Putting this thing into the Celestial Demon’s waist pouch, Qin Yuesheng immediately left the yamen and returned to the inn.

Due to the mysterious deaths of four sect members, the other White Lotus Sect members followed Qin Yuesheng’s orders, bought some items to ward off evil from the streets, and collectively stayed at the inn without daring to go out, which was quite convenient for Qin Yuesheng.

Upon seeing Qin Yuesheng return, these White Lotus Sect members immediately approached him.

"All of you return to the ship and sail to the center of the river. Do not dock before sunrise tomorrow," Qin Yuesheng instructed.

Though his command was strange, the sect members promptly complied.

Ning Houbo had said that once night falls, the residents of Antong County would lose their memories, and when they wake the next day, they would remember nothing of what happened the previous night.

This matter is quite peculiar, so Qin Yuesheng planned to stay one more night to observe what was really happening.

Recalling the strange deaths of the four White Lotus Sect members that morning, Qin Yuesheng believed this matter was closely related to the residents of Antong County.

Night falls.

Qin Yuesheng sat cross-legged on the inn’s rooftop, quietly gazing down at the street below. When night came, the residents of Antong County had long returned to their homes to sleep, making the entire county appear extremely quiet, without a single soul in sight.

At midnight, the streets suddenly became lively. From every household emerged figures with black hair and white clothes, drifting through the streets, collectively moving in one direction.

Qin Yuesheng’s heart stirred, he knew the direction well—it was the county’s center, where the lush, canopy-like tree was located.

His curiosity piqued, Qin Yuesheng deployed the Carefree Heavenly Travel Skill to ascend into the air, following the figures on the street toward the large tree.

At night, the tree emitted unusual light from both branches and leaves, with clusters of green light bobbing up and down like bubbles along its sides.

With the Biluo Eye, Qin Yuesheng enlarged his view and was startled to find that within those light clusters were faces wailing in agony.

The figures all gathered beside the large tree and sat down one after another, quickly filling the nearby ground.

Qin Yuesheng found a rooftop to descend onto, looking around cautiously.

Exceptionally quiet, no one spoke.

A powerful suction suddenly erupted from within the large tree, transforming instantaneously into a green gust that swept through the surroundings. Each figure touched by this wind had a cluster of white light float from their heads, which then merged into the large tree.

Without the white light, the figures’ bodies instantly dimmed significantly, as if they might dissipate at any moment.

"Not enough, not enough, relying solely on these is far from sufficient. You must bring me more vitality. Otherwise, when the next great calamity descends, even if I use the human luck array, it will be of no use." A voice suddenly emerged from within the tree, surprising Qin Yuesheng — the tree actually could speak.

Under Qin Yuesheng’s gaze, an aged face slowly surfaced on the tree’s body. As soon as this face appeared, four branches grabbed four green light globes from beside it and brought them to the mouth.

Upon seeing this, Qin Yuesheng noticed that the faces within the four globes were actually those of the four White Lotus Sect members found dead in the well this morning.

The face on the tree opened its mouth wide, directly swallowing the four light globes and began to chew like a human.

"Last time Elder Huai suffered the Celestial Fire calamity, although it sacrificed the lives of the entire Antong County’s population to unleash the human luck array, it was still severely injured and urgently needed to consume a large amount of vitality for healing. With so many newcomers arriving yesterday in town, why did you not capture them all and offer their life force to Elder Huai?" At this moment, a squirrel climbed down from the tree’s crown, standing on an exposed root, and shouted at the surrounding figures.

The squirrel, glistening with sleek fur, stood like a human with hands-on-hips and legs upright, looking quite comical.

Hearing its words, the large tree immediately exclaimed, "Are there newcomers in Antong County?"

"Yes, Elder Huai, there’s many of them. If you could absorb all the life force from them, it would certainly help your wounds recover substantially." The squirrel wagged its tail and smiled.

