Chapter 1726: Chapter 1727: Awareness

“How… exactly is this achieved? Can the Data Domain now interfere with life forms?”

Qi Chen looked at Feng Yuan in surprise and asked. Feng Yuan rolled his eyes and said irritably,

“Of course not. These are just effects of devices similar to spiritual power amplifiers. Haven’t you noticed that your total spiritual power hasn’t changed at all? This thing only misleads you through effects similar to equipment, without actually changing your inherent attributes. Otherwise, wouldn’t the Data Domain be able to mass-produce Legendary Beastmasters?”

“Amplifying spiritual power? Could it have some special significance?”

Dou Yanlan’s face changed as she reached out her hand. The others mimicked her, and pink butterflies fluttered down, the surging spiritual power’s sensory range made everyone feel itchy inside. Unfortunately, the pink butterflies didn’t linger on their fingertips for long before flying away again.

Many people felt uncomfortable due to this change, wanting to catch those pink butterflies to experience it again. In the end, they gave up, as who knows if this was a trap.

“Such an intoxicating illusion, but unfortunately, it’s ultimately false.”

Tan Xueluo shook her head, unaffected by the peculiar feeling brought by the pink butterflies, while Feng Yuan looked at her in surprise, saying,

“I didn’t expect you to be completely unaffected, that’s pretty impressive~ Maybe this is your special trait~”

Looking at Feng Yuan, Tan Xueluo smiled faintly and said with resignation,

“I just understand my own strength. Holding unrealistic fantasies will only hinder my growth with Panshi. We… don’t have that much time to waste.”

Panshi, standing beside her, agreed with a call. The amplified feeling, though it gave her a momentary illusion of having the world in her grasp, she knew clearly it was just an illusion. Even if she had real strength, it would only catch up with the outstanding students of Shangjing Academy.

As for resisting temptation? To Tan Xueluo, it wasn’t something to boast about. But Feng Yuan didn’t share this view; he blinked, borrowed some strength from Xiao Ji, who looked at him oddly, wondering what he intended with no battle ongoing.

Before Tan Xueluo could react, a strange black light flashed past, leaving her dazed and standing dumbfounded. Panshi growled at Feng Yuan discontentedly, making aggressive moves as if to teach him a lesson, while Xiao Ji immediately stood between Feng Yuan and Panshi.

Though it didn’t know what Feng Yuan did to Tan Xueluo, Xiao Ji wouldn’t let Panshi harm Feng Yuan!

“You… possibly…”

With a strange expression, Tan Xueluo looked at Feng Yuan, while comforting the uneasy Panshi. Thankfully, Panshi sensed no harm to Tan Xueluo and withdrew its hostility towards Feng Yuan. After a brief silence, Tan Xueluo said,

“How did you discover… this special thing? Even I didn’t realize that I…”

“Why find it surprising? Look at them, and you’ll understand. You wouldn’t think everyone could easily break free of this temptation, would you? Though Dou Yanlan and the others seem unaffected, that’s because they have their own means to resist such temptation. Only you…”

Feng Yuan chuckled, patting Xiao Ji, indicating it’s alright. Earlier, he merely used Xiao Ji’s power to employ a special Chaos Light Technique on Tan Xueluo.

Xiao Ji, being a Death-series Divine Beast, its power gets special boosts on soul-targeting ultimate moves. Combined with Feng Yuan using the Power of Death’s traits, it managed to evoke the deepest desires within the target’s mind—a dream indeed difficult for most to escape, except for specialized individuals with resilience.

“They…”

Tan Xueluo glanced around at her classmates, noticing many looking disappointed, she asked, puzzled,

“What’s exactly happening?”

“Suddenly experiencing immense power and losing it quickly isn’t unusual. That’s why the academy limits that amplification time, or it’d cause trouble.”

Feng Yuan shrugged helplessly. He hadn’t grasped what the academy was aiming for by setting this kind of goal perhaps. That spiritual power amplification, in his estimation, was roughly the person’s strength doubled, but given his unique stance, the boost doesn’t affect him, only allowing him a rough estimate.

And since spiritual power relates to the soul, enhancing it offers more seductive feelings than other strength enhancements, which is why spiritual power amplification devices are highly regulated, aside from preventing misuse for destructive ends, preventing user addiction is another major reason.

Using external tools for enhancement has limited benefits. No one can guarantee these tools won’t be damaged in battle.

“However… there doesn’t seem much utility here.”

Tan Xueluo chuckled wryly, feeling indifferent about her discovered specialty, but somehow…

“If going for outdoor adventures, it’d be considered a decent ability, given that Phantoms and Mirages can be quite lethal, especially in complex wild environments, as well as various ancient ruins. But you can’t label this a special ability, so who knows what it truly means.”

Feng Yuan shook his head, glancing at Tan Xueluo, he remarked, she didn’t possess innate talent like Qi Chen, just afterward resilience cultivated through experience producing this special effect. While it can indeed develop later in life, not many manage it.

“Indeed, it’s the Star God Project, but this copy concerns flesh and blood enhancement, which implies…”

After reviewing the files found in the metallic cube-like room, Dou Yanlan gathered her thoughts and pulled out the previous ones for comparison. She handed all three files over to Zhang Cheng, then leaned against the metallic wall, pondering. Eventually, her realization struck, and she mused,

“Perhaps, what awaits us next is an intense battle? However, this feeling isn’t pleasant…”

She stole a glance at Feng Yuan being engaged in conversation with Tan Xueluo, his hand rested on Xiao Ji’s head at the pit’s edge, Tan Xueluo’s expression seemed unsatisfactory; their discussion contents remained a mystery. Dou Yanlan shook her head, abandoning the notion of seeking Feng Yuan’s assistance onwards; simple matters weren’t worth troubling him for, besides… they weren’t devoid of escape means.

With that mindset, Dou Yanlan led Zhang Cheng and their group in private discussions while occasionally scanning the surroundings, Cotton employing War Fog and special spatial sealing techniques to close the area off.

After a while, their strategic discussion concluded, and they advanced further; this time, Dou Yanlan no longer led the front, instead, Feng Yuan returned to his Little Husky form, perched upon Ah Mu’s tree crown, curiously watching Dou Yanlan’s endeavors, unsure of their business.

The path within the plant zone lay concealed among shrubbery, but with all zone plants now wilted, the covered access was revealed, Veronia eyed the narrow single-person passage and smirked,

“This place looks peculiar.”

“If the path’s too narrow, widen it yourself.”

Zhang Cheng directed a group of Beast Tamers, forcibly blasting open the pathway, yielding a tunnel wide enough for Ah Mu to walk through without hitting the top, stunning Feng Yuan,

“You wouldn’t actually slowly tunnel through, would you? With such commotion, might unique foes appear~”

“As they’ve long known we’re here, why tread cautiously?”

Zhang Cheng glanced at the Little Husky atop the tree crown and spoke; uncertain if Feng Yuan was genuinely oblivious or feigning ignorance.

Upon widening the path, silver-metallic canine robots and drones emerged from within; seeing this, aligning with Dou Yanlan’s prediction’s reality, the group affirmed her propositions in their hearts.

The varied ultimate moves bombarding those foes quickly paved the path with metallic debris fragments. Observing the darkened passage, Liu Ziwen voiced,

“Prepare your powerful moves, if genuine foes appear, make them taste the might of strong ultimate moves.”

“Ah Chen, prep Ah Mu, ready to deploy the Seistal Stele for support.”

Dou Yanlan severely remarked to Qi Chen, believing that whilst genuine foes shouldn’t reside in the next zone, she understood the trial’s theme and how to extricate itself from the current predicament.