Chapter 24: Human Traces

Is this the place?

Standing outside the valley, Qin Chuan turned his head to glance at Shui Hua, confirming once again.

Woof! (This is the place, there's more than one special fruit!)

Shui Hua nodded heavily, hesitated a moment, then spoke again.

Woof! (Here still lingers the aura of the Shadow Leopard we killed.)

Hmm… Qin Chuan rubbed his chin, falling into thought.

Having stayed in this world for over ten days, he also discovered some patterns in his daily searches.

Every corner of the Dream World contains extraordinary energy, but this energy is not evenly distributed; places where it is denser often yield more precious resources or fruits that boost experience.

But at the same time, places with denser extraordinary energy are also more suitable for Spirit Beast growth.

So, Shui Hua's two discoveries do not conflict.

If there really is more than one special fruit inside the valley, it shows that the extraordinary energy density here is greater than anywhere he has found before; as the nearby area's sole Growth Tier, the Shadow Leopard's occupation of this place as its nest is reasonable.

Thus, the valley before them became the safest place instead.

Exploration of this place can be set aside for now; Qin Chuan looked around and soon saw several fruits emitting a special glow not far away.

Qin Chuan was in a bind, for his equipment slot now had only one empty space left, while two different-attribute fruits would need two slots.

And now, the Shadow Leopard has been slain by him.

Woof! (Clear Water Fruit!)

Although these three are also special fruits, Shui Hua cannot absorb them due to their different attributes.

Seeing this, Qin Chuan felt a bit regretful; he had used the Experience Gem too early.

Although Shui Hua felt a bit regretful, he quickly wagged his tail, regained his spirits, and looked at the remaining three fruits.

Woof~ (Alright~)

However, the regret lasted only a moment.

After all, other Spirit Beasts dare not enter the Shadow Leopard's nest.

Shui Hua eagerly stepped forward, circling the fruits nonstop, gazing at Qin Chuan with eager eyes, constantly swallowing.

After storing the three Clear Water Fruits in his equipment slot, Qin Chuan said solemnly, 'Your experience is already maxed; eating Clear Water Fruits before advancement would have no effect.'

The Shadow Leopard didn't move, for the same reason.

In total there were six: three azure Clear Water Fruits, one that could raise Shui Hua's level by 50 experience points, and the other three fruits—two earth-yellow and one light green—corresponding to earth and wind attributes respectively.

It is obvious that this is the Shadow Leopard's nest.

Let's go!

So I'll keep them safe for you, and you can eat them after you complete your advancement.

The valley's interior is not large; upon entering, a foul smell assailed the nose. Following the odor, Qin Chuan spotted a cave in a rock wall, its entrance littered with many broken bones.

Having figured it out, Qin Chuan waved his hand, leading Shui Hua along the narrow path outside the valley into the valley.

Clear Water Fruits can only be used by water-attributed Spirit Beasts, whereas Experience Gems have no restriction—clearly the latter are more important.

The other slots hold items Qin Chuan has determined to be necessary from his past ten-plus days: quick-recovery fruits, fast-acting healing herbs, etc., all indispensable.

Yet passing up special fruits feels like a loss.

After a brief thought, Qin Chuan stored the two earth-attributed special fruits in his equipment slot, then directly tucked the wind-attributed special fruit into his pocket, 'All right, that'll do.'

Later, if we encounter a pleasing wind-attributed Spirit Beast, we can give it away to forge a good karma.

Before, Qin Chuan had encountered several special fruits of other attributes and handled them the same way.

As the saying goes, 'you don't see what you don't look for'; aside from the ferocious Shadow Leopard, Qin Chuan remains quite friendly toward his neighbors.

Having confirmed no special fruits were missed, Qin Chuan then turned his gaze to the Shadow Leopard's nest.

The nest is not deep; by day one can clearly see everything inside the cave, and the closer to the entrance, the stronger the foul smell.

Qin Chuan covered his nose and entered, ignoring the uneaten meat in the corner and the varying claw marks on the rock wall; his gaze was soon drawn to a raised stone platform in the cave's center.

That platform is about half a meter high, its surface very flat, with a small depression in the center.

Qin Chuan reached out, touched the inside of the depression, and a flicker of astonishment crossed his eyes.

The inside of the depression was smoother than imagined, not rounded but feeling like flat planes fitted together, allowing clear tactile sense of the indented creases.

It was as if…

Here a finely faceted crystal had once been inlaid, then later removed.

'Too late.' Having confirmed this, Qin Chuan regrettably withdrew his hand.

If nothing unexpected, this place once held a valuable resource, but it had already been taken before his arrival.

If it were a dark-attributed resource, the Shadow Leopard might have used it himself; after all, the Shadow Leopard is only level 12, so it shouldn't have advanced long ago.

If it were a resource of another attribute…

then the possibilities would be too many.

Woof~ (What a pity~)

Shui Hua beside him likewise realized this, his face showing regret.

'It's fine; anyway, the missed resource couldn't be water-attributed.' Qin Chuan smiled, comforted himself, then exited the cave, 'Next we'll explore the surroundings.'

'This place can grow six special fruits and even condense a special resource; the extraordinary energy is dense, so it should accelerate your growth.'

'I intend to build a simple shelter here.'

'With the cave as a foundation, it won't take much time to build.'

As for Qin Chuan's idea, Shui Hua naturally agreed.

Although traces of the Shadow Leopard remain here, cleaning up won't take much time.

Qin Chuan and Shui Hua walked out of the valley, cooperating skillfully, taking the valley as center, and began to explore the familiar surroundings.

Where there are edible fruits and plants, where there are fruits with other special effects, where there are trees that can be used for construction…

With the experience from building the shelter last time, this kind of exploration came easily to them.

As time passed, the range explored by the person and the beast grew larger, and they were already a kilometer away from the valley.

At that moment, Shui Hua made an astonishing discovery.

"Woof!" (Look at this!)

It picked up something from the ground and ran quickly toward Qin Chuan.

Qin Chuan took the thing Shui Hua had brought, glanced at it, and his pupils contracted sharply.

That was… a stone knife!

Unlike naturally formed stones, this stone knife had a thin, sharp edge with obvious signs of grinding, and Qin Chuan confirmed he would not mistake it.

And this meant that there were other players nearby.

Thinking of this, his expression turned solemn.

Is the other party an enemy or a friend?

(End of chapter)