The Glass Flower

Barna Time, 4:10 pm.

The black domain caused by the oak tree began to slowly dissipate.

When everyone saw light again, it still felt like they were in a dream.

Bathing in sunlight, Anderson felt like he had returned to the mortal world from hell.

"Is it over?"

"I think it's over," Mallory replied with mixed emotions.

"This incident has exceeded our clearance. The most important thing now is to report it to the higher ups and wait for their reply."

"Indeed. We have no idea whether this is a blessing or a curse."

Someone stood up unsteadily, looking worried.

"I don't think we need to be too worried. After all, compared to the Purple Moon's pollution, what we saw just now by the mysterious tree was clearly holy and sacred." Vanni Campbell calmly turned around as she spoke to everyone.

"If it was due to the Purple Moon's pollution, the black domain created by the mysterious tree would have made us lose our minds."

"Therefore, as a member of the Church, I will report the entire situation to my mentor, Madam Rosaria."

"Also, I would like to ask everyone here to not talk callously about the sacred tree."

Vanni Campbell had her own thoughts.

Because what happened to the oak tree undoubtedly gave it a high chance of being deified.

And as a declining religion which has been slowly forgotten by the modernizing world, the Druid Church Group, was in need of an expansion.

If they owned the oak tree in this rainforest, it would be easy for the church's status to rise when it is accompanied by public discussions that are structured properly.

They would be able to welcome a large number of new followers.

As such, Vanni was overjoyed the moment she returned to her senses.

Of course, in order to maintain her image, she tried her best to remain calm and protect the sacred tree image that the oak tree had.

"I can understand how Madam Vanni feels about protecting the oak tree as a member of the Druid Church Group, but I'll reserve my opinion until a conclusion is established."

"In addition, I feel that everyone should use the equipment to check themselves as soon as possible before contacting their respective higher ups."

Although Reid was shocked by the sight produced by the oak tree, he still maintained a clear stance as a faithless person.

Vanni Campbell looked thoughtful before she finally nodded.

"That's true. Since that's the case, let's all do a checkup first and wait for the higher-ups' response. After all, this matter is indeed not something that we can decide."

The others nodded in agreement.

After all, compared to the shocking scene just now, the people who had regained consciousness were more concerned about their own physical condition.

The Purple Moon's pollution was not a small matter. No one dared to take it lightly.

With that, everyone quickly returned to the camp.

The campsite was only a few hundred meters away from them. They quickly walked over and took out instruments that looked like thermometers to scan their faces.

"Degree of Pollution, 0.07."

"Degree of Pollution, 0.23."

"Degree of Pollution, 0.12."

"…"

After everyone finished their checks, they all heaved a sigh of relief.

Compared to the pollutant standard of 10, this amount\ of pollution was merely the residual radiation left behind by the Purple Moon.

When Simon saw the outsiders sigh in relief, he immediately had a rough guess.

But at the same time, he became even more worried.

The chain effect which would happen because of what happened was not something their tribe could deal on their own.

The more mystical the sacred tree seemed, the more likely it was for ruthless politicians to be their next opponent, and the worse off their tribe would be.

There had never been a lack of wars in this world. In face of the current alliance formed between the 12 countries of West York, their tribe was just a pebble which could be easily kicked away.

For a moment, Simon even entertained the extreme thought of silencing all of them.

However, considering how exaggerated the scene produced by the sacred tree was, it was impossible for the satellites of the various countries to not have noticed it.

Thus, Simon could only clenched his fists tightly before slowly releasing them.

To Simon's tribe, the sacred tree's legacy was more important than their lives.

If it really reached a certain point, their tribe would naturally not be sitting ducks.

"A life-and-death struggle? I hope it will never come to that step."

Simon sighed inwardly. At the same time, he placed all his hopes on the sacred tree of the tribe.

The scene created by the oak tree just now was no less than the descent of God.

Which was why Simon felt that the sacred tree might take pity and resolve this crisis which they had since their tribe had served it for so long.

As if responding to Simon's thoughts,

In that instant, Simon felt the ground tremble.

At the same time, the countless birds in the rainforest which were silenced in fright by the black domain suddenly cried out as they flew from the treetops into the sky.

"What's happening again?"

"God, my heart can't take it anymore."

In an instant, everyone's relaxed nerves tensed up again.

At the same time, these people also looked in the direction of the oak tree in fright.

The tremors on the ground were not strong, but they persisted.

In the sky, birds flew in all directions, away from the rainforest.

In front of the crowd, the oak tree which had stopped growing, started to suddenly increase in height again.

The growth of the oak tree was so fast that everyone was speechless.

"Boom…"

The loud bangs continued, and the oak tree began to grow rapidly. From its initial 100 meters…

To 120 meters.

To 180 meters.

To 230 meters.

...

Like a soaring skyscraper, the oak tree finally stopped growing at a height of about 300 meters.

This process took less than half an hour.

Everyone saw the oak tree's branches thicken and its leaves grew larger.

Unknowingly, a strong gust of wind had already swept through the forest.

Everyone's clothes were blown close to their skin, and they found it hard to open their eyes.

"Is this all part of reality?"

Anderson was beginning to doubt his life.

This time, although the oak tree's sudden growth was not filled with special effects like the black domain did, it was still shocking.

The existence of the oak tree had seriously subverted the reality that Anderson had known all his life.

Being told that there were anti-cancer drugs in this world, the black domain appearing and this sudden growth in height of the oak tree - all of this happened within the span of half a day.

And it was also within this half day that Anderson felt like he could no longer differentiate between reality and dream.

He badly wanted to tell himself that this was just a dream.

But with the strong wind howling in his ears, and the huge oak tree which stood in front of him, everything was letting him know that what was happening was indeed reality.

Anderson, who had just turned 36 this year, was unable to describe what he was feeling right now.

However, just as Anderson was unable to control the complicated and nervous emotions in his heart, he smelled an indescribable fragrance.

Blinking, Anderson realized that at some point in time, ochre colored flowers which were brilliant like gemstones were blooming rapidly on the tall oak tree that resembled a skyscraper.