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In reality, Yang Fan wasn’t entirely certain about his own speculations. However, he believed that Liu Qi, like him, was mostly speculating about the Crimson Qilin Fruit’s situation.
There should be exotic beasts below the abyss, but both of them were unsure about the number of these creatures and whether they were lurking in the chambers or roaming outside the caves.
Each of them had their own strengths and weaknesses. The question of who would find the Crimson Qilin Fruit first remained an unknown variable.
As he watched Liu Qi and the others vanish into the darkness, Yang Fan breathed a sigh of relief.
At least for the time being, the likelihood of encountering Liu Qi and his group had decreased significantly, allowing him to search more calmly for the Crimson Qilin Fruit.
“Zhang Jie probably has complete faith in Liu Qi now; I needs to be extra cautious if I encounters him,” Yang Fan muttered, leaning against the wall.
Since Liu Qi and his group had just left, Yang Fan wasn’t ready to leave yet. He decided to stay put at the cave entrance for the time being.
After waiting for about ten minutes, Yang Fan headed towards the cave on the left. Before leaving, he didn’t forget to leave a mark on the wall of the original entrance using his Grey Pine Spear as a signpost.
Standing at the entrance, Yang Fan was about to enter when he suddenly paused, as if struck by a thought.
“Checking each cave individually is too time-consuming.”
“If only there was a way to assess the situation inside the chambers from outside the caves.”
All the cave entrances looked similar, emitting a steady stream of dark mist.
As he observed the dark mist, Yang Fan suddenly froze in place.
“Was I wrong from the beginning…”
Throughout the Qilin Lair, these dark mists were pervasive, present in every cave, every space, even dispersing to the outer areas.
Initially, Yang Fan, relying on instinct, believed these dark mists resembled some kind of fog. Therefore, he attempted to perceive the dark mist using his skin’s touch or sense of smell.
After his previous exploration, Yang Fan could now confirm that the dark mist originated from the contaminated Demon Lotus Thousand Hands!
However, the Rank 1 Exotic Beast Spirit Flesh and the Tianxiang Fruit didn’t emit dark mist!
These two examples indicated that contaminated entities couldn’t be observed directly!
Do Rank 1 Exotic Beast Spirit Flesh emit dark mist? What about the Tianxiang Fruit? Their true forms didn’t emit dark mist at all!
So why does the Demon Lotus Thousand Hands emit dark mist?
In the first chamber, Yang Fan witnessed that every time the green light within the Demon Lotus Thousand Hands vines pulsated, it generated some dark mist.
Realizing this, Yang Fan widened his eyes and smacked his forehead abruptly. “I’m so stupid! I’ve confused the concept of dark mist!”
Although the Demon Lotus Thousand Hands hadn’t attacked Yang Fan, without a doubt, it was a living entity. Crucially, it was a highly advanced creature, one that Yang Fan had never encountered before!
Among the numerous books at Doctor Bai’s place, the majority were about biological studies. One of the books mentioned that research indicated plants also possess consciousness.
So, for a creature of the Demon Lotus Thousand Hands’ caliber, it goes without saying!
Each pulsation seemed akin to its breath!
“I might not know how the Demon Lotus Thousand Hands expels the murky air, but I am certain that the dark mist is not something that can be sensed through physical means!” Yang Fan asserted.
With this realization, Yang Fan finally understood why he couldn’t perceive the presence of the dark mist at all.
The state of the dark mist was somewhat akin to ghosts in spooky tales.
Even if one could see ghosts, they couldn’t touch or feel them, yet ghosts could possess human bodies.
Although he hadn’t actually seen a ghost, stories always depicted them this way.
During his childhood, Yang Fan had heard numerous ghost stories, a common rite of passage for many individuals in the Huaxia region.
In that case, to perceive the dark mist, one should rely on consciousness rather than the five senses.
As for how to use consciousness to sense the dark mist, Yang Fan had already devised a plan.
The crucial point lay in the mysterious orb!
After nearly two days of trials, Yang Fan had gradually discerned some characteristics of the orb’s ability to sense the dark mist.
Firstly, the orb couldn’t detect the dark mist within living creatures. Even the Rank 1 Exotic Beast Spirit Flesh contained dark mist, implying that many exotic beasts might have varying amounts of dark mist within them.
Yet, the orb had never issued a warning before.
This applied to plants as well.
