Qi Gu had not noticed the perilous scene behind him. He was wholly focused on drawing in the Life-Protection Formation. Before long, the firework-like runes vanished from the air. Deathly pale, Qi Gu staggered back several steps and leaned against the banyan tree's trunk, his thin chest heaving.
At that moment, the vines and Water Corpses all dissolved into endless black dust, drifting in every direction on the night wind and settling into the water and soil of their homeland.
Only the village chief was different; his form remained unchanged. He was closest and hurried toward the banyan tree without stopping.
The banyan tree was regaining its self-awareness. Lowering its gaze, it saw the village chief and the other humans before it. With difficulty, it said to them, "Thank you for not killing me outright, for going to all that trouble to spare my life... But I'm not worth all this..."
Though its consciousness had been hazy, it could still sense what had happened outside. It had seen "itself" kill so many villagers and commit so many wrongs. In the end, it had even tried to hurt the village chief who had planted it.
Trees had no hearts, but it felt such pain. Its whole body hurt, a torment even harder to bear than Bai Yu's torture.
"It wasn't your fault," the Old Village Chief said. "You're a kind tree. The one at fault was the evil ghost who wanted to use you to do harm."
"But I..."
"You'll forget. It just takes time," Qi Gu said. "You're a tree with a long lifespan, and you've already developed spiritual awareness. If you stay here and protect this place, you'll see Huai Shui Village recover, its population grow, and its fortunes flourish."
The banyan tree was somewhat lost, but the picture