Killing The Rest

As she reached for the tent flap. a sense of danger arose within and Xua Lan shot out of the tent just as swords stabbed right through it. She looked down seeing the remaining members of the Azure Flags glaring at the tent before noticing her in the air.

Landing opposite to them, she stared as they pulled their weapons out and pointed them at her.

One of them stepped forward, glaring at her while waving his sword around.

"You! What did you do to Hu Zong?" he shouted out.

She tilted her head answering as she looked back at the ruined tent.

"What do you mean? He never left."

The other members shared looks, nodding to one another as several of them turned towards it. Together they pulled the tent off only to find the shriveled-up body of their leader, gray and lifeless.

It was a horrible sight to see, even as the flesh and blood were gone, the widened eyes and open mouth showed fear and shock. He was nothing but skin and bones, a sight that none of them wanted to witness.

"What is this?!"

"How could this be? He's dead!"

There were gasps and they all looked at him. It was too horrifying to not look away, a terrible image that was burned into their minds. It was just a few seconds and Xue Lan did not waste a single one. She leaped forward with her hands outstretched, reaching for the closest body.

"Agh!"

There was a cry of pain as she forced her hand into their chest and ripped out their heart! Blood flowed down her arm as she sucked the life out of them!

Shaken from their stupor, they turned on her but fear had taken place in their hearts.

"H-help me... he-help... me..."

They watched as their comrade looked to them for help. To their horror, they could do nothing as the body grew thinner and weaker, resulting in the same state as Hu Zong. And when the last crumb of life was taken, Xue Lan just pulled her arm out, letting the corpse drop.

She looked at them, her crimson eyes grew even brighter than before. And the moonlight cast a shadow on her, making them even more noticeable. With the blood dripping down her nail guards and shreds of a black aura flowed out of her body.

A shiver went down their spines as the realization kicked in.

"You're an Evil Cultivator!" one of them shouted.

Xue Lan smiled at them.

"What of it?"

She leaped forward wildly, moving like an animal as she closed in on them. The remaining five brandished their weapons but their hands were trembling. With the death of two members, their hearts were shaken.

Even more so now that they knew what she was.

They may outnumber her but perhaps the battle was already lost.

"Quick get into formation! We must avenge our fallen members! For Hu Zong!"

The five nodded and moved as a group, each taking a specific position, forming the Big Dipper. However, there were two empty positions and the formation was much weaker though it still gave them a small boost.

"Come on then you evil witch! See if you can take the Seven Star Attack!"

With their brave words, they struck forward, one after another, a consecutive stream of seven strikes with the last person performing the final three.

Right swing, thrust, left swing, two diagonal chops, and a lunge at the end!

A simple combination but effective nonetheless. This was one of the key techniques, something they had practiced together and used in battle. Even someone with a higher cultivation would have trouble with it.

And Xue Lan did her best, facing this formation head-on. She parried the first move with her nail guards and sidestepped the thrust. The left swing was blocked as well but there was barely enough time to deal with the last three moves.

Crossing her hands, she took on the two diagonal chops but was pushed back from its destructive power. In the end, her guard was broken as the final move came. As the last member lunged forward, their sword went right through her chest.

At first, there was a smile on their faces as if they had defeated a great evil. But that feeling of joy was destroyed as Xua Lan grabbed the blade with one hand and yanked it towards her.

She practically yanked it, forcing the sword further through her body while pulling in the one who had struck her. Her other hand shot forward, grabbing one of the Azure Flags by the neck. The moment her fingers wrapped around them, she crushed their neck before dropping the body to the floor.

The remaining four looked at her in fear.

"What kind of Evil Cultivator are you?" they asked.

She looked at the sword and pulled it out, her face twitched in pain as she gasped for air when the sword was out of her body. Her breath was heavy and the blood flowed from her healing wound. Gazing at the rest of the caravan group, she just smiled and laughed.

"I don't even know", she answered, "All I know is that I can't let you live."

Hearing those words, they gripped their blades tightly, trying to steel their resolve.

"If you are not going to let us go then, we will make sure to bring you along with us", they replied.

Tossing the sword aside, Xue Lan lunged forward, swinging her arms out wide at the nearest target. The four cultivators spaced out and circled around her, trying not to get caught. They guarded against her attacks, the wild swings were quick and powerful.

It was like fighting against a tiger.

"Come on, give up! There's nothing left for you! There is no way out, only death!"

Xue Lan cackled wildly, taken over by the rush of killing and fighting. She only grew quicker and stronger, not even giving them a chance to recuperate. And soon enough, they couldn't hold on for much longer.

"Ugh, damn it, I'll kill you!"

In the end, all four of them charged forward with their swords raised up, glowing under the moonlight. Together they all attacked at the same time, bringing down their blades upon her.

Standing at the center of it, Xue Lan glanced around her before moving. She couldn't even think, acting on instinct alone.

Rather than take on all of their attacks, she jumped back, narrowly missing the swords before going back in. With both hands, she killed two more, clawing their necks with her nail guards. Blood sprayed out, gushing and splattering all over the grass.

Choking on their blood, they clutched their throats, trying to keep the blood from falling out. Unfortunately, nothing was going to save them from this, Their legs grew weak and they dropped to the ground, choking to death in their last moments. Their expressions showed it all, pure fear in their eyes.

And Xue Lan seemed to relish it, she turned her attention to the last two Azure Flags. She slowly walked towards them with her arms by her side. Blood dripped from the black nail guards as the last two warriors pointed their weapons at her.

There were no words to say to her, nothing in their minds could dissuade her from killing them. In the end, they could only make desperate attempts to fight back.

With a final shout, they charged forward only for Xue Lan to be one step ahead.

"Urgh!"

They both groaned, looking down to see the woman's hands piercing their chests. Blood began flowing out, bleeding through their clothes. As Xue Lan pulled out, the duo dropped to their knees looking at her.

Of the two, one of them looked not with fear but with hatred. It was the one from before, the one that had attacked the tree and showed her their strength. Among the other Azure Flags, they were the most suspicious of her.

And their suspicions were right but there was nothing that they could do now.

"I... curse you. I pray that your death is a painful one, that Hell's Judge will condemn you to the worst punishment that they can offer. Your evil will be quelled, justice will come for you, I swear i-"

Their voice grew weaker and weaker until they died from the blood loss.

As for the woman, she stood there and looked at them. The smile from before turned to a frown as she knelt down and took a bite out of one of their hearts.

"I've already been through it", she muttered, "And I'm still in it, my worst hell."

The rest of the night was spent in silence as she ate their hearts and absorbed their energy. With her eyes closed and her legs crossed, she breathed slowly, focusing on making their strength hers. Nothing dared to come close to her, not with such a thick scent of blood around her.

Rather than attract, it was like a warning to everything around her.

Soon enough, a new day began.