As the black branches erupted from their skin, they coiled and twisted, enveloping their entire body and face with wooden wings unfurling from their back.
However, they were no longer constrained by the size of Cupid's original body.
They began to spread in all directions, their branches sprawling across the sky, engulfing it in darkness.
When the Cupids completed their grotesque transformations, their lower halves morphed into writhing greenish-black branches, each adorned with crimson fruits that oozed a kaleidoscopic liquid—a mesmerizing yet ominous manifestation of countless desires.
Their once-humanoid faces hardened, taking on a woody texture that pulsed with a faint, otherworldly brilliance.
Their roots stretched endlessly, as though emerging from the deepest, most corrupted desires of life, while their branches spread across the night sky, casting a shadow so vast it seemed to consume the very stars.
Arboreal Avatar!
As Sequence 4 Tree Supplicants, they possessed the ability to conjure a Tree of Desire, a parasitic entity that thrived not only on their own desires but also on the cravings and ambitions of those around them. This tree came with innate self-defense capabilities comparable to a Sequence 5 Beyonder.
The more desires the Tree of Desire absorbed, the larger and more potent it grew, bearing crimson fruits that could be harvested and then used to concoct more supernatural drug knowledge.
Alternatively, the apples could be wielded directly, their explosive essence triggering an overwhelming surge of desires upon detonation.
The tree's branches, imbued with concentrated desires, could be transformed into weapons and unleashed upon targets. These weapons did not merely inflict physical harm; they ignited the deep-sealed desires within their victims, forcing them into a catastrophic state of emotional and psychological loss of control.
Upon reaching the level of an Angel, their connection to the Tree of Desire deepened to a mythic level. They could both physically and spiritually merge with their trees, becoming one with their arboreal avatars.
In this state, they were no longer merely wielders of the Tree of Desire's power—they were The Tree of Desire itself, a living embodiment of fulfilled and corrupted desires!
From the twisted branches, small creatures began to emerge, each one clutching a bow and arrow. Their forms resembled that of a Cupid, yet they exuded a haunting aura of pain, anger, and depravity, their expressions twisted into distorted parodies of love and longing.
As these little figures emerged and positioned the arrows towards the others below, the surrounding existences began to undergo transformations of their own.
On the back of the woman with closed eyes, as she wove, four additional arms emerged, their needle-like claws swiftly weaving new threads in a synchronized rhythm. Within the colossal figure, seemingly composed of water-colored time, a massive green sword formed, dripping with decaying pus that emitted an aura of rot and ruin.
Meanwhile, the shadows' eyes flared with an intense rainbow light before vanishing from view, as if they no longer belonged to this dimension—though their watchful presence lingered, an unseen entity observing everything.
The tree-like entity gazed down at the four "humans" below, a mocking smile twisting its gnarled features as it spoke:
"Do you truly refuse to surrender? Don't worry—while I can't promise it will be quick or painless, it will undoubtedly be your wisest choice."
However, there was no verbal response.
An incandescent light pierced through the violet moonlight, illuminating the now-flaming Derrick. A blazing spear of pure white light materialized, radiating an aura of divine intensity, while illusory angelic feathers, glowing with pristine purity, drifted through the surrounding space.
The tree-like figure responded with a twisted smile, brimming with madness and insatiable greed:
"Fine. So perish!"
Then, the whole world began to tremble.