Steady as a Rock

Aunt Yang's attitude towards Xiang Kun was much better than when they first met. Since their last meeting, Professor Li and Little Apple had spoken highly of Xiang Kun, so she naturally had a good impression of Xiang Kun.

Since Professor Li Yang wasn't there, Little Apple suggested that she and Xiang Kun take "Gold Glitter" to the park next to the community for a while, and she agreed.

Sitting side by side on a bench by the artificial lake in the park, Xiang Kun listened to Little Apple recount her special sensations about the "eight-armed monster" that she had experienced again that morning.

The reason why Xiang Kun came to find Little Apple immediately after drinking the blood was not only to entrust "Gold Glitter" to her care, but also for another very important reason - not long after he woke up this morning, he sensed the connection between Little Apple and the wooden carving through the "Eight-Armed Eight-Eyed Wooden Carving", which was similar to what he sensed the night he successfully "Electric Flight".

Clearly, after Xiang Kun's blood-drinking evolution, the "support" he provided for Little Apple's abilities has become stronger once again.

So he wanted to talk to Little Apple and see what changes she experienced in her perception this morning from her perspective.

"Uncle Xiang, I feel my senses about that monster are clearer this time. I can count that it has eight arms and eight eyes. I didn't 'see' it, but I just know it. It's a bit hard to describe..."

No need for description, I understand.

Xiang Kun asked, "Did you communicate with that monster? Besides sensing its 'appearance,' what other feelings did you have?"

"There was no communication, but I could sense that it was very scared. I had a feeling that it wasn't originally like that, and that it became like that later. I don't know why I have this feeling..." Little Apple tilted her head slightly, thinking, her delicate eyebrows furrowed.

Xiang Kun knew why she had that feeling, but it was inexplicable. He said, "Try to sense it now and see if you can sense the monster."

Little Apple nodded, took out the Minion Wooden Carving she always carried with her, held it in her hand, and began to concentrate, using the "Object-Sensing" method she had been practicing recently to sense things. First, she established a connection with the Minion Wooden Carving, and then used it to sense her surroundings, and further sense the "eight-armed monster".

Sitting next to him, Xiang Kun also leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and began to relax his body, entering a "Hyper-Sensory State."

Soon, his senses, such as hearing and smell, were temporarily shut down, and he lost all feeling for his body. His senses began to immerse themselves in that special state.

In his "Hyper-Sensory State," Xiang Kun began to observe the location of Little Apple, constantly switching observation modes. The surrounding environment was constantly changing, as the range of his perception under this special sensory state was constantly switching, just like the normal hearing range of a person, which is 20Hz-20kHz. If this range is changed, the information "heard" will be very different.

Xiang Kun switched between different modes in "Hyper-Sensory State" in order to find the best mode to observe the changes in Little Apple's senses.

A dozen minutes later, Little Apple successfully established contact with the "Eight-Armed Eight-Eyed Wooden Carving," and Xiang Kun also successfully observed the changes that occurred in Little Apple during this process—he once again sensed the situation he had accidentally perceived on the night that triggered the lightning storm.

He sensed a kind of "Emotional Injection" from the Little Apple and observed the energy transfer between her, the Minion Wooden Carving in her hand, the CPU, Motherboard, and Memory Wooden Carving Set currently in her home, and the "Eight-Armed Eight-Eyed Wooden Carving" hundreds of kilometers away.

Xiang Kun knew that although the specific details and abilities were very different, fundamentally, his way of sensing those "Emotional Injection" items in his "Hyper-Sensory State" was similar to how Little Apple was sensing those wooden carvings.

His observation of Little Apple's sensory process is, in a sense, an observation of his own sensory process from another perspective.

The energy transmitted between the Little Apple and the several wooden carvings "Emotional Injection" should be the fundamental reason why Xiang Kun can sense various objects that establish connections. He even suspects that his ability to enter a "Hyper-Sensory State," to "Electric Flight," and to evolve into a "vampire" by drinking blood is also due to this energy.

"Uncle Xiang, I sensed that monster again." Little Apple snapped out of her trance, her eyes unfocused as she "stared" ahead. For some reason, when Xiang Kun sat beside her, she felt particularly confident and assured in her "Object-Sensing" practice. And indeed, she sensed the "eight-armed monster" even more clearly than she had in the morning.

