Madmen don't keep diaries

Chapter 443, Section 442: The Tree in the Tower

Seeing Feng Xiuhu remain silent, Jeffrey Zhang suddenly looked enlightened: "You don't know what the Spirit Tree is, do you? So you don't realize its importance at all, and that's why you think that keeping a secret in this way is making a mountain out of a molehill, right?"

Feng Xiuhu stared at him without saying a word.

Jeffrey Zhang's expression suddenly turned serious: "The Spirit Tree is something coveted by the true gods. You should know how important it is now that I'm telling you this."

"Therefore we must ensure that the information does not leak out."

"So of course we have to lock down the city, while also instilling fear in them and giving them a glimmer of hope to survive. That way, they won't have time to think about anything else but 'survival'."

"Only in this way can this place be completely turned into an isolated city, cut off from the world."

Feng Xiuhu understood; the incense coupons were the tiny bit of "hope" they were offering as charity.

He asked in a deep voice, "The people inside dare not go out, but what if the people outside come in?"

Jeffrey Zhang said matter-of-factly, "It's easy to get in but hard to get out. There's only one entrance and exit. We and the temple have people patrolling all the time. The priests have spying spells, and the cultivators have methods to increase their speed. We won't let anyone escape."

Feng Xiuhu then asked, "You're only talking about ordinary people. What if you encounter cultivators that you can't handle coming in?"

Jeffrey Zhang forced a smile: "That's even more impossible. The environment of Zizai City is special. Cultivators are too busy hiding to even come in on their own initiative."

Feng Xiuhu sneered, "Very well, it seems you've considered everything thoroughly."

Jeffrey Zhang had a bad feeling and quickly defended himself, saying, "This is the best way to handle it. Think about it carefully. If the news gets leaked and attracts other temples and churches, a large-scale battle will be unavoidable."

"These ordinary people in Free City are at least still alive now, but when a real war breaks out, they will only face death."

Feng Xiuhu nodded: "What you said makes sense."

But I won't listen.

He turned to Shunzi and said, "Kill him."

"okay."

Shunzi smiled and agreed, then cocked the bullet with a whoosh.

boom! !

Flames engulfed his head. At close range, Jeffrey Zhang didn't even have time to beg for mercy before his head exploded like a watermelon.

Feng Xiuhu looked around, puzzled, and asked, "Why aren't they showing themselves? What is that high-ranking official waiting for?"

He had assumed that Zijin She would intervene.

As soon as he finished speaking, footsteps sounded behind him.

The two brothers turned around at the same time, and it was Fang Youliu who walked out of the darkness.

Fang Youliu's clothes were a bit disheveled. When he saw Feng Xiuhu, he began to complain, "Why is it so dark? If I hadn't heard the gunshots, I wouldn't have been able to find anyone."

Feng Xiuhu then realized that the formation had not disappeared, so he quickly waved his hand, restoring the clear blue sky.

"How did you come?"

Feng Xiuhu asked.

Fang Youliu said irritably, "I came out to check after settling the old lady in, only to find that you two had lured everyone away."

"I followed the trail and found that they were all gathered outside the garden, so I tidied it up as I went."

Feng Xiuhu suddenly realized—it meant that they had been fighting for so long without seeing any help coming in.

Fang Youliu looked around and asked, "Have you resolved this?"

Feng Xiuhu shook his head: "One got away."

As darkness dissipated, Zijin She was still nowhere to be seen in the garden; she could only have escaped.

Feng Xiuhu turned to look at the tower not far away: "Let's go in and take a look. I'm quite curious about what that tree looks like."

The three of them talked as they walked.

Fang Youliu's curiosity was also piqued: "What tree?" Feng Xiuhu casually replied: "The bishop said that they planted a tree here, and to keep it a secret from others, they are secretly raising it."

Shunzi chimed in indignantly, "I don't believe there's any tree in this world that's more valuable than a human life."

Fang Youliu was completely confused: "So what kind of tree is it?"

As they spoke, the three of them arrived.

Feng Xiuhu looked up and saw that the tower had twelve stories, but perhaps because it was built in a hurry, it did not appear to be gorgeous and complicated. It could even be described as simple and rough, just a relatively tall tower.

It's not hard to guess that this tower was used to conceal the spirit tree.

Wow.

Shunzi loaded a bullet and fired a shot that shattered the tower's gate.

As the gate collapsed with a crash, the three finally saw what was inside the tower.

The entire tower is hollow, with a walkway and staircase built only on one side against the wall. In the very center, there is nothing but a large, leafy tree, about two or three stories high. It looks unremarkable and not as ancient and magnificent as Feng Xiuhu had imagined.

The tower's eight windows are fitted with mirrors, so that sunlight, after being refracted several times, finally converges in the center, bathing the entire tree in golden light.

Feng Xiuhu answered Fang Youliu's question: "The bishop said this about the Spirit Tree."

But there was no response from Fang Youliu for a long time.

Feng Xiuhu turned his head and saw that Fang Youliu's face was extremely ugly.

"Are you having an episode?"

Feng Xiuhu asked.

"Walk……"

Fang Youliu's voice was extremely low, as if it were being forced out from his throat: "Hurry up and go."

Without saying a word, he grabbed Feng Xiuhu and Shunzi on either side and tried to pull them away.

As a result, none of them were moved.

Shunzi was still peering around, seemingly curious about how the lights were converging in one place.

Feng Xiuhu then became concerned about Fang Youliu's unusual behavior: "Where are you going?"

Fang Youliu was getting anxious: "Out of the city! Anywhere is fine, just get away from here! The farther the better!"

Feng Xiuhu expressed his bewilderment: "Everyone's almost dead, and you're scared like this by a tree? Explain yourself first, or I'm not going anywhere."

Fang Youliu gritted his teeth: "If you don't leave, I will!"

After saying that, he turned and left.

They didn't leave.

Feng Xiuhu and Shunzi grabbed him, one on each side.

Fang Youliu smiled with relief: "I'm not leaving. Let's die together."

Feng Xiuhu's face darkened—to be honest, this was the first time he had ever seen Fang Youliu so flustered, making him somewhat unsure of what to do.

"Isn't everything fine now?"

Feng Xiuhu frowned and said, "Make it clear first. If it's time to leave, we'll leave immediately without any more nonsense."

Fang Youliu stopped being ambiguous and quickly pointed to the tree in the distance, saying, "The bishop was right. Its name is indeed the Spirit Tree. In essence, it is no different from ordinary Spirit Trees, but what makes it rare is that—even among tens of millions of Spirit Trees, there might not be one like this."

"You may have heard it by another name in ancient legends."

"Jianmu".

"In legends, it is believed to be a ladder used by gods to travel between the divine realm and the human world."

(End of this chapter)