Dark Moon

When Yun Jingheng woke up, what he saw was a white ceiling.

He was lying on a very soft bed with a needle stuck in the back of his hand; a transparent tube connected to a stand by the bed, and liquid dripped down drop by drop.

He stared at the ceiling for a long time, his brain feeling as if it were soaked in paste, unable to recall anything.

But this scene was truly familiar...

What a disaster~

"Creak~"

The door opened.

Ye Xinglan walked in, carrying a bowl in her hands.

Seeing that Yun Jingheng's eyes were open, she froze for a moment, then hurried over, placed the bowl on the nightstand, and looked down at him.

"You're finally awake. How do you feel?" Her voice was very soft, and her eyes were red-rimmed.

Yun Jingheng wanted to speak, but his throat felt as if it had been scrubbed with sandpaper, and he couldn't make a sound.

He shook his head.

Ye Xinglan sat down by the bedside and remained silent for a while.

"You've been asleep for two days," she said.

Yun Jingheng looked at her, waiting for her to continue.

Ye Xinglan lowered her head, looking at her own hands.

"That day, when you fell from the sky, your mother caught you."

"You were severely injured; one of your ribs was broken, the wound on your back was deep with many metal fragments embedded in it, and you didn't have a single drop of soul power left."

She paused. "Your martial soul... turned red. You killed an Evil Soul Master—not just wounded him, you killed him."

"Your mark drained his life force dry; he ended up like a mummified corpse."

Yun Jingheng lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

He didn't remember.

He only remembered falling from the sky, his martial soul emerging on its own, the Moonlight Sword turning red, and his shadow laughing.

As for what happened afterward, he couldn't recall a single thing.

Ye Xinglan continued.

"After you fell into a coma, the people of Skysea City were terrified. The high-ranking officials of Skysea City and the members of the Spirit Pagoda branch all mobilized."

"Qiangu Dongfeng issued the order himself, telling the Spirit Pagoda personnel to cooperate with the manhunt. He was afraid your father would pin another charge on him, accusing him of colluding with Evil Soul Masters or something similar."

"They turned Skysea City upside down, even searching the surrounding cities, and dragged out every hidden Evil Soul Master."

"There were eight in total, and they are all dead."

Yun Jingheng turned his head to look at her.

Ye Xinglan's expression was calm, but her hands were trembling.

"Eight Evil Soul Masters. You killed one, and the other seven... your father killed them."

"He rushed to Skysea City that very day, and no one could stop him."

Yun Jingheng closed his eyes; he could imagine the scene.

He didn't need to think to know the outcome.

"The high-ranking officials of Skysea City were all bowing and scraping."

Ye Xinglan's voice was very soft. "They were afraid your father would vent his anger on them. They were afraid Shrek would vent its anger on them. Your mother ignored them and carried you back to Shrek. Your father ignored them too; he left as soon as he finished killing."

Yun Jingheng opened his eyes and looked at the ceiling.

He suddenly remembered a sentence Yun Ming had once said—"I will protect you."

Ye Xinglan stood up. "Get some rest. I'm going to call your mother."

She walked to the door, then turned back. "Yun Jingheng."

"Hm?"

"When your martial soul turned red, your shadow was laughing."

She paused. "I saw it."

Yun Jingheng did not speak.

Ye Xinglan left.

The door closed.

He stared at the ceiling and raised his hand to his eyes.

The hand was very pale and thin, his fingers trembling slightly.

The door opened again.

Ya Li walked in and sat by his bedside. She said nothing, only reaching out to touch his forehead, then his cheek.

Her fingers were warm and trembling slightly.

Yun Jingheng looked at her; it seemed a few more strands of her hair had turned white, and there were new fine lines at the corners of her eyes.

"Mother." He spoke, his voice raspy.

Ya Li looked at him, her eyes reddening, but she did not cry.

She lowered her head, burying her face in his palm.

Yun Jingheng felt tears in his palm; they were scalding.