"How do you feel?" Xiang Kun asked.

"It's still locked up, surrounded by walls on all sides. And for some reason, I feel like the place where it's locked up isn't a cement or stone house, but wood, like it's locked in a wooden cabin. But this time it didn't ask me for help anymore; it's like I've become it," Little Apple murmured.

"Besides the passage leading to the 'eight-armed monster,' didn't you find any other 'passages'?" Xiang Kun asked again.

Little Apple was a little embarrassed. "Sometimes I can sense them, but I'm too scared to go near them. I'm afraid of encountering other, even more terrifying monsters."

Xiang Kun was a little helpless. Little Apple, that "Eight-Armed Eight-Eyed Wooden Carving" is the "most terrifying" monster you can encounter. Apart from it, no other wooden carvings or "Emotional Injection" items have such a strong negative Emotional Injection. The most bizarre one should be the Rabbit Woodcarving —because the emotion projection is rabbit meat.

"It's alright, don't worry. You have to believe in yourself. In that realm of thought, you are the master. No matter what monsters or demons you encounter, they are all just illusions. You can make them exist if you want them to exist, and you can make them disappear if you want them to disappear," Xiang Kun said.

Xiang Kun was basically certain that Little Apple could sense and connect with his various "Emotional Injection" items. As long as it wasn't affected by emotional feedback or get stuck on trivial matters, it wouldn't be in any danger. In this realm of "supersensory perception," he was the creator and controller. Little Apple was like someone playing a game, with the support of the game development team and the GM team—it was perfectly safe.

After hearing Xiang Kun's words, Little Apple nodded in agreement.

She had some concerns before, fearing that what she perceived might be hallucinations, and that she might develop mental problems if she became too immersed in "Object-Sensing."

However, starting last week, she has been obtaining more and more detailed sensory information through "Object-Sensing," and at times it is like radar, knowing everything about the surroundings, which is much better than her ability to judge by sound.

Moreover, in some situations, it can enhance the feedback information obtained from sound. For example, in the "Object-Sensing" state, when hearing birdsong, one can quickly locate the specific location of the bird making the call, whereas previously one could only quickly perceive one direction.

For many blind people, the biggest fear when moving around in familiar areas is "change"—suddenly appearing vehicles, fast-running people, dogs, or obstacles that were not there before but have suddenly appeared, which can pose a great threat to them when they are moving alone.

In the past few days, Little Apple has tried to walk alone in the park several times—of course, her father or Aunt Yang are always with her, as they can't really trust her to walk by herself.

She has now discovered that when she successfully establishes a "Object-Sensing" with the Minion Wooden Carving, she seems to be able to perceive a "field" around her through the Minion, and has a basic understanding and judgment of all objects.

She no longer experiences the uncontrollable tension and insecurity she used to feel when walking alone. Even without a guide cane, she can walk confidently and quickly. Of course, so far, she has only tried it in familiar parks or her neighborhood.

She initially suspected that she had activated some kind of ultrasonic detection ability similar to that of bats through the Minion Wooden Carving, but after learning about it online, she realized that the detection ability of bats was still different from her perception. Her "Object-Sensing" could even sometimes sense the emotions and intentions of the people around her.

Regardless of how this ability works or what its underlying principles are, it has brought her very direct and tangible benefits.

That is why she knew that the information she sensed through "Object-Sensing" was not a simple illusion.

Moreover, in her heart, Xiang Kun had become the person she trusted most besides her father.

"This time, 'Gold Glitter' will have to stay with you for a while longer." After obtaining the observation information he needed, Xiang Kun prepared to leave. Looking at the birdcage beside Little Apple, he said, "Can I come back to pick it up after the Spring Festival?"

Not only will he be unable to take care of "Gold Glitter" during this trip to Qicheng City, but he will also be returning to his hometown for the Spring Festival after returning from Qicheng City Little Apple. It will be inconvenient to take "Gold Glitter" with him, both on the way home and after he gets home. It would be better for both "Gold Glitter" and Little Apple to have her with him.

On the way, Xiang Kun had already mentioned this to Professor Li Yang via WeChat and received his promise, so there naturally wouldn't be any problems with Little Apple.

Sure enough, Little Apple immediately nodded and said, "No problem! 'Gold Glitter' is always welcome here. You can come and pick it up whenever you want!"

