Dian Chunqiu patted Li Qing’s shoulder and chuckled, "Once you get back, you can properly research that tree."

"Listening to you, it might even bleed, or it might even take off running when you strike it."

Li Qing was taken aback, "Is it really that bizarre?"

"I’ve brought you a computer and some other devices this time. Just take a good look when you’re back, and you’ll understand. These trivial matters are extremely complicated; I can’t possibly explain them to you in just a few words. You’ll know once you see them," said Dian Chunqiu.

"Throw a thunderbolt, and let’s head back."

Li Qing, somewhat at a loss, nodded and softly uttered a syllable that sounded obscure, "Array!"

Crack!

A muffled thunderclap immediately echoed through the sky.

Dazzling white lightning streaked across the sky, heading straight for that bare willow tree.

"I feel like... that tree seemed to move just now," Li Qing murmured in shock.

With hands behind his back, Dian Chunqiu spoke lightly, "It seems you won’t have to wait until you get back to witness it — this tree is about to show you itself."

The white lightning writhed, instantly shattering a thick willow branch to pieces.

This time, Li Qing saw it clearly—the willow tree really did move slightly.

This was off the charts, the tree had genuinely run away!

"The lizard dropping its tail, I even missed seeing this willow tree’s trick," Dian Chunqiu said with a tinge of jest in his demeanor.

As the willow branch turned to dust, the white Heavenly Punishment lightning quickly dispersed into the surroundings.

It came fiercely and left swiftly.

"Lizard dropping its tail? Are you saying that this fellow sacrificed a branch to escape?" Li Qing asked, astonished.

"Just as you saw, that’s exactly the case," Dian Chunqiu replied.

Today’s two incidents were each more outrageous than the last.

And they had significantly broadened Li Qing’s horizons.

Who could have imagined that even a tree could scheme and escape death?

"Another thunderbolt, let’s see what else it can come up with," Dian Chunqiu said, visibly excited and a little thrilled.

Li Qing sensed the spirit of a cat playing with a mouse in his expression.

This unorthodox director was now having a good time.

"Array!"

Li Qing softly called out.

A massive bolt of lightning, accompanied by a startling crack, appeared out of nowhere once more.

It seemed to have realized that it had just been made a fool of by the willow tree, and this time its arrival was extremely fierce.

The thick white lightning split into dozens of strands, striking the willow tree from all directions.

Amid the thunderous roar, even the cliffside was blown to smithereens, and the willow tree was uprooted entirely, engulfed in lightning.

This bolt of lightning lasted for nearly a minute before dissipating.

"Look, it’s still gasping for life," Dian Chunqiu said with some surprise, "This tree is not ordinary."

"If it had another few decades or centuries, who knows, it might really become something significant."

No sooner had he spoken than another even more ferocious white lightning bolt descended from the sky.

The thunderous sound once again enveloped the willow tree.

The already charred willow tree snapped and cracked, breaking into countless pieces.

"Did you summon it again?" Dian Chunqiu turned to gaze at Li Qing.

Li Qing shook his head, "I didn’t do anything just now."

"Worthy of being Heavenly Punishment, it’s really angered now!" Dian Chunqiu couldn’t help laughing.

"A tree dares to contend with the heavens; it’s quite delusional. It has annoyed Heavenly Punishment, and just thinking of the consequences frightens me."

Li Qing looked at Dian Chunqiu with a strange expression.

"Why do you sound so excited?"

Watching thunder strike trees, Li Qing really couldn’t find what was so exciting about it?

Crack!

Crack! 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

Several more bolts of lightning struck down in succession.

The entire ground trembled with the shocks.

"This is... truly enraged, huh!" Dian Chunqiu watched the wrathful Heavenly Thunder, his face slightly changing color.

Li Qing had long felt that the Heavenly Thunder was more than just angry, it was practically furious.

Look at how it strikes.

It was like Sky Thunder Striking the ground!

After countless bolts of lightning dissipated, the running willow tree was nowhere to be seen, and the hollow in the hills had been filled.

The air was thick with the intense scent of thunder.

Dian Chunqiu looked at Li Qing with a somewhat odd expression and said softly, "Actually, with just those two characters, you wouldn’t need to cultivate any spells at all. Although you don’t have real strength, with just those two strikes of thunder, there are few in the world who can bear it."

"It’s not the same, I still prefer abilities like invisibility and soaring through the skies," Li Qing said with a longing look on his face.

"Compared to these two strikes of thunder you wield, those are mere trifles," Dian Chunqiu said, unable to hide the envy on his face.

He was truly envious.

The spells they knew were learnt by humans, but the magic Li Qing had learned was indeed a celestial art.

Real celestial magic, how could one not be envious?

"Let’s go, we should get back," Dian Chunqiu said, hands clasped behind his back, heading down the mountain.

He took a laptop and a bunch of accessories out of the car and handed them to Li Qing.

"This is the computer provided to each team member by the Ninth Bureau, I’ve already set up your account, just enter your palm print to use it. Your palm print is also your password. Inside, there are the Ninth Bureau’s appointments and transfers, as well as task details from various places which will be updated in real time," Dian Chunqiu explained as he opened the laptop for Li Qing.

"In short, everything related to the Ninth Bureau, you will be able to see here and keep updated."

"More importantly, some spells for cultivation and insights, along with precious texts, are also accessible to a certain extent based on your permissions. For now, you can only access the more basic ones, but that should be enough."

Li Qing looked at the high-tech device, and his head felt like it was being filled with eighty or ninety pounds of water.

It sloshed left with a ’glug,’ then right with a ’glug.’

But no matter how much he shook it, his mind was blank; he had never been in contact with such a device before and had no idea how to use it.

"Senior, could you first teach me how to use this thing?" Li Qing asked with a mournful face.

This was the disadvantage of being uneducated.

He had never encountered such electronic products before and didn’t even fully recognize all the keys.

There were internet cafes in his town, and he had been there with others during his school days.

But back then, his family was poor, and they didn’t have spare money for him to go online.

The few times Li Qing did go to the internet cafe, he was mooching off classmates, watching the kind of movies where multiple men and women fought in melee.

He never got the chance to touch a computer himself.

Dian Chunqiu thought Li Qing didn’t know how to use the Ninth Bureau’s system, so he gave him a detailed introduction.

It never occurred to him that Li Qing had never even touched a computer.

Li Qing listened attentively and got the gist of it in his heart.

It didn’t seem too difficult.

"You should get the hang of it after you go back and practice a little; it shouldn’t be hard," Dian Chunqiu said as he handed the computer to Li Qing and started the car.

"Come by again tonight, and I’ll show you just how lively this world gets at night."