The fifth morning of the instance.
The thin mist outside the window had yet to fully dissipate, and faint traces of abnormal energy still lingered in the air.
Yu Xing woke from his rest and stood by the second-floor window of the office, his fingertips unconsciously tapping the frame.
A few branches brushed against his legs, sending him vague thoughts.
[Probably today. We're going to the church.]
[That Magician didn't come back all night. What was he doing?]
[Who knows? He always likes to act alone, but he won't cause trouble. Forget him! But what about the Sheqing Ghost? It's gone too.]
[Little Qu hasn't come back either. She's so busy. Feels like she's going to live at the church...]
[So much grinding. Everyone's a grinder.]
[I'm gonna eat eat eat eat eat, sleep, eat eat eat!]
The last branch's conviction drowned out the others. Soon, the branches that had been thinking this and that reached a consensus.
Hunger surged over him in periodic waves. Though yesterday's "feeding" in the slums had temporarily eased the sharpest pangs, the emptiness rooted in his true self still lurked deep in his senses, reminding Yu Xing that it was time for a feast.
The Ghost Tree's hunger seemed endless. Perhaps because the state of distorted perception was nearing its end, the scarlet mark on Yu Xing's tongue had instead begun its final frenzy.
[I'm going to eat more today.]
His tongue said.
Yu Xing's gaze swept over the scroll case lying at the corner of the desk. The Starry Sky rested inside like a sleeping heart, slowly and powerfully radiating a distorted pulse.
No one had come looking for him over it all day yesterday.
Just then, a rhythmic knock came from downstairs.
Yu Xing gathered his thoughts and walked down at an