He lay still, only gently curling his fingers.

Yun Ming arrived in the evening.

He stood at the doorway, not entering.

Yun Jingheng lay on the bed, watching that tall figure at the door.

Yun Ming looked at him, watching for a long time.

Then he walked in and sat by the bedside.

"Does it hurt?" he asked.

Yun Jingheng shook his head, "It doesn't hurt."

Yun Ming did not speak.

He reached out, pressing his hand gently against Yun Jingheng's chest, his soul power probing inside.

The ribs had mended, the wounds on his back were healing, and his soul power had recovered somewhat.

He withdrew his hand, looking at Yun Jingheng.

"You killed that Evil Soul Master," he said.

Yun Jingheng nodded, "I don't remember."

Yun Ming was silent for a moment, "It is better that you don't."

Yun Jingheng looked at him and nodded.

Yun Ming left.

Yun Jingheng lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

Moonlight shone in through the gap in the curtains, landing on the floor in a thin streak.

He reached out his hand, letting the moonlight fall into his palm; it was cool and light.

In the hallway outside, Ye Xinglan stood leaning against the wall.

She saw Yun Ming come out and straightened her posture.

Yun Ming glanced at her, "He is awake; you should go get some rest."

Ye Xinglan shook her head, "I will stay a little longer."

Yun Ming said nothing more and walked away.

Ye Xinglan stood in the hallway, looking at the closed door.

She recalled the way Yun Jingheng had fallen from the sky, the way his martial soul had turned red, and the way his shadow had been laughing.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, then opened them and pushed the door open to enter.

Yun Jingheng was still awake, staring at the ceiling.

"Why did you come back?"

Ye Xinglan sat by the bedside, "I couldn't sleep."

Yun Jingheng did not speak.

The two sat in silence for a while.

Ye Xinglan suddenly spoke, "Your flying Soul Tool is shattered."

Yun Jingheng nodded, "I'll just make another one later."

Ye Xinglan looked at him, "Can you make everything yourself?"

Yun Jingheng thought for a moment, "Not necessarily. There are some things I cannot make."

Around the round table of the Sea God Pavilion, seven figures took their seats.

The atmosphere was more solemn than any previous meeting.

Yun Ming sat at the head of the table, with Ya Li at his side; her face was pale, and the redness had not yet faded from her eyes.

Long Yeyue, Cai Yue'er, Feng Wuyu, and Zhuo Shi sat on either side.

Two more people occupied the end of the table—Lan Muzi and Tang Yinmeng.

Lan Muzi was the homeroom teacher of the Genius Class. He was not in Skysea City when the incident occurred, but he was leading students in the training grounds when the news reached Shrek.

According to Tang Yinmeng, his face turned deathly pale upon hearing the news, and he stood motionless in the training grounds for a full quarter of an hour.

Tang Yinmeng was the elder in charge of intelligence for the Inner Court; she was the one who had first uncovered the truth about the events in Skysea City.

Yun Ming spoke, his voice very calm.

"Does everyone know?" No one answered.

Yun Ming looked at Tang Yinmeng. "Yinmeng, you tell them."

Tang Yinmeng stood up and pushed a file to the center of the table.

"Eight Evil Soul Masters, affiliated with an organization called 'Dark Moon.' It was established less than three years ago. It is small in scale, but their operations are extremely covert."

"This is the first time they have targeted a well-known figure on the continent."

She paused. "The target was very clear: it was Jing Heng."

Feng Wuyu slammed his fist onto the table. "A small organization established less than three years ago dares to touch the son of the Sea God Pavilion Master?"

"I refuse to believe they don't have someone backing them!"

Zhuo Shi glanced at him, uncharacteristically refraining from a rebuttal. "Have you found the mastermind?"

Tang Yinmeng shook her head. "The eight who died were all peripheral members. There are no clues regarding the core layer."

"Their communication methods, funding sources, and hideouts have all been severed."

Long Yeyue leaned back in her chair, her fingers tapping lightly on the armrest. "What does Skysea City have to say?"