Now, with the help of "Object-Sensing", she can do many things on her own. When Aunt Yang and her father are busy, she can also take care of "Gold Glitter" by herself.

"Uncle Xiang, I want to learn some psychology," Little Apple suddenly said.

"Oh? Why do you suddenly want to study psychology?"

"I think the 'Object-Sensing' method you taught me seems to allow me to sense changes in other people's emotions by talking to them. I want to learn more about this," Little Apple said, then quickly added, "Of course, I won't give up my computer knowledge either!"

Xiang Kun stood up, smiled, and patted Little Apple's head, saying, "I'll support whatever you study. Although Professor Li certainly has many resources and can help you find a lot of Braille textbooks and audiobooks, you can also ask me if you have any questions. Although my undergraduate major wasn't related to psychology, I later developed an interest in it, or you could say I have a tiny bit of talent for it. I have a fairly good understanding of the basics. Also, I know a very impressive person who has double master's degrees in psychiatry and psychology, and I've learned a lot from her."

Little Apple wants to try more ways to apply "Emotional Injection" items, Xiang Kun will naturally support her.

The new abilities and applications she develops will also become new abilities and applications for Xiang Kun, and will also give him new hints and different ways of thinking.

As Xiang Kun boarded the high-speed train to Qicheng City, he looked through the information Alice had found about Fang Pingfang.

Fang Pingfang is a very individualistic person, which can be seen from her masculine English name "Bruce".

Her posts on social media platforms, both domestically and internationally, consist mainly of academic news and discussions, as well as various challenging outdoor activities such as mountaineering, rock climbing, triathlons, and winter swimming.

This Fang Pingfang is a truly remarkable woman who is just as capable as any man.

Judging from her research experience, published papers, and achievements, if she worked in the department of "Shenxing Technology" responsible for research on related Mutated Creature, her position should be quite important, perhaps even in charge of a specific direction. This can also be inferred from Zhou Rui's way of addressing her as "boss".

Alice could not find Fang Pingfang was employed by "Shenxing Technology". After returning to China, she stopped updating her social media accounts, both domestic and foreign.

However, Alice deduced from some information posted on the social media platforms of her classmates, both domestic and international, that she had been living in Qicheng City for the past year.

Knowing this, we can be fairly certain that the previous inferences are largely correct.

Furthermore, while Xiang Kun was reviewing this information, Alice told him that she had obtained Fang Pingfang's mobile phone number in China by hacking into the computer and mobile phone of one of Fang Pingfang's classmates in China. She said that it wouldn't be long before they could find more information and complete the first phase of "deep mining".

His investigation into Zhou Rui and Fang Pingfang was primarily aimed at finding out the research they were conducting for "Shenxing Technology," and he harbored no ill intentions towards them.

Zhou Rui is certain he's in the Qinling Uninhabited Zone, with Xiang Kun's wooden rabbit. But he doesn't know if his superior, Fang Pingfang, is also there, or perhaps at the research facility of "Shenxing Technology" in Qicheng City.

It was already past midnight when Xiang Kun arrived in Qicheng City. Naturally, he didn't need to look for a hotel or motel. After leaving the airport by car, he quickly started walking.

Just as Xiang Kun would familiarize himself with the meeting place before "meeting" Guo Tianxiang and prepare multiple escape or ambush plans in his mind, he also needed to make some preliminary preparations before he actually began his investigation, since he knew that there must be a "Shenxing Technology" Research Base for Mutated Creature in Qicheng City.

It is essential to develop a basic understanding of Qicheng City, an unfamiliar city, and to mentally connect the online satellite maps with the actual streets, scenes, and buildings.

He doesn't need to build a cognitive model of the entire city; he only needs to familiarize himself with the area near the company that "Shenxing Technology" acquired, as well as some places he might visit that he saw on the map.

Around 4 a. m., Xiang Kun spotted the company that had been acquired by "Shenxing Technology" in the distance.

This area is already in the suburbs. It covers a considerable area and is separated from the outside world by walls and iron gates. Inside, you can see several office buildings and a small area of factory buildings, but those factory buildings have obviously been abandoned for some time.

Xiang Kun knew at a glance that he had come to the right place—because its security was far beyond what this company should have.