Happy sounds of crowd gathered upon the palace hall up to the outer courtyard filled the air of the Jade Phoenix's kingdom. The moon is now full and it is the time for the Emperor's divination led by the Lunar Empress.
Hidden from plain sight, Hua RuoMin, sister of Hua FeiXian was escorted by the palace guards inside a gold-colored sedan inside the palace. She wore a gold robe embroidered with beautiful butterflies and her face covered with a veil stretching from her head up to her shoulders. When the escort have arrived inside the palace, RuoMin stepped out of the sedan graciously and was received by FeiXian...
"You look gorgeous sister."
"One must look her best at a divination ceremony."
"Well good luck to that. Then tell his highness Wei Yue a good fortune or else... Your dogs will become fodders for us."
The little dogs snarled back at FeiXian. RuoMin just shook her head and later, led up the pedestal of the Emperor.
The servants opened up the upper portion of the palace's roof and revealed the light of the full moon. RuoMin placed her hands on Wei Yue's hands as the moonlight shone upon them...
Sounds of large drums reverberated upon the hall accompanied by music from the Erhus and Pipas. RuoMin closed her eyes and peered into the future. It was just a split second but RuoMin retracted her hands from Wei Yue's.
"Lunar Empress?"
"The future... Is not what it seems... There will be blood... Violence... And death..."
"I am ready for all of it."
Tears flowed down from RuoMin's eyes and collapsed from her knees.
"It is not your death that I have forseen your highness. I thought that if your kingdom will be rebuilt again and have peace with other kingdoms, then the foreboding omen against deaths would be halted... But..."
"Tell me what you saw..."
RuoMin stood quiet and gulped a saliva on her throat before she spoke.
"I saw the death of my brother and YingLuo."
Everyone gasped in horror after RuoMin's revelation. Divination that has been given by the Lunar Empress is absolute and no power on heaven or earth could change it.
"YingLuo and FeiXian must not leave this palace ever or death will surely find it's way."
"I can guarantee their safety as long as they are inside."
"Thank you, your high-"
RuoMin didn't finish her sentence when a shroud of dark clouds formed atop the moon covering the moonlight from above. The ceremony was disrupted. Tons of foul-looking demons descended down from the top of the open roof and some came from outside the palace ransacking every human in their wake. RuoMin could not stand and do nothing so she descended from the pedestal and helped YingLuo and FeiXian slash the demons.
"Xian'ge please take away YingLuo into a safe place. You're not safe here."
"Min'er... What are you going to do?"
"I'm killing the one who conjured these demons and also, please keep the civilians away from the demons."
"But Min'er, killing someone isn't your own doing."
"I know but... I'm trying my best to stop this."
In order to respect his sister's wishes, FeiXian steered clear of the civilians and led them to second floor of the palace. YingLuo led the remaining civilians to the courtyard and set up a powerful barrier of holy magic to dispel the demons.
RuoMin jumped and tumbled while performing slashes on the demons along the way to XueCao. XueCao looked at her like she was the most prized award that he's going to snatch. The remaining demons were handled by Wei Yue using his Jade Phoenix magic which kills the demons in one sight. During the commotion, Lu Jie hid on Wei Yue's chamber along with LanRong. She felt the walls vibrate when the demons move along the palace. Her right hand gripped her chest tight.
"Madame Jie... Are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
"Are you afraid of them?"
"Yes. They maybe controlled by Lu XueCao but their nature is savage. They maybe taught to suppress their true nature but... It would always prevail..."
"Don't fret Madame. You're safe within these walls."
Lu XueCao conjured more portals and summoned demons.
"Bring her to me! I want her alive!"
Glaring her eyes, RuoMin leapt at every demon and with her Staff of dual headed dragons she granted permission for Yin-Yin and Yang-Yang to transform into their original forms. Divine guardian beasts are quite loyal to their masters and often grow aggressive if someone attacks their master. But, if they will be apart with their owner, Divine guardian beasts will likely become crazy and destroy everything that they see in their path.
"Yang-Yang... Yin-Yin... Lend me your strength!"
"Yes master!"
The beasts twisted and turned forming a tornado sucking every demon that they see. RuoMin quietly sneaked behind XueCao and saw a familiar mark behind his nape...
"This— How could this be?"
XueCao sensed her presence behind him and threw a sleeping dart. The dart hit RuoMin's arm. She pulled it off and tried to flee but it was too late. Sleeping medicine had already reached to her nerves and she fell asleep falling into the abyss of darkness.
Lu XueCao had already got his prize. He carried RuoMin and conjured a portal directly connected into the Dark Realm.
"Master!"
"Yin-Yin go save master!"
"Yang-Yang... If you stay here you'll go insane!"
"Ugh... Let's get inside the portal!"
Before the portal even closed behind Lu XueCao, the two beasts snuck themselves inside transforming into two ordinary black and white dogs.
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A blush of peony-colored sky brightened up the dawn of Shifting Flower Sect. Dead bodies of fallen disciples and demons scattered all around the valley of the recesses. The green grasses were painted green and red with the blood that the disciples and demons shed.
Gu XiNiang held her palms on her head. The death of Mei WuTang was tragic yet she have to accept what had happened and carry on...
