Chapter 460: I Will Never Refuse You

Nightfall.

Lin Fan sat cross-legged, immersed in his inner world.

The sacred Wutong tree, deeply rooted within his inner realm, flourished with lush green leaves, exuding a surging vitality.

“Huh… It’s sprouted new branches again and even grown buds. It seems this Ancient Sage World is truly a land of treasures. The Wutong Sacred Tree can automatically absorb the Sage Spirit Qi, gradually developing and growing stronger.”

Lin Fan originally had no idea how to cultivate the Wutong Sacred Tree, but after a period of neglect, he noticed that within the Ancient Sage World, the tree had finally begun to develop, and at a surprisingly rapid pace. In just a few days’ absence, many new green leaves had appeared.

Indeed, this Wutong Sacred Tree had once been severed in the Ancient Sage World, falling into the Xuanhuang Realm. Now that it had returned, naturally it could grow once more.

Its powerful life force was extremely important—it was a vital treasure for Lin Fan’s survival.

Lin Fan also hoped the Wutong Sacred Tree would grow quickly. Once it matured, there would be nowhere in this world he couldn’t go.

At the same time, he still had no clue about the “Blood of the Heavens” and the “Heavenly Dao Sutra.” He just hoped they wouldn’t turn out to be too disappointing.

The Eternal Axe, a divine artifact, had been incomplete from the moment he obtained it. According to the War God, fragments of the Eternal Axe still remained in the higher realms.

If he could gather all the pieces, he could reforge it into a true divine weapon.

Moreover, as the War God had warned, if the Eternal Axe remained incomplete, he must never confront any of the Eight Supreme Elders of the Ancient Clans, for it would be impossible to harm them at all.

Of course, all of this still felt too distant for Lin Fan to worry about now.

…

At this moment, in another room.

Xuan’er stood with her head bowed in front of her grandfather, her bright eyes brimming with grievance.

“Xuan’er, you must show him respect from now on, understand? You can’t act so casually anymore,” the village chief of the Wing Clan said patiently.

“But why, Grandpa?” Xuan’er lifted her head and asked.

“Because he is of the Human Clan, the same race as the Heroes,” the village chief replied.

“Heroes? But to me, Grandpa is the real hero. If it weren’t for you protecting our village, everyone would have died,” Xuan’er knew her origins, knew her parents were gone, and knew she was of the Fox Clan.

The village chief shook his head and gently patted Xuan’er’s head. “Grandpa isn’t a hero. Ten thousand years ago, the Ancient Clans slaughtered countless races, and no one dared to speak out or resist. But five heroes of the Human Clan fearlessly confronted one of the Eight Supreme Elders of the Ancient Clans. That battle shook the heavens and split the earth…”

This was the first time Xuan’er had heard this story, and her heart brimmed with curiosity and admiration for those five brave heroes.

“Grandpa, what happened next?” Xuan’er asked, blinking her long lashes.

“After that, no one knows for sure. One of the Eight Supreme Elders of the Ancient Clans never appeared again, and neither did those five heroes. So you must remember, without those five heroes, this region would never have been liberated, and our village would not exist. No one could live openly under the watchful eyes of an Ancient Clan Supreme Elder.”

“And you must remember, he is of the same race as those five heroes. Although the Human Clan has not appeared for a very long time, we must uphold a heart of gratitude. Do you understand? Don’t let him feel unwelcome,” the village chief said.

After listening to her grandfather, Xuan’er finally nodded. “Xuan’er understands.”

If the Heroes were still alive and heard these words, they might feel ashamed, for although they were heroes, they had lured the ancient demon “Gengu” into the Xuanhuang Realm to preserve their final hope. Though they eventually sealed “Gengu,” they also sealed off the Xuanhuang Realm out of fear of the Ancient Sage World.

In the end, only Emperor Yuan remained steadfast, determined to return to the Ancient Sage World and continue the final battle against the Ancient Clans.

…

At this moment, inside the house, Lin Fan was refining pills. The “Dafan Pill” had nearly run out after his extravagant consumption, but fortunately, he still had many herbs left.

When he ascended to the higher realms, Lin Fan had prepared an ample supply of medicinal herbs for emergencies.

In fact, he had nearly emptied the entire herb reserves of the Holy Sect.

“One thought, and the pill is formed!”

A flame suddenly ignited in Lin Fan’s palm. Though the flame emitted no heat, its internal temperature was astonishing.

“Now, the ‘Dafan Pill’ is somewhat of a surprise trump card for me. But I should refine it further when I get the chance. The cultivation levels in the Ancient Sage World are far too high. If I continue using the old pills, their effects might soon fall behind.”

As Lin Fan watched the pills take shape, an idea formed in his mind.

But for now, he hadn’t yet decided which herbs to add or how to combine them for new effects.

At that moment, Lin Fan flipped his palm, extinguishing the flame, for he sensed someone approaching outside.

Knock knock…

“Come in,” Lin Fan said.

Creak…

At the door stood the petite, cute Xuan’er, standing beneath the moonlight, her short, fluffy tail swaying behind her.

She lowered her head, her hands clasped nervously, clearly hesitant to speak.

“What’s wrong?” Lin Fan felt sympathy for the girl’s background. He knew there were countless children like her in the Ancient Sage World.

Stepping onto Ancient Sage World soil meant that one’s fate was left to Heaven, for no one could predict what might happen.

“I… I…” Xuan’er was clearly nervous and embarrassed, as if struggling to say something difficult. But when she saw Lin Fan’s calm smile, she seemed to gather her courage and shouted out:

“I’m sorry…”

Those three words seemed to drain all of Xuan’er’s strength, her cute little face turning bright red.

Hearing this, Lin Fan smiled. Just as he was about to speak, Xuan’er darted away like a flash.

“What a cute little girl,” Lin Fan said with a slight smile, watching her retreating figure.

From the beginning, although the girl had never been particularly kind to him, Lin Fan had never taken it to heart.

After all, she was just a child.

With a wave of his sleeve, Lin Fan shut the wooden door once more.

In the darkness of the night, the old village chief stood beneath the moonlight, watching the scene from afar with a satisfied smile.

A few days later.

Lin Fan ventured deep into the mountains every day, hunting ancient beasts. He brought their corpses back to the villagers.

The villagers no longer regarded him with suspicion, and instead looked upon him with deep respect.

As for Xuan’er, she began to appear frequently in front of Lin Fan, seemingly waiting for something.

One day, just after returning from the mountains and handing over the ancient beast’s corpse to the villagers, Lin Fan was about to return to cultivation when Xuan’er appeared again nearby.

She kept her head lowered, but her eyes occasionally glanced toward Lin Fan.

Seeing this, Lin Fan smiled.

Could this little girl possibly want to befriend him but feel too shy to say so? That’s why she kept appearing in front of him, hoping to catch his attention.

Over the past couple of days, whenever Xuan’er appeared in his sight, Lin Fan had no idea what she was trying to do.

But after thinking it over, he finally understood the truth.

At this moment, Xuan’er floated like a ghost near Lin Fan, feeling a bit upset. Hadn’t he noticed her?

“Xuan’er…” This time, Lin Fan called her name first.

“Ah…” Upon hearing someone call her, Xuan’er’s heart leapt with joy, and she quickly rushed to Lin Fan’s side.

“You called me! Does that mean you want to be friends? If you really want to be friends with me, I won’t say no,” Xuan’er said, her eyes filled with anticipation.

Looking at the little girl barely a meter tall, Lin Fan couldn’t help but laugh.

What a delightful little girl she was.