Deep within the Star Dou Great Forest, the night was as black as ink.
The last traces of sunset had completely sunk below the horizon, and darkness surged in like a tide, swallowing every corner of this ancient forest.
The lively clamor of daytime had faded, replaced by the primitive silence that belonged to the night.
Yet this silence was not true tranquility. In the distance came the growls of unknown soul beasts; nocturnal creatures beat their wings among the canopy, while insects crawled and rustled beneath the rotting leaves.
This was the order of night, another form of life's symphony.
Tang Hao had left with Tang San, and the air still carried the lingering resonance of the Clear Sky Hammer's tyrannical Soul Power.
Xiao Wu had returned to the core region. The pink afterimage she left behind flashed through the forest a few times before vanishing without a trace.
Dai Mubai and the others had also gone their separate ways. Every step they took was firm and resolute, carrying the weight of their five-year promise.
The once lively, noisy group now had only three "people" left.
Han Yuchen, Leng Yuebai, and the Star Fox lying on the ground, idly fiddling with fallen leaves.
They traveled on in silence.
The atmosphere was a little awkward.
Or rather, Han Yuchen was the only one who found it awkward, because he could clearly feel Leng Yuebai's undisguised gaze.
Leng Yuebai stood quietly less than half a meter away from him. The distance was far too close, already crossing the safe boundary of normal social interaction.
Yet she seemed completely unaware of it, or perhaps she simply did not care about such worldly rules.
Her spotless white dress gleamed coldly beneath the newly risen moonlight, like silk woven from moonbeams.
The hem of