As for why it could perceive the Demon Lotus Thousand Hands, the explanation was simple: it was due to the pervasive dark mist in this location.
Secondly, the orb exhibited an extremely acute sensitivity to dispersed dark mist.
From over a dozen kilometers away, it could perceive the existence of the Qilin Lair, showcasing its capabilities!
Based on these two characteristics, directly analyzing the contamination level of the Demon Lotus Thousand Hands with the orb was challenging. However, differentiating them by assessing the dispersed dark mist from the cave entrances shouldn’t be difficult!
As for the rest, Yang Fan would have to analyze it himself.
“If successful, it could save a significant amount of time!” Yang Fan exclaimed excitedly.
Uncertain about Liu Qi’s progress, time was of the essence. Yang Fan immediately entered the consciousness space.
Inside the consciousness space, the situation remained stable, with the mysterious orb lying at Yang Fan’s lower abdomen, emitting a glow that enveloped his entire body.
Yang Fan transmitted his thoughts within his mind.
Carefully distinguishing the concentration of dark mist at each cave entrance!
As soon as Yang Fan transmitted this idea, the orb faintly lit up!
Simultaneously, Yang Fan suddenly realized his consciousness and physical body overlapped, standing at that cave entrance, facing the pitch-black tunnel.
However, he unexpectedly felt the dark mist lightly touch his “skin.”
With the assistance of the orb, Yang Fan truly sensed the dark mist for the first time!
About two minutes later, Yang Fan slowly opened his eyes.
He was still standing at the cave entrance, facing the dark abyss from before. The dark mist still enveloped him, but this time, he couldn’t perceive it as distinctly.
Yang Fan smiled faintly, shaking his head. “Is this the difference between consciousness and the physical body? Same world, yet such different experiences.”
“I wonder if that state I was in just now is what they call astral projection…”
After this realization, Yang Fan swiftly composed himself, returning to the first cave entrance to once again sense the dark mist using his consciousness.
Two minutes later, Yang Fan furrowed his brow. “The dark mist dispersing from the two cave entrances seems to be somewhat different… The dark mist is denser in the second cave!”
Regardless of whether the situations in the two caves were similar, Yang Fan needed to investigate further. After all, the method of sensing the dark mist using consciousness required validation.
Yang Fan returned to the second cave entrance, cautiously delving into the passage. After walking for seven to eight minutes, he reached the chamber at the end of the tunnel.
“This passage is half the length of the previous one!” Yang Fan roughly compared the differences between the two.
Upon reaching the chamber at the end of the tunnel, Yang Fan immediately spotted the Demon Lotus Thousand Hands covering the entire floor and walls of the chamber.
Through the vine’s surface, he could see green liquid flowing within, rhythmically glowing and dimming, resembling breathing.
Every time it glowed, dark mist dispersed.
Yang Fan surveyed the chamber’s surroundings, but when he saw the wall to his left, he suddenly froze.
On a thin branch crawling along the wall of vines, hung a small dark green fruit.
The fruit was oval-shaped, resembling a walnut in size and shape, with intricate patterns on its surface that appeared almost like runic inscriptions.
With each breath of the Demon Lotus Thousand Hands, it would glow, and when it did, the patterns on the fruit’s surface would light up as well, exuding a peculiar beauty.
Yang Fan immediately raised his wrist screen.
[Demon Lotus Fruit, based on the patterns on the fruit, this fruit is the Qilin Fruit.]
[The Qilin Fruit is a rare spiritual material for cultivation, containing ample energy with a mild medicinal effect. It can be directly consumed, but caution is advised. Sufficient time is required for digestion; the weaker the physical body, the longer the digestion process. Failure to allow ample time for digestion may lead to energy overflow, resulting in severe damage or even permanent injury.]
[Based on cultivation time, Level 3 breakthrough requires over 12 hours, Level 2 requires over 24 hours, Level 1 requires over 48 hours, and for ordinary individuals, over 72 hours are needed. Specific times vary from person to person.]
“It’s… the Qilin Fruit!” Yang Fan exclaimed, eyes wide.
Although the fruit wasn’t crimson, it was undoubtedly a Qilin Fruit.
The method of consciousness exploration was successful!
“Unfortunately, it’s a contaminated fruit…” Yang Fan sighed, turned, took a few steps, then suddenly halted.
After a few seconds, Yang Fan turned back, approached the Qilin Fruit, plucked it, tucked it into his pocket, and left the chamber.