'She should have took the pill instead... But why.... Why can't I save—'
She looked at the corpses of some disciples with their eyes wide open. Tears soon came rolling from her eyes. She gritted her teeth in anger.
'Why... Why couldn't I save them? I guess I am that incompetent at all.'
A helpless look showed from her face. The wounded disciples huddled up to her until one disciple vented her anger at her and blamed her for everything that had happened.
"You're one incompetent and useless Sect Leader! If you didn't hid that thing here in the first place then none of this would've happened!" Mo QiuAn spoke with a husky and forceful voice.
XiNiang lowered her head. Everything that she ever did, her decisions, her leadership, her skills are now at bay. Thoughts were flowing in her head like an ebb of never ending feelings. Despair, grief, regrets... All of these are like a breeze blowing her mind away.
*Slap*
Mo QiuAn's right palm landed into XiNiang's face. The other disciples gasped in shock seeing their Sect Leader being slapped by the Second in Command Acolyte.
"I am ashamed to have placed my hands on the wrong leader... Sect Leader Gu... You need to step down."
XiNiang felt the pain in her cheek and slowly stood up from where she knelt. The billingsgate that she had received from QiuAn sent shocking reactions from the other disciples who have survived the siege. XiNiang clenched her sleeve and reached inside her gyúyàng (corset wrapped at the waist of women in Old Jianghu). She took hold of the token of leadership in her hand and placed it on QiuAn's palms.
"From now on, I hereby declare that the Shifting Flower Sect will have no leader."
The disciples gasped at her announcement. QiuAn was more infuriated by this and grabbed the overlapping sleeves on her neck.
"What are you trying to do huh? After destroying the sect, you will try to leave like nothing had happened? How shameless you are Gu XiNiang!"
Gu XiNiang flayed her hands away from her sleeve and continued speaking with a loud voice...
"However... If one male will arrive and deserve the title of being Flower Prince after passing the trials of the Shifting Flower Palace, then he will lead the Sect with pride until the original Sect Leader returns!"
Gnashed teeth and crossed eyebrows, QiuAn knocked away XiNiang and shouted...
"Preposterous! Spare your obloquies against this holy palace that you step in! From now on, I will be the new sect leader!"
QiuAn raised the token high up the air but an electric impulse knocked her hand out from holding the token tight. The token fell on the floor and QiuAn felt embarrassed in front of the disciples.
"Gu XiNiang! How dare you taint the token with black magic! You must have tainted it into refusing my order have you?"
"Didn't you forget Mo QiuAn, I'm Shifting Flower Palace Sect's Leader and the blood of my ancestors flow inside me and lives inside me."
"Tch."
"My orders are absolute. While I leave these recesses, I will try to investigate more about the Shuras and when I will find some information, I will directly send it to you... And, try not to make a mess until I get back."
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Hurtful screams of tormented souls and shrills of demons awakened RuoMin and found herself chained against the wall of some sort of dungeon. She shook off the chains and tried using her divine powers but it didn't work. There was darkness all over her but a single sliver of light can be seen in front of her. She looked closely and saw a man lying in a stone table.
Lu XueCao then came in inside the room and showed himself to RuoMin. His gaze brings chills in her spine. A capricious smile curved up his lips as he saw RuoMin averted her sight after he touched her face.
"I never thought that the Lunar Empress could be such a fighter."
"You! Why did you bring me here?"
"Isn't it obvious dear dear Empress... I'm going to revive him using your blood."
"Revive? W—Who are you going to—"
"Oh I forgot... You haven't got to take a closer look at his face."
Removing the chains from her hands, XueCao pulled her hair and faced her on the lying man on the stone table.
"Take a closer look. Do you feel anything? Does your heart long for him in such a long time that you're apart?"
"Long? I—I never met him!"
"Liar! Take a good look at him you b*tch!"
XueCao pushed her on the side of the stone table facing the unconscious man. RuoMin did not want to take a look at the man but soon she opened her eyes and saw him.
'I never knew him but why does my heart ache for him like this? Who is he?'
RuoMin tried to abscond from XueCao but the grip of his hand on her hair is too tight. XueCao laughed loudly and faced RuoMin on the man.
"You knew him haven't you? You wouldn't give that look in your eyes if you haven't knew him!"
"I swear. I never knew him!
"Alright alright. This whore denies too much."
Pulling a knife from his side, XueCao slit a small cut on the side or RuoMin's hand and poured the blood unto the mouth of the man.
"W—What are you doing? Let me go!"
"I have waited for this moment in a long time! Arise! Sixth Demon Lord LiuFang Asuro!"
"L—LiuFang? A—Asuro?"
The man's appearance changed from having a long black slender hair and gentle look on his face, into a demon with two large horns on his head and dark curse marks beside his face. RuoMin struggled to let XueCao break free of her hands after seeing the horrible man's face.
"It hurts! Let me go!"
"Witness as the sixth demon lord arises!"
After the blood had seeped inside his body, the man's appearance returned back to normal and opened his eyes. As he heard RuoMin's cries, the man rose up and knocked XueCao away with a powerful spell that sent him hurling across the dungeon.
RuoMin stood frozen as the man turned his head and looked at her.
"I've missed you."
The man said as he wrapped his arms around RuoMin.