Chapter 148: Night Sky Tree

(Tomorrow is the final exam for Advanced Mathematics, so the author is rushing to cram. This chapter is a bit short; I will make up for it tomorrow or the day after.)

After sending off those uninvited guests, Avia rested her head on Wang Yu and fell asleep before long. In truth, she had fought her way out of the academy alongside him, so her exhaustion was only natural.

Wang Yu’s fatigue was of a different sort—a depletion that occurs when the body reaches its absolute limit, a void that no amount of healing could fill in such a short time. Because of his own formidable regenerative abilities, he did not feel particularly sleepy, yet the sense of frailty radiating from within his body weighed upon him, tangible and persistent.

Avia, however, suffered more from the exhaustion of her mental energy and physical stamina. Once she reached a secure environment, she drifted into a deep slumber quite naturally.

Carefully lifting the girl, Wang Yu settled her into her bed, extinguished the magic crystal lamp, and returned to his own room.

The pitch-black darkness of the room did not hinder his vision. Beyond his keen senses and the power of the Ripple, the most important factor was that he himself was a High Archbishop of the Lady of the Night; darkness would always be his ally, never an obstacle.

Finding a comfortable position against the headboard, Wang Yu released the Ripple to monitor the room and sank his consciousness into his mental space. Above the boundless lake, he called out the name of the Lady of the Night.

Soon, the tall figure of the Lady of the Night, draped in black veils, appeared above the lake in his mental space.

"Good evening, Lady Darkness," Wang Yu greeted.

"Greetings. What does my High Archbishop require of me?" The Lady of the Night did not choose to stand; instead, she manifested the lounge chair she often favored. As she reclined and swayed gently, it was clear she was quite fond of it.

"I wish to confirm if my colleague, Charles Ryder, ever requested your power to conceal his movements, specifically near the academy on the surface of the Royal City."

Wang Yu needed to verify the claims made by the devil "One"—to see if the power Charles used to mask his presence truly originated from the Lady of the Night.

"Yes, that is correct. He requested my power at that time, and I granted it. Under my protection, he buried a card underground outside that academy."

"It matches..." Wang Yu nodded slightly to himself. It seemed the credibility of "One" was indeed high; at least, those specific details were accurate.

"Doesn't your power suffer significant loss when used outside the unique environment of the Shadow of the Royal City? If you were to use your divine arts on the surface, it shouldn't be so easily granted. Could it be that Charles actually prays to you regularly?"

Having confirmed the veracity of "One's" words, Wang Yu turned to another point of curiosity.

When the Lady of the Night was within the unique environment of the Shadow of the Royal City, where the void and reality intertwined, her power consumption was minimal—requiring only a tiny amount of faith crystals as a source.

However, on the surface of the Royal City, using her power required a vast amount of faith. Previously, using her divine arts necessitated long periods of prayer, ensuring the provided faith energy slightly exceeded the cost of the spell.

Yet, no matter how he looked at it, Charles did not seem like the type to pray devoutly. His respect for the gods was on par with his respect for his two superiors—which was to say, non-existent.

"If you have the chance, you might want to observe the development of the Nightfall Church. Perhaps their progress will surprise you. I no longer need to rely so heavily on faith crystals to use my power; the faith energy from the Nightfall Church is sufficient to cover the cost of the divine arts they receive from me."

As she spoke, the Lady of the Night opened her palm, revealing a tiny, pitch-black sapling. Before long, the sapling began to grow rapidly from her hand, rising and thickening.

Once it reached a certain size, she placed it upon the surface of the lake in Wang Yu’s mental space. The sapling, composed entirely of her power, began to grow continuously.

Wang Yu watched as the small sprout transformed in a short time into a towering tree made of pure darkness, yet its dark exterior was dotted with tiny, luminous points, resembling a starry night sky.

"This is?" Wang Yu was unsure of her intent, though, in truth, the object was poetic and beautiful—a giant tree formed of the starry sky, mysterious and lovely.

"This is an extension of my power. Your two superiors visited my avatar in the Shadow of the Royal City earlier and recounted the conversation between you and your captain. I am grateful for your consideration, my friend. They have promised to propagate my faith with a completely natural attitude, rather than one of exploitation."

