Demon Blood, Maiden Vail

The morning sun rose above the Duskgate Mountains, casting golden rays across a tired village nestled within the cliffs—Stonepetal Hollow.

Once vibrant, the village now stood bruised by war. Its spirit mines had collapsed, its beast wards cracked, and its people—mostly farmers and low-level alchemists—were scared, hungry, and uncertain.

The sect's mission was simple: restore the balance before more harm came.

Each had their role.

1. Clearing the Rot

Xiao Hu and Lady Fangyan were the first to descend the slope. The village's southern fields were choked with poisoned refuse, discarded beast bones, and tainted formation shards.

Xiao Hu tied a cloth over his nose. "Ugh! This smells worse than soul cow dung."

Lady Fangyan calmly waved her fan—sending slicing wind to incinerate waste and purify the soil.

"I'll deal with the sludge. You collect whatever looks useful," she instructed.

They gathered core fragments, broken talismans, and even a few glowing orbs—the remains of shattered spirit tools, still pulsing weakly.

2. Hunting Beasts for Survival

In the forest north of the village, Qingxiu led a small team of disciples into the wild. They hunted saber deer, silver boars, and even caught a glimpse of a rare wind serpent, though they let it go.

She carried a bow blessed by moonlight, her arrows laced with silencing talismans.

By midday, they had caught:

6 saber deer

2 thunder rabbits

1 giant cloud-wing turkey

The villagers gathered excitedly as meat was delivered, their eyes wet with gratitude.

3. Harvesting from the Earth

Lady Bihua and Lady An led efforts in the collapsed mine tunnels just west of the settlement. Spirit orbs embedded deep in the walls still pulsed with faint energy—mostly low-grade spirit stones, but a few rare blue-moon pearls were discovered.

Lady An conjured a floating lantern spirit to light the way.

Bihua whispered, "This vein is drying. But enough remains to fund their food and medicines."

They placed protective seals to prevent cave-ins, then marked the deeper mines as unstable for now.

4. Restoring the Village's Shield

By dusk, the core of the mission began.

The defensive formation that once protected Stonepetal Hollow had collapsed during a recent beast tide. Its nine anchor stones were cracked, and the central pillar had become overrun with moss and rusted metal spirit vines.

Lady An, Qingxiu, and Xiao Hu worked through the night to reset the runes.

Lady An inscribed new sigils using melted moonstone. "This is still a temporary fix. But it'll hold against bandits and low-level beasts."

When the final rune pulsed, the barrier flashed—then shimmered into place like a dome of light.

The village chief, old and hunched, knelt in thanks.

"Taiyin Sect… you've saved us again."

That night, Lady Mingyan checked Lin Yuan's pulse again.

"He's getting stronger," she murmured, brushing his cheek. "You'll wake soon, won't you?"

She stepped outside and looked at the stars.

They flickered like seeds waiting to grow.

Refuse cleared

Beast meat gathered

Spirit orbs mines fixed

Defensive formation restored

Lin Yuan still sleeping In the depths of the secret realm, where soul flowers shimmered and the air hummed with light,Lady Mingyan, seated beside Lin Yuan's resting form ,suddenly stood up.

"She's coming," she whispered.

She wake up Lin yuan.Lin Yuan stirred awake, blinking slowly. The soul formation around him had stop—its work complete.

Lady Mingyan smiled softly. "Wake up, Lin Yuan. Your little sister is about to be born."

His eyes widened. "Sister…?"

She offered her hand, and together they walked toward the glowing pond in the center of the secret realm—, where Lady Bihua lay beneath layers of protective formation light, her egg glowing faintly with life energy.

Lin Yuan reached just in time to see a pulse of golden smoke and silvery mist burst upward—and from within it, a shape emerged.

The Child of Stars and Scales

The newborn rested within a pool of golden mist, curled up, blinking her glowing emerald eyes.

She was… magnificent.

Her body was long and flexible like her mother's serpent form.

From her back sprouted two massive dragon-like wings, gleaming with obsidian and silver light.

Her legs were strong and clawed—clearly her father's blood.

Her fingers were delicate, webbed slightly with green veining—like her mother.

Her breath, when she yawned, released a soft mist of venomous fragrance— toxic , but strong enough to melt steel.

Lin Yuan gasped. "She's… beautiful."

Lady Bihua, smiling, reached out toward the child. "Our little girl…"

Lady Mingyan held the newborn carefully and whispered, "Born of a sky serpent and abyssal dragon… she is something this world would be shocked "

"What's her name?" Qingxiu asked.

Lady Bihua blinked through tears. "We'll call her Xiaoluan. Little Grace."

Lin Yuan chuckled. "Suits her."

Xiao Hu came bounding in, arms full of spirit eggs. "Here! I found beast eggs in forest "

Lady Mingyan checked them. "One of these should be safe for her to eat."

They warmed the egg gently with spirit fire. Xiaoluan sniffed it… then snapped her tiny fangs around it and swallowed it whole.

Tearlume seeing her curiously.

"She has her mother's appetite," Lady An said flatly.

"She's going to be a handful," Fangyan sighed.

That evening, they all sat around the new baby in the center of the secret realm. Lin Yuan, still in awe, watched as baby Xiaoluan curled around and slept—her scales smooth, her warmth comforting.

"I never imagined I'd meet a little sister like this," he said, voice soft.

The next day, they split their tasks again.

Only Lin Yuan, Lady Mingyan, and Lady Bihua ,Tearlume remained in the secret realm to care for the baby .

Outside, Qingxiu, Xiao Hu, Lady An, and Lady Fangyan returned to the outer world. Their goals were clear:

Drop off refuse who was slave before

Hunt beasts for meat and materials

Collect rare herbs

They would return before nightfall.

As the group left through the gate, Lin Yuan sat by the spirit pond with baby Xiaoluan and Tearlume sleeping peacefully.

He whispered, "I don't know what the world will bring next. But right now… this moment is peaceful "