Ya Li spoke, her voice very soft. "The Skysea City Lord knelt before me and said 'dereliction of duty' a hundred times."

"People from the Spirit Pagoda branch also came, saying that Qiangu Dongfeng personally ordered them to cooperate with the search."

She paused. "Qiangu Dongfeng is afraid that Brother Ming will pin the blame on him again."

Feng Wuyu let out a cold snort. "He's certainly quick-witted."

Yun Ming did not speak; he looked at the file on the table for a long time.

"Why was their target Jing Heng?"

Tang Yinmeng flipped to another page.

"Two possibilities. First, because he is the Pavilion Master's son. Killing Jing Heng would be a massive blow to Shrek, to the Sea God Pavilion, and to the power structure of the entire continent."

She paused. "Second, because of his martial soul, Lunar Phase Flow. The transformation of the four realms, the power of the Blood Moon... it might be more unique than we imagined."

The room fell silent for a moment before Ya Li spoke slowly.

"The power of the Blood Moon is indeed unique. That day in Skysea City, Jing Heng was severely injured and on the verge of death. His martial soul protected its master automatically, entering the Blood Moon state directly."

"Jing Heng is only a three-ring, yet he relied on the Blood Moon to kill a five-ring Evil Soul Master. He killed him using the rules."

Cai Yue'er's expression changed. "Rules?"

Zhuo Shi was silent for a long time. "Is this ability... too evil?"

Feng Wuyu retorted bluntly, "Evil your head! It's the rules—the rules of the moon."

He looked at Yun Ming. "Pavilion Master, what exactly is little Jing Heng's martial soul?"

Everyone's gaze fell upon Yun Ming, who remained silent for a long time.

"I honestly don't know."

He said, "But I do know one thing: those Evil Soul Masters have not been targeting him for the first time."

Ya Li turned her head sharply to look at him.

Yun Ming's expression was very calm. "During the Spirit Ascension Platform riot, that Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear had been tampered with."

"I investigated it, but I couldn't find anything. However, that bear's target was very clear: it was Jing Heng."

Lan Muzi spoke, his voice sounding a bit dry. "That time at the Spirit Ascension Platform... it was a coincidence, right?"

Yun Ming looked at him.

"The first time was a coincidence, and the second time as well, but what about the third?"

He paused. "The explosion in Skysea City, the soul-guided bombs, the timer devices."

"This kind of method is not something an ordinary soul master could achieve. They have organization, resources, and premeditation."

"Furthermore, they are extremely familiar with Jing Heng's movements."

Tang Yinmeng flipped to another page. "The hotel surveillance was turned off in advance, and the elevator control system was also hacked. On the afternoon of the competition day, the elevators in the entire building were shut down."

"The bombs were installed in five different locations, one of which was on the load-bearing wall directly below Jing Heng's room. After the explosion, the flames surged upward; the target was his room."

Cai Yue'er's voice trembled slightly. "They knew which room he was in."

Tang Yinmeng nodded. "They knew. They knew his daily routine, when he went out, and when he returned."

"They even knew that Ye Xinglan would go to find him."

Feng Wuyu's expression changed. "A mole?!"

Tang Yinmeng shook her head, "We cannot rule out that possibility; it might just be observation, long-term observation."

"Skysea City has been investigated. There are at least three observation points around the hotel that have a clear view of Jing Heng's room window."

"These observation points were set up three days before the competition began."

Long Yeyue closed her eyes, "They are waiting... waiting for him to be alone."

Ya Li's hands clenched, her knuckles turning white.

Yun Ming reached out and took her hand, gripping it tightly.

Feng Wuyu looked at Yun Ming, "Pavilion Master, what should we do next?"

Yun Ming was silent for a long time, "Increase security. There must always be someone by Jing Heng's side."

Zhuo Shi frowned, "And what about young Jing Heng's freedom?"

Yun Ming looked at him, "His life is more important."