Chapter 31: Heavenly Phenomenon, Winter Dry Thunder

Sun Zhenbang glanced at him, his expression half-smiling, "If I hadn't come, how could I have heard such a wonderful story?"

"And since you think the suspect is a snake, fine, here's the pen—you can write the closing report from now on."

Looking at Sun Zhenbang's solemn expression.

Xie Yixuan wanted to cry but had no tears; finally he understood why his teammate had been blinking desperately: "That, that I was just joking, Team Leader Sun, please don't take it to heart."

"Don't say that baseless talk anymore—how embarrassing for you, still police, to say it without fear of ridicule."

The others, like chicks pecking grain, hurriedly nodded, "Team Leader Sun, we understand."

Seeing that everyone had rested enough, Sun Zhenbang said, "Alright, let's continue onward!"

"'Team Leader Sun, look at the sky—won't it snow again?'"

Sun Zhenbang lifted his head to look at the sky; it was overcast, a large mass of black clouds gathering in the southeast, as if brewing something, like a storm at sea, making people feel uneasy.

"'Hard to say.'"

The sky suddenly turned dreadfully overcast, as if it were about to snow, yet not quite.

"'We'd better hurry; if it starts snowing later, searching will be harder, maybe costing us several days.'"

Hearing this, everyone unconsciously quickened their pace.

As they advanced, the overcast sky suddenly flashed a blinding purple light, illuminating the whole heaven and earth in an instant.

Like a straight sword, it split the sky in two.

Sun Zhenbang and the others couldn't help raising their hands to shield their eyes; it was simply too glaring.

"'Boom—'"

Accompanied by a loud bang, everyone was startled.

"'What's going on?'"

"'Sounds like thunder.'"

"'Thunder in the middle of winter? Impossible—must be an auditory hallucination.'"

Everyone looked up; the cloud mass grew larger, vaguely spreading toward them, nearly covering half the sky.

"'Boom—'"

Another loud bang, a brilliant white light sliced through the dim earth, piercing all darkness and chaos.

This time everyone heard it clearly: it was thunder!

That cloud wasn't ordinary dark cloud—it was a thundercloud!

Thunder in winter—such a sight is rare.

You know, in winter the atmosphere is relatively stable, making convection unlikely; moreover, low ground temperature and dry air hinder cloud formation, reducing the chance of thunder.

Although winter can see thunderstorms, the probability is truly tiny; right now everyone stared, unblinking, at the wondrous sight in the heavens.

The snow-covered landscape illuminated by lightning—this scene is absolutely a natural wonder.

"'How strange—I feel the lightning keeps striking the same spot.'"

Upon looking, they indeed found it true.

"'Exactly, it's been striking there all afternoon—could the lightning have grown eyes, or is there a magnetic anomaly there?'"

The lightning seemed alive; each strike landed almost at the same spot, while other areas were affected only slightly, causing no real hindrance.

What could be special about that place? It seemed extraordinarily favored, and everyone wondered.

"'Could it be that some extraordinary treasure is about to appear? Heavenly omens always herald something remarkable.'"

These words came from Xie Yixuan, spoken with a teasing tone, his face full of curiosity.

Sun Zhenbang glared at him: "You brat, stop reading those fantasy cultivation novels all the time and spouting nonsense; if I hear this again I'll throw all your books away!"

"'I was just joking.'"

Xie Yixuan pursed his lips, muttered a few words unwillingly, then fell silent.

Without warning, the sky darkened and thunder struck suddenly; all these omens portended something extraordinary, yet it came too abruptly.

Eager to try, Xie Yixuan said, "Why don't we go over and see what's happening?"

Sun Zhenbang couldn't help rolling his eyes, lightly tapping his head: "Don't think I don't know what you're up to—you're lax in catching criminals but quick to join the fun."

"'Just take a look—it won't cost you a piece of flesh.'"

Catching a glimpse of Sun Zhenbang's expression, Xie Yixuan muttered, gazing at the distant lightning with longing; his eyes rolled and an idea instantly formed.

"'Alright, everyone stop staring—it's just thunder, what's there to see? Let's keep moving; later we'll split up and keep our eyes sharp.'"

Everyone packed up and prepared to depart; as they dispersed, Xie Yixuan's assigned search spot happened to be not far from where the lightning struck, within his reconnaissance range.

"'Strange indeed. It keeps striking the same area—could it start a mountain fire?'"

Xie Yixuan muttered to himself, somewhat uneasy; after hesitating he turned and said, "I'll go have a look; there shouldn't be any problem."

People are naturally curious; besides, this is such an odd phenomenon, and he usually loves reading strange tales—no wonder he acted this way.

After a while, as he drew nearer to that spot, things became clearer.

Purple light shimmered within; even the white snow on the ground was tinged with that hue, carrying a hint of sharp chill.

Even in the spring‑summer season when thunder is frequent, one has never seen such lightning, let alone in winter!

"'It's really too weird, but there seems to be no sign of fire.'"

Xie Yixuan unconsciously quickened his steps, eager to see what the situation really was.

Meanwhile, on the other side, as the thunder gradually faded, Ye Qin also managed to regain his composure.

"'Everything is finally over.'"

It came with great fanfare and left without a trace—everything was so sudden.

Ye Qin guessed this wasn't coincidence; it must be his own heavenly tribulation!

As for why it didn't strike him…

It probably hasn't come to that; my realm is too low, it's just intimidation.

Ye Qin wasn't entirely sure, but he clearly knew that someday he might have to undergo tribulation; he couldn't help feeling a bit of fear and dread, hoping that day would come later.

As the thunder faded, a crescent silver moon appeared in the sky; at this moment the heavens had not yet fully darkened, giving a feeling of being at the boundary between light and dark.

This could not stop the silver light from gently pouring down, soothing the agitation and unease Ye Qin felt from the tribulation.

Gazing at the crescent moon on the horizon, his snake pupils also became calm once again.

Ye Qin slowly stretched his body, so as to better receive the baptism of moonlight.

This feeling was profoundly mysterious; in an instant, it seemed as if his spirit had left his body, and the whole snake became light and buoyant.

Ye Qin coiled his body together; now his First Realm 'Free Contemplation' had been cultivated to perfection, and his Second Realm 'Creation Body Tempering' had also achieved some success.

As for this point, in fact the First Realm had already been demonstrated.

His white bones were continually tempered, thereby nourishing himself; his bodily strength and hardness kept increasing.

He could even transform his body into a sharp instrument, directly piercing a poacher's chest; moreover, his snake tail could become a whip, capable not only of snapping a small tree at the waist but also of smashing a person's head.

These were merely superficial changes; as he cultivated the Second Realm, with the power of contemplating the moon, he continued to temper his white bones, which is what is called 'Creation Body Tempering'.

His white bones were constantly strengthened, and they continually fed back into himself, thereby achieving true metamorphosis; this endless cycle is the Supreme Contemplation Grand Dao.

(End of chapter)