Extraterrestrial demons invaded; I laid the groundwork eight years in advance.

The fireworks show lasted for half an hour.

As the last firework transformed into a sky full of stars and fell, the crowd began to slowly disperse.

Su Wan stood up, patted her skirt, and had a satisfied smile on her face.

"let's go."

Zhou Ruoruo stepped forward and took Su Wan's arm, asking as they walked if the photos looked good. Su Wan looked at them carefully and gave her feedback. The two chatted and laughed as they walked toward the door.

Shen Bai watched from the side, a slight twitch at the corner of his mouth, as if he were thinking of something.

The three of them slowly walked out of the park with the flow of people, passed through the dimly lit Mody Town, and headed towards the parking lot.

As they parted, Su Wan turned around and looked at Shen Bai. The night breeze blew from the open space in the parking lot, gently ruffling her hair.

"I had a lot of fun today. Can I ask you out again sometime?"

Shen Bai looked into Su Wan's eyes and nodded.

"sure."

Su Wan smiled brightly, her eyes curving into crescents, and waved her hand.

"Then we'll be going now."

Let's meet again next time.

"Bye-Bye."

Shen Bai also raised his hand in farewell.

"Bye-Bye."

Su Wan got into the car, drove Zhou Ruoruo out of the parking lot, turned at the intersection, and then disappeared completely.

Shen Bai stood for a moment, staring at the direction where the two red dots disappeared. The image of Su Wan secretly watching him under the fireworks involuntarily flashed through his mind, and a smile appeared on his lips.

He turned and walked to his car, started the engine, and the car slowly drove into the night.

10 PM, Xiaoqingshan Villa.

Shen Bai entered the house, first went to the bathroom to wash up, and came out wearing a clean dark gray loungewear.

The study door was ajar, and only a desk lamp was lit inside.

The raven perched on the windowsill, its gaze fixed outside, emanating subtle spiritual energy.

Hearing Shen Bai's footsteps, it turned around and let out a soft call, as if greeting Shen Bai, before turning back.

As it fully mastered the cultivation method, its realm steadily improved at a rate of almost one level per day. After a few days, it has now broken through to the seventh level of the first rank.

After the Eye of the Rhinoceros evolved, Shen Bai re-scanned the aptitude of the Transcendent Crow, and as expected, it was purple quality.

  

I just don't know if this is the limit for ravens.

Shen Bai withdrew his gaze, sat down at his desk, and began to deal with the backlog of tasks from the day.

After a day of fun, I have a few things to take care of, but thankfully Xiao Cheng has already prioritized them.

Just as he was absorbed in his work, Xiao Cheng's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Master, some inappropriate comments have appeared online."

Xiao Cheng's tone carried a hint of wariness.

"In the past few hours, a large number of negative articles targeting the Dragon Kingdom and the Dawn Group have appeared on many mainstream platforms around the world. They mainly question our monopoly on cultivation methods, our deliberate concealment of high-level cultivation techniques, and some voices have suggested that the Dawn Group is related to the revival of spiritual energy itself."

Shen Bai frowned slightly: "Is it organized?"

"Our initial assessment is that this is an organized manipulation of public opinion, with posts posted in a highly concentrated period and using similar scripts. I have already traced the IP addresses of some of the accounts, all of which point to public relations firms within the federal government."

Xiao Cheng paused for a moment: "Master, I suspect that this public opinion incident is a counterattack by the Western Continent Federation against the last Great Purge."

"How so?"

Xiao Cheng was silent for a moment, seemingly searching for data.

"These accounts and topics are controlled by a public relations company called 'Grey Fox' in the Western Continent Federation. Behind this company is an investment institution called 'Black Mountain Capital'."

"Among the shareholders of Black Mountain Capital, the top holdings are several long-established military and technology companies in the Western Commonwealth, and these companies all have the shadow of high-ranking federal government officials behind them."

Shen Bai remained silent for a moment, then contacted Li Zhou in his mind.

"Li Zhou, have you noticed the negative online comments about Longguo and Shuguang Group?"

"I'm handling it," Li Zhou's voice rang out, tinged with weariness.

"The Western Continent Federation is coming on strong, and there must be government-level backing behind them. Someone in the Federal Congress has already proposed a bill to conduct a national security review of our operations there."

"What did Chen Zhengping say?" Shen Bai asked.

"The Extraordinary Administration has expressed its support for us, but their influence is mainly within the Dragon Kingdom. This time, the public opinion was secretly pushed by the Western Continent Federation, and we can only take the initiative to guide it at present."

"Arrange a press conference," Shen Bai said. "The time is set for tomorrow afternoon."

"Okay, what do you need me to prepare?"

"Prepare all the data that can be made public—no need for explanations, just present the facts."

"clear."

Li Zhou finished speaking and cut off the communication.

Shen Bai stood up and walked to the window. The night outside was dark, but the lights were still bright.

He knew that this propaganda war was just the beginning. The other side's real goal was not to smear the Dawn Group, but to take away control of the extraordinary cultivation from the Dragon Kingdom.

A raven flew over from the windowsill, landed on his shoulder, and nuzzled his neck with its head.

Shen Bai reached out and patted its head.

"Once you break through to the second tier, it'll be time to get to work," he said.

"Gah—"

The raven cawed once.

---

The following afternoon, at the headquarters of Shuguang Group, in the press conference hall.

Li Zhou walked to the podium, where he was faced with the cameras of hundreds of media outlets.

This time it wasn't a simultaneous global live broadcast, but the reporters on site came from more than 30 countries, and the press conference room was packed.

The large screen behind him displayed the logo of the Dawn Group and the title "Explanation on the Research and Publication of the Three Basic Cultivation Methods".

Li Zhou adjusted the microphone, and the noise in the venue gradually subsided.

Good afternoon, fellow journalists.

"In the past two days, a large number of false statements targeting Shuguang Group have appeared online."

"Some say we monopolize cultivation methods, some say we hide high-level cultivation techniques, and some even imply that the Dawn Group is related to the revival of spiritual energy itself."

He paused for a moment, his gaze sweeping across the entire room.

"Today, I will respond to each and every one of them here."

The large screen behind me switched, and a chart appeared on the screen.

"Regarding the accusation of monopolizing cultivation methods, I will only state one fact," Li Zhou said, pointing to the screen.

"In October 2026, Shuguang Group released three basic cultivation methods to the world free of charge. As of this morning, the official website has been downloaded more than two billion times, covering 10 countries and regions around the world."

"Anyone, at any time, can obtain, learn, and spread the three basic cultivation methods for free. The Dawn Group has never restricted anyone's access to these methods in any way, nor has it ever charged any fees."

He paused for a moment: "Monopoly refers to controlling supply and restricting access."

"But the supply of cultivation methods has never been restricted. How can something that is free and open to everyone be considered a monopoly?"