Chapter 384: I Can Sense It…

Downstairs.

Xia Kunyun and the white-haired sword sage, Bai Yun, were passing by the Dao Tree when they were immediately captivated by its divine aura.

"Is this the Dao Tree you obtained from Changbai Mountain?"

They had watched the live stream. While watching, they were itching to be there in person, believing they could have acquired more treasures if they were present.

Members of the Shadow Society lurked in the surroundings, not daring to get too close.

"Target has appeared."

They simply relayed the information. The rest was for the organization to handle.

"Brother Liu, what are you doing?" Xia Kunyun asked.

Liu Haichan sat meditating in front of the Dao Tree, his aura restrained. He had made rapid progress recently, surpassing many others. Hearing Xia Kunyun's voice, he slowly opened his eyes.

"Cultivating."

A simple reply, just two words, was enough to illustrate a point: Liu Haichan was no longer the same. His concise response, giving off an unfathomable air, suggested he wouldn't waste words.

In short: I, Liu Haichan, am incredibly powerful now.

Xia Kunyun carefully observed Liu Haichan, inwardly shocked. Liu Haichan's aura was far more profound than before. He knew, without a doubt, that Liu Haichan had made significant progress, exceeding his expectations.

"Can I have a leaf?" Xia Kunyun asked.

Liu Haichan said indifferently, "You can take one yourself."

The Dao Tree possessed sentience. Its leaves were right there, but were they that easy to obtain? Even he, who offered incense and prayers daily, hadn't earned the Dao Tree's further favor.

As for Xia Kunyun… forget about it.

Xia Kunyun walked towards the Dao Tree. Just as he approached, he abruptly stopped. A startling aura erupted from the tree, a sharp sword intent… as if warning him that he would be shredded if he dared to come closer.

"What's wrong?" Liu Haichan suppressed a smile, feigning ignorance, seemingly enjoying Xia Kunyun's predicament.

"You're a bad person," Xia Kunyun said helplessly.

Liu Haichan smiled without replying.

My fault? What does it have to do with me? The Dao Tree is a noble being. Haven't you seen me praying every day, hoping to get closer to it and learn more authentic Daoist cultivation techniques?

Of course… he hadn't gained the Dao Tree's favor yet. But he had previously received the Qingxin Jue (Clear Heart Mantra), which was enough for him to comprehend for a long time.

Bai Yun, the white-haired sword sage, stared at the Dao Tree in astonishment. He cultivated the way of the sword, and the aura he had just sensed was a pure sword intent, something he yearned for.

"This…"

He approached the Dao Tree, wanting to comprehend its essence. However, the Dao Tree was too mystical for him. With his current strength, he couldn't grasp anything.

At that moment, Lin Fan and Old Zhang appeared.

"Old Sword Sage, long time no see," Lin Fan greeted Bai Yun with a smile.

Bai Yun was very enthusiastic upon seeing Lin Fan, his lifesaver. He also knew that Yanhai City's safety and One-Eyed Man's comfort were due to Lin Fan.

"Indeed, it has been a while," Bai Yun replied.

Lin Fan asked, "Do you like it?"

Bai Yun said, "I cultivate the way of the sword. I just sensed an unprecedented sword intent from the Dao Tree and wanted to comprehend it. But my cultivation is too weak; I can't grasp anything from it. It's a pity."

"Is that so?" Lin Fan looked curiously at the Dao Tree, then nodded. "Hmm, I think you're right. Cultivating and becoming stronger is interesting. I have a headache now because my previous cultivation methods are no longer effective."

He missed his old cultivation methods.

Electric current cultivation! Heavy object self-beating method! They were useful back then, but now they were useless, like someone tickling him.

Lin Fan walked up to the Dao Tree and gently plucked a leaf. The Dao Tree didn't dare to resist, only rustling its leaves slightly in protest, as if to say, "Don't go too far."

"Here you go." Lin Fan handed the leaf to Bai Yun. "Maybe it will help you."

