Su Mu leaned her head back against the cool wall of the tent, closing her eyes for a moment.

The throbbing in her shoulder from hitting the wall during the shockwave had dulled to a persistent ache, a minor complaint compared to what others had suffered.

[Source Power: 2.18%]

The number on her attribute panel ticked up another tiny fraction. 

It was slow, but it was something.

'Two full points,' she thought again, each point felt precious, hard-won from a moment of terror and suffering. 

'I need to figure out the best way to use these.' She thought.

'Upgrading my Spiritual Sense seems like a good first step. Being able to perceive more,… that could be lifesaving.' She also considered the Lunar Disc Breathing Method. 

Even though the panel said it was 'Un-upgradeable' due to the incomplete Will Rune, she wondered if there was a way to use Source Power to perhaps speed up the rune completion itself, or to make the existing, incomplete method more powerful. 

The information from her Golden Finger had hinted at upgrading skills and attributes.

So there is another option to directly improve her own attributes.

Thinking back, the image of the glowing obsidian knife, pulsing with stolen life force, flashed in her mind. 

That was very powerful too, but a grotesque, horrifying kind. 

Her own power, the Empathic Siphon, felt… different. 

It absorbed energy, yes, but it didn't seem inherently evil. 

It was a tool. 

And like any tool, its worth would be determined by how she chose to wield it. 

The thought was both empowering and a little frightening.

Beside her, Xu Er had her eyes closed, but Su Mu doubted she was sleeping. 

Her dark lashes feathered against her cheek, and her breathing was a little too controlled. 

The encounter with the cultists, the sight of their brutality, had clearly affected her more deeply than she let on.

After a while, Xu'er let out a soft sigh and opened her eyes, turning her head to look at Su Mu. 

Her purplish eyes, usually sparkling with mischief, were shadowed with weariness.

"Still feeling those tremors?" Xu'er asked, her voice quiet. 

Indeed, every few minutes, a low, distant thud would vibrate through the floor, a reminder of the titanic struggle still ongoing miles away.

Su Mu nodded. "It's hard to ignore. That woman from the Silent Gale Hunters… and her brother… they're incredibly powerful."

"B-rankers," Xu'er confirmed. 

"When they really let loose, they can level city blocks."

"Let's just hope she finishes that bastard quickly, before he causes even more damage, or worse, draws something even nastier from whatever dark hole he crawled out of." She ran a hand through her hair. 

"Cultists… I hate them. They twist everything good and pure for their sick power grabs."

"You've dealt with them before?" Su Mu asked, curiosity piqued.

Xu Er gave a short, humorless laugh. "In Monster City? If you work in places like RomantiX, or anywhere that attracts a… diverse clientele, you eventually cross paths with all sorts."

"Some are just looking for thrills. Others are looking for something darker."

"You learn to spot the signs, usually those evil god followers won't dare to come public causing trouble like today."

 "Today was… unusually brazen. They did everything right out in the open like that." She shivered slightly. "That knife… what do you think that was?"

Su Mu thought of the pulsing crimson veins, the way it seemed to drink the life from the victims. 

"I don't know," she admitted. "But it felt… alive. And hungry."

They fell silent again, lost in their own thoughts. 

While Su Mu and Xu'er were still in the waiting area, a new focal point of activity caught Su Mu's attention. 

Not far from where they were sitting, a group of Night Patrol guards had gathered. 

Their posture was stiff, respectful, and tinged with urgency. 

Curious, Su Mu kept a discreet watch on what was happening over there.

Soon, she saw several groups of Night Guards, their standard-issue armor, standing respectfully in front of an old man who had arrived not long ago. 

He looked like he was in his seventies, wearing simple, almost civilian-looking casual clothes that seemed out of place amidst the uniformed personnel. 

But there was an undeniable air of authority about him, a quiet power that made the battle-hardened guards stand a little straighter. 

Just looking at him, Su Mu guessed that his actual age might be more than two or three hundred years old, much like her own grandfather, whose appearance belied his true age thanks to his high awakening level. 

This man was clearly someone important, a high-ranking official perhaps, or a veteran Awakener of considerable power.

One of the officers, a fierce-looking man with a captain's insignia on his uniform and a serious, almost stony expression on his face, stepped forward and spoke to the old man in a low, grave tone. 

Su Mu, thanks to her enhanced senses, could just make out his words.

"Commander," the officer said, his voice tight with controlled emotion, "we found what happened to the missing Night Guards, the ones who were on duty in the Emberlight District when the incident began…"

The old Commander's gaze sharpened, his quiet demeanor becoming even more intense.

The officer continued, his words painting a chilling picture that finally explained the delayed response of the city's protectors. 

"They were all poisoned at the same time."

"The cultists… they used some kind of curse transfer method, not giving them any response time, no chance to find antidotes or even send out a distress signal." He paused, and the next words hung heavy in the air. 

"Unexpectedly… none of them survived, sir. That's why our response was so late. The sector was… momentarily blind."

A wave of cold realization washed over Su Mu. 

The Night Guards hadn't been negligent. 

They had been victims themselves, taken out by a cunning and ruthless tactic before the chaos even fully erupted on the street. 

The cultists hadn't just planned a public ritual; they had systematically dismantled the first line of defense.

Xu'er, noticing Su Mu's focused attention, leaned closer. "What is it, Missy? More bad news?"

Su Mu slowly recounted what she'd overheard. Xu'er's face, already pale, lost another shade of color. 

"Poisoned… all of them?" she whispered, her voice filled with disbelief. 

"Those bastards, what kind of sick assholes they were; they targeted the Guard first."

"That's… that's practically declaring war on the entire city."

The information cast an even darker shadow over the day's events.

As the old man and other Night Guards left the area, both Su Mu and Xu Er continued to keep their silence.

Time seemed to stretch. 

Medical personnel came by periodically, offering nutrient bars and water, checking their vitals. 

Su Mu watched her Source Power creep slowly, agonizingly, upwards. 

By the time another hour had passed, punctuated by more distant rumbles, it had only reached [Source Power: 43.35%]. 

The ambient energy in the waiting hall was too diffuse, too diluted by then.

Finally, a medic approached them with a datapad. "Miss Su Mu? Miss Xu'er? We've completed your secondary assessments."

"You're cleared to leave when you're ready. We can arrange transport if you need it, or you can contact someone to pick you up."

Xu'er pushed herself to her feet, stretching stiffly. 

"Thanks. I think we can manage from here." She looked at Su Mu.

"Ready to get out of this place, Missy? I could seriously use that drink now. Or maybe five."

Su Mu nodded, a wave of relief washing over her. 

As much as the medical camp was a place of safety and care, it was also heavy with the ghosts of the day's trauma. 

"Yes," she said, her voice a little stronger. "Let's go."