"That sounds good. That is indeed the two of them," Wang Yu nodded. It was no surprise that Sieg and Shuguin could set aside their agendas and spread the faith without ulterior motives.

At the time, Shuguin might have been so overwhelmed by government affairs and the business of the Night’s Edge that he had been overly utilitarian.

"You may try touching this tree with your mental energy," the Lady of the Night suggested.

"Touch it?" As Wang Yu placed his hand upon the Tree of the Night Sky, images flooded his vision. They were people of various appearances; his view was narrow, seeing only their faces. Some were familiar—they were members of the Night’s Edge.

Beyond these images, Wang Yu felt something he could manipulate. This tree, essentially an extension of the Lady’s power, seemed subject to his control—for instance, he could sever the connection between these individuals and the tree.

"This tree represents my power, and it also represents the connection between my believers on the surface and myself."

"I believe that since the Night’s Edge has adopted me as one of their objects of faith, I should provide some assistance to my believers. However, I do not wish for this power to be abused, whether it harms the reputation of the Nightfall Church or causes trouble for you."

"Therefore, I leave this tree, which represents my connection to the believers on the surface, in your mental space and grant you control over it. You may use it to sever their connection to me, or, for a short time, allow them to use divine arts more powerful than the faith energy they provide."

The Lady of the Night explained the significance of the tree and why she had left it in his care.

"Is this the ability of a 'god,' even an incomplete one? Still, this thing seems to have other uses," Wang Yu thought. Even if the Lady of the Night was an incomplete existence in the eyes of "One," her abilities were truly extraordinary.

"Thank you for your trust. But can this allow me to interact with them?" Wang Yu thanked her; even without the functions he had imagined, this was immensely helpful.

At the very least, when leading a mission, he could provide support to the believers of the Lady of the Night within his team, and effectively prevent others from using her power against him. After all, he could not always spare the mental energy to contact the Lady herself.

"It should be possible. The connection between this tree and the believers is identical to the connection between them and me. Just as I send down oracles, by consuming a certain amount of faith energy, you should be able to convey messages to them."

"Shall we try?" Wang Yu looked at Charles in the images. The man was a shallow believer; he could feel the connection between Charles and the tree was faint, but it existed.

Following the sensation transmitted by the tree, Wang Yu used his mental energy to channel his words into it. The tree converted his words through the faith energy into a message, delivering it to Charles, who was pacing in his room.

"Can you hear me, Charles?"

Charles, who had been pacing aimlessly, suddenly felt a voice appear in his mind out of thin air. He was startled, looking around in surprise and vigilance, his hands already holding the Tarot cards of the Chariot and the High Priestess, ready for action.

Then, realizing the voice in his head sounded familiar, Charles tentatively asked, "Wang Yu?"

This response was likewise converted into information by the Tree of the Night Sky and transmitted to Wang Yu as a voice.

"It’s me," Wang Yu replied. Their communication proceeded through the tree.

"Wait, how are you contacting me? I felt a ripple of the void... this is the power of the Lady of the Night."

Charles’s tone was filled with obvious shock. He did not fully lower his guard; even if the voice was the same, it could be a ruse. It was only when he identified the familiar trace of the Lady of the Night’s power—the same he had felt in the Shadow of the Royal City—that he relaxed.

"You scared me. Why are you calling me like this? Can't you just use a communication crystal? I’m already struggling with all the unanswered messages from the Professor and the Captain..."

Only after sensing the familiar power did Charles settle down, beginning to complain about Wang Yu’s intrusion and his own frustrations.

"Nothing much. Just telling you that heaven watches what men do. It’s best to be careful when you’re being disrespectful to the God of Light and the Lady of the Night in the future. They probably really can see you; they just can't be bothered to deal with you."

He left Charles in the room, stunned and suddenly pale as he recalled his numerous acts and words of disrespect toward the Lady of the Night and the God of Light, causing him to pace even more uneasily.

Having confirmed that the Tree of the Night Sky could indeed transmit messages to the believers, a bold idea sprouted in Wang Yu’s mind.

Could he use this tree as a core to allow the believers of the Night’s Edge to communicate with each other through prayer? If this could achieve real-time communication, the significance of this object would be immense...