Bai Yun stared at Lin Fan in shock, looking flattered. He took the leaf with trembling hands. The moment he touched it, he felt a pure and vast sword intent contained within.

"Really giving it to me?" He still couldn't believe it, even holding it in his hand. It seemed the impact on him was immense.

Lin Fan smiled. "Of course. You wanted it, and we know each other. If you need it, I'm willing to help."

Bai Yun felt like crying. Looking at Lin Fan's sincere smile and eyes, he nodded. After all these years, he felt that Lin Fan was truly charismatic.

"I want one too," Xia Kunyun said hurriedly.

He hadn't expected it to be so easy to obtain something good. He also thought, with my status and character, since I've already asked, there shouldn't be any problem, right?

Liu Haichan, who had remained silent, frowned slightly. He hadn't expected Xia Kunyun to be so shameless as to ask directly.

Lin Fan looked at Xia Kunyun, racking his brain, but couldn't recall who he was or where they might have met.

"Do I know you?" He was simply asking.

However, to Xia Kunyun, these words were like a thunderclap, shattering his composure.

Liu Haichan burst out laughing, tears almost streaming down his face. Listen to that, how hurtful! The most hurtful words are often the simplest, without any complex rhetoric. But to the listener, they are like a disaster.

"We ate together once," Xia Kunyun said. It was in Xia Du, with a group of people. Although several months had passed, there was no need to forget so quickly.

If One-Eyed Man were present, he would definitely applaud. Worthy of Yanhai City's Lin Fan, regaining face for me, One-Eyed Man!

Lin Fan said, "I may have forgotten. But the Dao Tree just told me it can't give out any more leaves."

What he said now was true. But to Xia Kunyun, it was a rejection, a blatant rejection.

Bai Yun said, "Officer Xia, getting one leaf is enough. Don't be too greedy."

Xia Kunyun felt wronged. I was just asking, nothing else. I simply wanted to see how close my relationship with Lin Fan was.

Unexpectedly… he didn't even remember who I was. That was the most hurtful thing.

A Shadow Society member, observing the situation, saw Lin Fan mingling with the people from Xia Du. His expression changed drastically.

Within the Shadow Society, a terrifying rumor circulated. Any Shadow Society member who faced Lin Fan would vanish without a trace, completely erased from this world.

"Calling the organization, the situation has changed. Bai Yun and Xia Kunyun have met with Lin Fan."

This member, Xiao Zhou, was once timid and often bullied. He later joined an organization to train his courage and, after a period of training, became much bolder. He then met a girl… and became a member of the Shadow Society.

It was hard to escape.

After a moment of silence, a voice came from the other end.

"What's the situation?"

Xiao Zhou didn't know the exact situation, but his cautious nature told him not to take risks.

"Bai Yun and Lin Fan are chatting happily. It seems like Lin Fan will escort them back, but the specifics are unknown. You can try to intercept them. If it's true, you can escape."

His mission was simple: observe the situation and inform them when Bai Yun and the others left, so the Shadow Society could intercept them midway.

When Xiao Zhou said this, the other end fell silent. No one spoke; there wasn't even a sound.

"Hello! What's going on over there? Is there a problem?" Xiao Zhou asked knowingly.

Damn it! If Lin Fan escorted them, they wouldn't dare intercept them even if they had ten times the courage. That was a death sentence.

"Xiao Zhou, you just said that Lin Fan would escort them back, right?"

After a long while, a voice finally came from the other end.

Xiao Zhou replied, "Probably."

"Don't say probably. Is it or isn't it?"

Now Xiao Zhou was stunned. The member's question made him forget how to answer. After careful consideration, he said, "Yes, Lin Fan is escorting them."

"Mission aborted."

"Why aborted?"

"You want to go?"

Xiao Zhou remained silent. It seemed reasonable. After all, everyone was afraid of facing Lin Fan. It had become a taboo, a terrifying existence that humans dared not touch.

