Chapter 33: "I'm Sorry"
After letting go of his attachments, Luo Han felt a wave of mental clarity wash over him, as if a shackle on his spirit had been released.
Even his spiritual perception had changed—his mind could now extend outward, albeit only along the path of his spiritual sense. Still, it was a breakthrough.
Hmm? Within his spiritual sense, he noticed additional fluctuations. These waves seemed to react to his awareness, growing more intense, almost as if they were alive.
What is this? Luo Han wondered.
He continued to sense those strange fluctuations, but couldn't make sense of them.
Then, the waves began adjusting their frequency—
"...So..."
"...rry..."
"...me..."
Suddenly, fragmented words echoed in Luo Han's mind!
"Who's there?!" Luo Han sat up and shouted, scanning his surroundings. No one was there—and the voice had vanished.
That doesn't make sense. No one should be able to hide from my spiritual sense... Luo Han grew suspicious.
Could it be those fluctuations? Yes—it must be. That voice was in my mind, not heard with my ears.
Luo Han refocused his spiritual sense on the waves. This time, the signal came through clearly. It seemed the frequency had fully adjusted.
"I'm sorry."
The voice was still a bit hazy, but he could make it out. "I'm sorry?" Was that... directed at me?
"Who are you?" Luo Han asked aloud, not sure if whoever—or whatever—it was could even hear him.
"I... am the Divine Tree. I can hear you... Just think in your heart, and I'll understand..."
This time the voice was clear—it sounded like a young girl's. Luo Han could understand it perfectly now.
...
"You... you're the Divine Tree? You can speak?" Luo Han stammered after a long pause.
"I've spent hundreds of years learning your language," the bright, crisp voice replied.
Now Luo Han was certain—the fluctuations in his spiritual sense were coming from the Divine Tree itself.
He hadn't expected the Divine Tree to have human-level intelligence. It was astonishing! The fact that it could speak—albeit after hundreds of years of learning—meant it had become something close to sentient.
For a tree, that was already miraculous. He couldn't ask for more.
Sigh. Then, remembering the current crisis, Luo Han's mood darkened.
"I'm sorry... It's my fault this happened to you all," said the Divine Tree.
Luo Han's expression fell. He suddenly felt a deep sympathy for it. He hadn't expected the tree to be so emotionally connected to the people of the island—that it would feel guilt at a time like this.
Then it continued, "My Scaled Fruit will ripen at noon tomorrow. I've been trying to warn everyone…
But no one could hear me—until now. I'm glad you could.
Please... let everyone know. Make sure they leave me as soon as possible."
"What? It ripens tomorrow at noon?! No! I have to warn Uncle Witt and the others—we planned to leave at noon!"
Cold sweat broke out on Luo Han's back. If they left at the same time the fruit matured, it could be catastrophic. He had to tell them now.
Luo Han quickly got up to go warn Uncle Witt.
Just as he stepped outside, he suddenly paused and looked toward the Divine Tree, his eyes soft and warm.
She must be lonely too, he thought. For some reason, he wanted to give her a sense of family.
"Thank you for the warning, Ellis . From now on, I'll call you that—Ellis . And maybe... you can take my surname. Luo Huan. If you'd like… you'll be my little sister… okay?"
Luo Han wasn't completely sure. The voice sounded like a girl's—it should be fine to call her "little sister," right?
"A name? Luo Huan? Hehe, I like it very much. Thank you, big brother!" the tree—no, Ellis —replied with her gentle, youthful voice in his mind.
Shaking his head in amazement, Luo Han made his way to Uncle Witt's house.
Knock knock! Knock! Luo Han knocked on Cole's door.
Clunk! It opened—Aunt Lilian stood there.
"Xiao Luo Han! What's the matter? Come in quickly."
Luo Han entered and saw Uncle Witt and Cole sitting on stone stools.
"Ah! Han-ge, you're here?" Cole said in surprise. Luo Han rarely visited others at night.
"Yeah. Is something wrong?" Uncle Witt asked.
Luo Han hesitated. Should he say that the Divine Tree had spoken to him? That she had become his little sister and told him the Scaled Fruit would ripen tomorrow at noon?
He wasn't sure if Uncle Witt would believe that.
"Uncle Witt, tonight—just now—my Spiritual Fruit reached a breakthrough.
Then I sensed some waves… or rather, a voice.
The message I received said the Scaled Fruit would ripen tomorrow at noon. We need to leave Ring Tree Island earlier," Luo Han said after some thought, deciding to tell the truth.
Upon hearing this, Cole and Aunt Lilian looked at him like he was speaking nonsense. Luo Han could only sigh at their reactions.
"You're serious, Luo Han?" Uncle Witt asked solemnly. As a former Marine Vice Admiral, he knew certain types of advanced Observation Haki could achieve similar results.
Combined with Luo Han's special "spiritual sense," he understood how serious this might be.
"Yes! It was the Divine Tree. She said she's been trying to warn everyone, but only after my power broke through tonight could I finally hear her."
Seeing that Uncle Witt believed him, Luo Han responded quickly.
So it's true—what the elders said. The Divine Tree really is sentient.
"Alright! You and I will go inform your Uncle Kate immediately. Then we'll tell everyone.
Have them all gather at the island's peak tomorrow morning," Uncle Witt said, standing up. He and Luo Han headed off to find Uncle Kate.
After they left, the room fell silent.
Suddenly, Cole shivered. The Divine Tree spoke! And to Han-ge, no less...
Ugh! I want to talk to the tree too! Cole thought jealously. Aunt Lilian, still recovering from the shock, murmured, "The tree… actually talks. Amazing!"
After informing Uncle Kate, the two men began going house to house to spread the news.
Luo Han returned home. From here on, only Uncle Witt and Uncle Kate had the authority to speak and be believed.
At home, Luo Han didn't wake Grandma Mo. There wasn't much to pack anyway.
He lay on his bed again and resumed his conversation with Ellis .
"Ellis , how were you able to communicate with me?" Luo Han asked, curious.
"I felt a spiritual fluctuation like my own coming from you, big brother. So I tried to reach out—and I heard your voice," Ellis replied sweetly.
So that's it—it must've been the breakthrough in his Spiritual Fruit that allowed his spirit to extend along his spiritual sense.
Some thoughts must've caused certain spiritual fluctuations that Ellis could detect.
That made sense. Luo Han felt like he was on the verge of another realization—but he couldn't quite grasp it yet.
Sigh. Better keep training. The stronger I am tomorrow, the more people I can take with me.
"Ellis , I'm going to train now. Next time you grow again, I'll come visit, okay?"
Luo Han spoke to her in his mind.
Ellis replied with a ripple of energy, signaling she understood.
Luo Han withdrew his spiritual sense and stared blankly at the ceiling. With Ellis 's lifespan, who knew how many years it would be before she grew again?
By then… no one might even remember me.
Just made her my little sister—and now it's goodbye already, huh? Luo Han thought with a hint of self-mockery.
(END CHAPTER)
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