4 Encounter

By a river, a girl could be seen fishing for her next meal. She wore a simple white robe, her sleeves, rolled up as she focused on her fishing rod. However, it did nothing to tarnish her beauty. It was Ming Yue. Several months have passed since her time at the village and much had changed about her. She had a much more mature look on her, a calm atmosphere surrounded her as she fished.

During this time, she did not waste any of it, she read Teacher Fan's sword manual and practiced her skills with the Parting Sun Blade. Although the manual was basic, it also gave explanations on cultivation. Ming Yue had a much better understanding of how the world of cultivation worked. There were 4 realms:Human, Earth, Sky, and Heaven. Human Realm was something she already knew about. Earth had 7 levels: Core, Mind, Sight, Feel, Emotion, Soul, Edge. Sky had 5 levels named the 5 skies and Heaven had 3 levels which were Lower, Middle, and Peak. But, there was nothing to describe these stages. Even the Human realm had sub-par descriptions.

"The Human Realm is where one trains the body, as one progresses, all of their physical capabilities will improve. Once you break through, you will hear various clicks throughout your body as a surge of strength courses through you."

As of right now, Ming Yue was at the 2nd level of the human realm. She had broken through a month ago from training. This does not mean that she did not encounter danger. There have been several situations where she had fought with wild beasts. She had suffered multiple injuries, fortunately Ming Yue was quite adept in medicine. All of these experiences had honed her mind as well as her skills.

"Splash!"

Ming Yue's fishing rod trembled as a trout had grabbed onto the bait. In one fluid motion, she lifted the rod up and caught the fish in her hands. She had obtained her meal and went back to a small camp that she set up. After her meal, she stood up and took out her sword. It was a beautiful blade, larger than her but she held it with a sense of familiarity. Then she had begun her practice.

As she practiced, Ming Yue fell in to a state of complete concentration.

"Stab, Parry, Slice, Lunge, Left, Right...Split"

At this final move, She held her blade in one hand and swung it horizontally. It was swift and the momentum from such a long blade gave it more power. In one move, the tree that she had been practicing on had been bisected. If someone's neck had been there, their head would have surely flew off. This was the move that killed Blood Wolf, a simple slice that contained invisible power.

With her practice finished, she re-sheathed her sword and turned in for the night.

Suddenly, a scream could be heard. It was full of pain and then it was cut short. Ming Yue woke up and put up her guard. She immediately hid on a tree and waited.

Soon enough, a boy came running, he had a scared look on his face. He tripped and fell, attempting to crawl away as he looked in terror. Soon enough, a beast had arrived, it was giant snake that was 5 meters long. With its dark green scales, it slowly moved onto the boy, eyeing it as if it were a cornered mouse.

"Why?! I've only just become an outer disciple. Why is my luck so bad?" the boy thought. He had been outside for some experiential training with a fellow disciple. He would not have thought that they would encounter a rank 2 Jade Snake. Now his partner was dead and he was next.

He closed his eyes as he waited for his death but it never came. Instead, he heard the snake hiss as sounds of fighting started. He opened them and saw a girl fighting it.

It was Ming Yue, she had waited for the right time to drop from the tree and attack the snake. Although she could not kill it, a large gash was left on the snake's body. The snake had changed its focus to her instead. It was wary as this little girl had left such an injury on it.

Ming Yue looked at the boy and said, "Run".

Although he was surprised and was almost at the jaws of death, he could not allow a girl to fight alone. He took out his sword and circled the snake, opposite of Ming Yue.

She couldn't bother with him and ignored his actions. This snake was the toughest enemy that she had encountered so far and she was on high alert.

Then the snake attacked her, aiming to bite her arm but she dodged and slashed at the snake. The snake had tried to dodge but could not leave her attack range in time, suffering a small but noticeable injury. The boy then took this opportunity and attacked the snake's blind spot. The snake was in great pain, the attacks from both ends had weakened it. In addition to the blood loss, it did not have long before it would be slain. Immediately, it chose to retreat and tried to escape through the boy.

It turned and moved towards him.

However, Ming Yue had noticed this and was one step ahead. She jumped onto the snake and dashed for its head. She arrived at the head and pointed her sword at the snake's head. Then in one motion, she stabbed the snake right through its skull and it went through its entire head. She pulled it out and proceeded to cut its head off.

The boy saw everything, he was amazed. He had never seen such skilled fighter.

"That was amazing! How are you that strong?"

Ming Yue had ignored him and began packing up, evidently, she had wanted to leave. The boy was surprised, he didn't think that such a pretty girl was so cold. When she was about to leave, he said, "My name is Fei Xian, I'm a disciple of the Eternal Blade Sect. Can I have your name?"

Ming Yue looked at Fei Xian.

"Ming Yue," she said and then she dashed away.

"Ming Yue..." muttered Fei Xian. He could not forget the her face. It was beautiful but he could nothing about it, he was too weak and he felt motivated to train harder. Then he started to walk back to his sect and noticed something by his side. It was a little package. He opened it up and saw some medicinal powder.

He thought, "It must have been from her."

Fei Xian smiled as he folded it back up and put it in his pocket.