"Where are those people now?" The tree opened its eyes wide, shouting excitedly.

A figure replied, "Elder, those people are filled with vigorous blood energy, we can’t approach them during the day. At night, one of them exudes a strong Primordial Yang aura, covering a large area, preventing us from getting close as well, so we could only kill four people distant from that area, and offer their life force to you."

Qin Yuesheng thought to himself, those White Lotus Sect members are all martial arts practitioners, their vigorous blood energy naturally being quite normal.

"Where are those outsiders now?" the tree asked.

A figure responded, "They’ve already left Antong County. They’re currently anchored in the middle of the river."

"Go get them!"

"Yes."

The group of figures suddenly became restless, quickly dispersing and soon vanished from Qin Yuesheng’s sight.

"This tree has long become a spirit, achieving a level worthy of attracting the Celestial Fire calamity for destruction, marking its considerable strength. Yet, it couldn’t resist alone, sacrificing the lives of Antong County’s entire population to shield against the Celestial Fire calamity." Qin Yuesheng had suddenly understood the entire situation concerning the changes in Antong County.

The residents of Antong County, who should have already died, were likely turned into ghostly forms by the tree using some unknown method to collect vitality for its healing.

Qin Yuesheng raised the Celestial Demon Evil Blade; with the tree spirit injured right now, it was an opportune moment to face it.

"Elder Huai, if you can absorb the lifeforce of three hundred people, once fully recovered, you wouldn’t need to stay in this place anymore. At that point, the world is vast, yours to roam." The squirrel saluted the tree, its actions notably humanoid.

"I grew up in this Antong County, living through four hundred thirty-six years, suddenly being told to leave in the future, I indeed feel a bit reluctant," Elder Huai murmured.

Originally a locust tree, it rooted and sprouted in Antong County, gradually flourishing. But unknown since when, it suddenly gained sentience, inherently understanding how to absorb sunlight and moonlight, reaching its current peak.

The people of Antong County were exceedingly fond of the locust tree rooted at the town’s center, never neglecting to water it, covering it with quilts in winter to prevent frost damage, and diligently protecting it from pests, fearing anything might happen to the old locust tree.

However, everything in this world possesses self-interest, and to smoothly pass through the Celestial Fire calamity, the old locust tree did not hesitate to sacrifice the lives of the entire population of Antong County as a shield, forcibly unleashing the human luck array to barely withstand the Celestial Fire calamity.

Just as the tree and squirrel chatted, a cold glint suddenly descended from the sky, directly slashing toward the trunk of the locust tree.

"Elder, beware!!!"

The squirrel, quick-witted and quick to react, immediately shrieked.

Nevertheless, it wasn’t fast enough for Qin Yuesheng’s blade strike, and in an instant, the Celestial Demon Evil Blade struck the tree, carving a groove several feet deep.

Swish, swish, swish!

Simultaneously, several branches shot out, swiftly binding Qin Yuesheng’s wrists to prevent him from exerting further force. But Qin Yuesheng’s strength was not so easily subdued; he pressed the attack further into the tree, causing the elder locust tree to wail in agony.

"Such potent Primordial Yang aura!" the squirrel exclaimed.

The old locust tree’s trunk was substantial, and despite being cut several feet deep, its foundation wasn’t compromised. Yet the Celestial Demon Evil Blade carried a corrosive force, steadily eroding its bark.

If an ordinary person were grazed by the Celestial Demon Evil Blade, within five breaths they would transform into a celestial demon—that Qin Yuesheng had tested numerous times. However, this was the first time using it against a tree spirit, and even Qin Yuesheng himself couldn’t predict the outcome.

"Seeking death!" the old locust tree opened its mouth wide, and a grotesque creature formed of numerous mismatched faces climbed out. It was covered in faces—men, women, young, old—all displaying expressions filled with anger and resentment, emitting a thick aura of malice that made it feel like one’s skin was being scraped.