While the surrounded woman was whining with annoyance, she didn’t seem bothered or scared at all by the array of guards around her that kept increasing. The second row of the semi-circle around her had shields and spears while the third row only carried long spears with smaller shields strapped to their shoulder. Worse yet it didn’t stop there. Upon the top of the wall more soldiers ran out and formed a tight formation. Those on the wall held up large bows and nocked arrows, and a second row of archers crowded in between the gaps between the shoulders of the first row.

Only when these five full ranks of troops were arranged with their weapons all pointed at the small woman did the target of her ire finally make an appearance. A woman with more precisely applied makeup and with perfectly sharp and crisp lines on her dress. In comparison to the surrounded woman whose clothing looked windswept and lived in, this woman’s hair, makeup, and garb was impeccably sharp. Her dark hair was pulled back into a bun and pinned by two ebony chopsticks and she was currently being escorted by an old woman with a similarly impeccable look and eight burly men. These guards wore full suits of heavy armor and carried large polearms with heads that had strange D-shaped blades. The straight part of the ‘D’ on the blades were razor-sharp and made them seem like hump-backed cleavers.

This new arrival walked towards the surrounded woman with a calm and collected look on her face. She lifted her nose into the air, looking down at the woman who was completely outnumbered. She smiled slightly and spoke with a condescending tone, “Who did you get to choose that dress for you? It’s quite fine, but from the way it doesn’t match your accessories or inner layer, I can tell your fashion sense hasn’t improved at all. You look just like a little girl wearing the clothes her mother set out for her.”

To her side the old woman snickered and then the two of them shared a look before laughing together at the trapped woman in front of them. Despite the huge numbers disparity the ‘cornered’ woman was not scared or intimidated in the least. Instead she was staring daggers at the newly arrived woman and the old woman that was laughing with her. Her whole face had taken on a red tint because of her anger.

“It’s not a full moon yet, so the three-legged toad doesn’t normally make an appearance, but here you are in the flesh, Little Moon! I didn’t know you’d bring an old toad along with you. We’ll just have to serve up two pairs of frog legs tonight.”

Facing the provocative words up close was enough to finally break the composure of the newly arrived woman, Yue Xiaoqing. She instantly broke the illusion of her untouchable countenance and sharply precise outfit when she pulled one of the chopsticks out of her hair and brandished it like a dagger rushing forward to stab the woman who had constantly insulted her. The old woman by her side grabbed her shoulders and drew her back, whispering something that shocked her out of her anger. Glaring violently at the surrounded woman she straightened the collar of her dress and then reached back to fix her hair, putting the chopstick back into place. The old woman helped her straighten things out and she had once again returned to her refined look, though it wasn’t nearly as perfect as when she arrived.

“You’ve always been so childish. A violent and uncouth girl without an ounce of refinement. Just look at you? Only someone as foolish as you would dare to approach a place like this all alone. Did you think us to be just as stupid as you, to let us go after catching you at a disadvantage? What a lucky day it is! Not only is business booming, an annoying pest from the past has jumped out, begging to be dealt with.”

The old woman nodded her head, seeming pleased that Xiaoqing had put her priorities back in order.

“You still have time for some last words, Toad. Tell me your troubles before you go. I promise to make it quick for you.”

“How confused are you? Only someone as dumb as you can fail to see the situation they’re in. Who else could make up such a dumb insult? What does Yue Xiaoqing, little blue of the moon clan, have to do with the gold toad, Jin Chan?”

“The legendary Jin Chan is said to show up on the full moon. Your name reminds of the blue sky when a full moon has appeared and night is yet to arrive. The color that is probably reflected on Jin Chan’s skin when you get a visit. Also, your wide eyes remind me of a toad.”

There was utter silence for a moment as Xiaoqing’s face flushed and her eyes reddened. Her rage was skyrocketing, but the momentary shock gave the old woman beside her enough time to grab her. Expletives were hurled as she tried to pull away from the old woman, but she was trapped in the iron grip of those aged fingers. At this same time, the source of this tantrum was merely enjoying the loss of composure and waiting patiently.

“Don’t worry, I’ll erect a grave marker here for you and all your subordinates. Are you sure you have no last words to leave behind?”

At this point even the old woman was infuriated and she yelled out a command with a hoarse voice, “Destroy her!”

With her order the hundreds of arrows were released from their strings while just as many spears and sabers were sent towards her with the full force of their wielders behind them.

Clang!

A sound reminiscent of metal striking metal rang out over and over again. A golden barrier sprung up in front of the woman, deflecting all the attacks flung her way. The barrier rippled from the massed attack, but it held strong. While it looked weakened after the barrage it was far from destroyed. On the other hand all the attacks were strong enough to cause the controller of the barrier to appear. A person garbed in a tight black gui suddenly appeared a dozen yards back down the path. They were holding a circular plate in their hand that was letting off a bright light from the glowing characters it was inscribed with.

It was only at this point did those from the Yi Yang Group seem to realize what was going on. Among the many guards and troops only a few of them weren’t wearing the wide brimmed hats covered in array symbols. These few seemed to be the only ones looking around in confusion while the rest of the guards had stoic expressions and continued to attack without reservation.

“She’s not alone! Retreat quickly! Back behind the walls.”

“I’m afraid it’s too late for that.”

The woman that was still being targeted by hundreds of weapons merely smiled and raised her hands to either side, right in time with what looked to be a golden wall rising from the ground. It shot up towards the sky, reaching a hundred feet into the sky and dwarfing the walls of the Yi Yang Group’s compound. The top of the wall shimmered like the glow of the aurora borealis, a golden gradient that gradually gave way to the dark sky.

Surrounding their entire compound this golden perimeter had no gaps at all and just as it was established the ground started to rumble. The members of the Yi Yang Group couldn’t help but to look down at their feet, and this momentary distraction caused them to miss the huge swarm of Dragoon’s flying over the walls. The rumbling of the ground stopped after a few seconds, but they had no time to recover before they heard loud shouts, “Look out, they’re above us!”

Along with that cry, there were loud sounds of impact. Rocks the size of a human head were falling from the sky, raining down upon the whole compound. These rocks smashed through the roofs of the buildings and crashed down onto the ground, inflicting indiscriminate destruction upon the Yi Yang Group.