Maiden Of The Splitting Moon

Ming Yue found the shop that owner Su talking about but instead of seeing a normal shop, she saw an open forge that looked like a tornado went through it!

Weapons and pieces of equipment littered the floor, some were exquisite while others weren't worth mentioning. In the middle of all this was an old man, he was fixated on his newest creation. It was a broadsword with an ornate handle, it looked quite excellent but he had a disappointed look.

"Peh! Another failure", he said as he tossed the blade onto the floor, letting it clang on the ground.

Afterward, he was about to start forging again until he noticed a girl at the front. It was Ming Yue. Having seen that the old man was busy, she decided to wait a bit.

"What do you want?" he spoke frankly as he reached for his hammer.

Ming Yue was a bit surprised by his straightforwardness but she liked it nevertheless.

"Could you have a look at this sword?" she asked.

Unsheathed the blade, she held it in her hands and passed it to him. The old man's eyes showed a tinge of shock that the staff she had was a sword and he became curious, inspecting the blade in his hands. He noticed the name "Parting Sun" etched on it and was surprised once more.

"To think that young girl had such a legendary blade, who is she?" he thought.

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"Do you know what this sword is?" he asked.

She nodded, relaying the story her late father had told her. 

"Hmm, you are right. The Parting Sun Blade was made a grandmaster and used by his son to kill corrupt officials. However, there is an extra part to it, if Parting Sun were to be used with Splitting Moon, the user would be powerful enough to cut open the sun, the moon, and the stars in one move. This was a legend among blacksmiths because it was believed that before his death, the grandmaster that made these blades had cut a mountain apart while testing them on a whim", he explained. 

The blacksmith gave it back to her while shaking his head.

"The blade has no issue and even if it did, I would not have the skill nor the materials to fix it", he explained.

Ming Yue was disappointed and she turned around to leave.

Suddenly, the blacksmith spoke up.

"Although I cannot do much, I am still able to make slight adjustments to the hilt and such. If there are any changes to those things, I can do them."

Ming Yue stopped and went back to the blacksmith, she requested two things. She wanted him to redo the sword hilt as well as the scabbard. Although she had been using the blade for a fair amount of time, there were some imbalances that she could never get used to.

The scabbard was not completely finished by its creator and while it could hold the blade, drawing it took some effort. In a battle, taking too long to draw your weapon will definitely end in loss and she did not want that. Thus she wanted the scabbard to perfectly fit the sword.

As for the hilt, while it was a good fit, it had taken a fair amount of damage and needed a replacement.

This was within the old man's ability and he agreed.

"Come back in four days", he told her

She felt uncomfortable having to leave without the sword but she could not just stay there for four days. Thus, Ming Yue left but she did get the old man's name.

"I am called Tie Xuan but it is better to just call me Tie Di, okay?"

After leaving, she decided to go back to the brothel. The night was beginning to fall and there wasn't really anything that she wanted to see.

When she came back, the brothel had opened up for business, and women could be seen flirting and flaunting their assets. She went in and walked to her room, swiftly and quietly. There, she undressed and went to bathe herself.

After she finished, Ming Yue went to her bed and decided to read the Shadow Blade Arts, although she now had the Falling Blade Manual as well, she wanted to focus on one thing at a time and had bought the manual to read for the future.

She was contemplating on how to incorporate the techniques of the Shadow Blade Arts into her style of swordsmanship. Her sword wasn't a dagger or a short blade so it was not suited for silent assassinations. However, the book had emphasized speed which was definitely a large factor in her sword skills.

Of all the moves, only Descent of Twilight and Eclipse were compatible. What these moves required was only speed, they were killing moves that were to be used if the initial assassination was to fail.

To Ming Yue, Descent of the Twilight wasn't too hard understand but Eclipse was on a different level. This move required concentration and contained several mysteries that she could not comprehend.

As she continued to ponder about Eclipse, she sensed something and immediately put her book down. She looked up and noticed a man sitting by her table with a cup of tea. He had a relaxed expression on his face as he took a sip.

Ming Yue tried to reach for her sword only to realize that it was still with Tie Di. However, she still had a dagger and pointed it at the mysterious man.

He smiled and said," You don't have to be worried, I have only come to thank you for saving my nephew. He was the one that ran from the Jade Snake."

Ming Yue didn't drop her guard but she replied to him, "I was only passing by, there is no need to thank me."

The man was a bit surprised by her response but liked the fact that she had some backbone.

"Even so, you saved him from certain death, and for that, I will grant you one request", he said.

Ming Yue wasn't sure what to ask for and thought for a bit. She did not really need anything at the moment but then she noticed that the man had a sword by his side and got an idea.

"I want to spar with you", she said, "However, my sword is being altered right now and I can only ask that we fight in four days."

The man was curious about her odd request but thought nothing of it, after all, it was only a spar, she probably wanted to compare sword skills.

"Sure, where do you want to do this?" he asked

The man agreed and talked about where they could fight.

"Outside of the city, in a clearing near the east side. We can spar there", she told him. 

He chuckled before finishing his tea and standing up. 

"I am Fei Yun but you can call me Elder Fei. I'll see you in four days then young one."

Although he was in his forties, he looked a dozen years younger. He also gave Ming Yue a token with the Fei etched on it.

"If you need help, you can just go to the Fei Clan," he told her. 

Afterward, Ming Yue wasn't in the mood to continue her studies and went to bed. For the next several days, she focused on strengthening herself and rarely went out. The only times she did was only to play with Rou'er. On the day of the fight, she went out to retrieve her sword.

When she arrived at Tie Di's forge, the old man was waiting for her with a smile on his face. It seemed like the alterations were a success. He gave her the sword and let her inspect it.

It was still the same length and dimensions however it weighed a bit lighter. Tie Di had fixed the handle and the scabbard as well as carving some detailed work on it. From afar, it still looked like a staff or a walking stick, however, there were metal inlays that were shaped into a phoenix that wrapped around the scabbard while the hilt was redone with a metal cord wrapping for a better grip. It looked much more beautiful and when she drew the blade, it came out smoothly and without difficulty.

She liked the new changes to it and was happy.. With her sword in hand, she left and arrived at the meeting place waiting for Elder Fei.