Damn it! We're all human; why is the gap so huge? I really can't understand it.

At that moment, Lin Fan and Bai Yun were casually chatting. Bai Yun had a good impression of Lin Fan. He thought Lin Fan was a good person, polite, gentle, and never argued with others.

Moreover, after the incident with the leaf, Lin Fan's status in Bai Yun's heart had skyrocketed to an extremely high level.

Upstairs, One-Eyed Man stood by the French window, calmly observing the situation below. He sincerely wanted to help Xia Du.

The current situation couldn't be resolved by a single person. It required the concerted efforts of all humanity to gain an advantage in this confrontation.

Now, because of Lin Fan's existence, they held an absolute advantage.

Suddenly, snow began to fall from the sky.

"Hmm?" One-Eyed Man frowned.

Snowing? It was only August. Under normal circumstances, it shouldn't snow.

Hopefully, it wasn't a bad omen.

Outside.

"It's snowing."

Lin Fan looked up at the sky, catching the falling snowflakes, a bright smile on his face.

"Wow, I love snow!" Old Zhang jumped up joyfully.

They had encountered snow in Changbai Mountain, but it was already on the ground, not like this.

But soon, something felt wrong.

"There's something wrong with this snow," Bai Yun shouted.

Indeed, although it seemed to be falling slowly, the ground was already covered with a layer of frost. The sun shone down, but it didn't melt the snow, as if it had no effect.

An extremely cold temperature swept over them.

"Quick, get inside," Bai Yun said.

At this moment, the Dao Tree's leaves rustled. Then, a golden light emanated from the tree, surging towards the sky. A diagram of the universe appeared, completely enveloping Yanhai City.

"Lin Daoming, did you see that? This is true Daoist magic!" Liu Haichan's eyes shone as if he had seen something extraordinary.

He shouted excitedly, looking around. He didn't find Lin Daoming. At such a crucial moment, Lin Daoming wasn't there to witness it. Damn it.

Because of the diagram conjured by the Dao Tree, the snow stopped falling, but they could see it continuously landing on the diagram, accumulating without melting.

This put a strain on the Dao Tree, consuming a great deal of its energy.

One-Eyed Man's heart skipped a beat when he saw this. Could it be as he feared, a true anomaly?

In the conference room, everyone who had a say gathered.

Jin He Li, adjusting her glasses, said, "We've analyzed the falling snow and discovered it's not naturally formed. It contains a mysterious power. Even if burned at several hundred degrees Celsius, it won't melt."

"We are currently compiling satellite images. We'll know the situation shortly."

"Thirteen cities are currently experiencing this snowfall."

"Those cities without the Dao Tree's protection have already experienced incidents and casualties in this short period."

Jin He Li's expression was grave, as if facing a formidable enemy. The unknown cause was the most worrying aspect. If this continued, the consequences would be unimaginable, with countless casualties.

Xia Kunyun contacted headquarters, his face grim. After hanging up, he said solemnly, "Xia Du is experiencing the same situation. It's already covered in snow. At this rate, it will reach a foot deep within an hour."

This was a serious problem. The snow wouldn't melt; it was clearly deliberate.

But who was behind it? No one knew.

Wu Sheng and Elder Wu pondered for a moment.

Finally, Wu Sheng said, "I believe this is the work of a celestial race, a type of formation that can precisely target specific areas. A celestial being with such power is not to be trifled with."

"Who could it be?" One-Eyed Man asked.

Wu Sheng shook his head. "It's hard to say. Our cultivation is too weak to identify the culprit based on aura alone. But the only thing we know is that whoever caused this is not friendly towards you. Perhaps their intention is to eliminate all life here, so they can excavate the secrets of this place undisturbed."

Elder Wu didn't want to get involved. Someone capable of such a feat wasn't someone they could afford to provoke.

"I can sense it…" Lin Fan muttered to himself.

"Sense what?" One-Eyed Man asked hurriedly.

Lin Fan smiled. "A powerful being."