Why? Did you suspect that I never destroyed it? That I kept it for myself? Or were you going to use it for your own purposes before destroying it?”

Those last words came out of his mouth sharply, stabbing into her like daggers.

Ming Yue was quiet. After all, that was exactly what she had planned to do, to take a piece of the Evergreen heart for the pill and destroy the rest of it. And that silence was all Cheng Wei needed to confirm his suspicions.

“Ah, so I was right? You really were just here for your own selfishness.”

He suddenly glared at her, raising his voice.

“How hypocritical of you! How selfish! Do you understand the kind of treasure that this is?! Do you think that I’ll let you do as you please?! Once I perfect it, it will become a treasure befitting a god! All I’d have to do is plant this into the Demon Continent and life would bloom in a matter of days! This could be a boon to the world! Who are you to decide whether or not it gets destroyed?!” he shouted out.

The old man was angry, furious even. Several years of irritation and anger had finally been released but it seemed as if there was more to it.

A long time passed before Ming Yue finally said something.

“I won’t deny it, I am using it for myself. And I won’t destroy it if this means that much to you but… I need a sliver of it. If I want to survive this impending doom, I need it”, she said.

Cheng Wei just looked at her and shook his head.

“No, now get out, leave this place. Don’t ever come back.”

The air grew tense as Ming Yue moved her hand towards Blood Moon, ready to bring it out. The old man glanced at it before meeting her gaze.

He didn’t speak a word, thrusting his hand forward.

In an instant, roots shot out of the walls, converging into a single spear aimed at her chest. Blood Moon came out of its sheath, howling as Ming Yue used it to block the massive spear.

But she couldn’t stop it from forcing her out of the ground and into the air.

It pushed her over a hundred meters up toward the clouds before suddenly stopping. But the force carried over, sending her flying.

However, Ming Yue stopped her ascent, regaining her posture and floating in the air.

“Damn, this is going to be troublesome”, she muttered to herself, “Senior Cheng Wei is at the Sky Realm, he’s at the Fifth Sky too.”

As strong as she was, the young cultivator was still at the First Sky. Even if he wasn’t a fighter, the gap in cultivation was vast. Unfortunately, there was no time for Ming Yue to leisurely think.

The ground below her quaked as the countless plateaus rumbled.

She flew down immediately, looking to find Cheng Wei hovering over the land with his hands out.

“It might be unfinished but I still had a few years to prepare some safeguards!”

His voice echoed mightily as a wave of energy came over everything. And then roots emerged from the cracks between the tracts of land, surrounding the plateau that Cheng Wei was on. Thousands of little tree roots gathered together, curling into ten massive serpents that came from the depths.

Viridescent energy traced through their bodies like blood in veins. Their eyes had an emerald glow, bright and piercing. The serpents eyed her like prey, surrounding her from different directions.

Ming Yue held her breath, clinching Blood Moon tightly before bringing the Black Blade out. She knew that he could not be persuaded and part of her did not want to kill him.

But if she wanted to survive, she had to be willing to do such things.

“Will you leave or not?!”

Cheng Wei looked at her sternly, giving her one last chance to go.

She just closed her eyes and took in a deep breath before exhaling. Her eyes opened, revealing a pale blue radiance. The aura around her changed as motes of pale blue energy emanated from her body.

Without saying another word, her body vanished, leaving no trace behind.

Almost instantly, there was a screeching howl as one of the serpents had been decapitated!

Cheng Wei grit his teeth before putting his hands out, controlling the serpents.

And so, the battle began.

The decapitated serpent nearly fell to the ground before the roots reconnected with one another. It was revived before it even touched the ground.

He looked around, searching for Ming Yue while controlling the serpents, having them gather closer to him. Cheng Wei waved his hands, moving the serpents around using them as a deterrent.

All that he could hear was the howling of Blood Moon while Ming Yue would only appear for an instant, decapitating another serpent head before vanishing.

She grew faster and more aggressive, moving from decapitation to utter annihilation as she sliced each serpent into thousands of pieces. Ming Yue didn’t go in yet, she needed to find the right moment to do so.

She had to catch him off-guard.

But it seemed that Cheng Wei knew of her plan. He was focused on reviving the serpents and defending himself.

It was a stalemate and should it continue, Ming Yue would most certainly lose. She had no choice but to strike first and so she did.

She fueled both swords with her energy letting it drain out of her body.

“Waning Moon.”

Appearing before him, her swords lashed out, producing a crescent wave of prismatic power!