Seeing Jiang Fan looking left and right, Zhou Xiaoyan assumed he was scared and put her arm around his shoulder.
"How are you feeling? A little scared? That's normal. The first time I went out of the fortress with the boss to this Inner Wilderness Zone, I was both excited and scared. Even now, to be honest, I'm still a little reluctant. But there's no way around it. In our line of work, the risks are high, but the rewards are also high."
Jiang Fan snapped out of his thoughts and said calmly, "I am excited, but I'm not afraid."
"You're still being stubborn. Being afraid isn't shameful. We're facing monsters that devour people without spitting out bones. Although spiritual energy has revived and we humans can cultivate, due to our physical constitution, we humans are no match for monsters of the same level in a one-on-one fight."
Jiang Fan stopped explaining and continued to observe the scenery along the way.
During this time, he also released his Psychic Power, probing his surroundings.
In the dense jungle, one or two monsters occasionally wandered around in search of food, but as they went deeper, the number of monsters gradually increased.
Some crawl, some fly in the sky, some swim in the water, and some live in large groups.
A short while later, Yang Xiaoqiang said, "Let's stop here. There are a lot of monsters ahead, and the armored vehicles will make too much noise and attract their attention. We'll start advancing on foot from now on."
The armored vehicle pulled over to the side of the road, and Yang Xiaoqiang handed Jiang Fan a bottle of medicine powder.
"Spray it on."
"What is this?" Jiang Fan asked, puzzled.
"There are many poisonous insects and mosquitoes here. If you get bitten, the consequences are unimaginable."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Fan nodded and sprayed the powder all over his body several times.
The bodyguard named Xu Dai complained, "This powder isn't cheap. A little spray is enough. Why spray it all over your body several times? How afraid of dying are you?"
Jiang Fan retorted, "Aren't you afraid of dying? Why are you spraying this powder?"
One sentence from him made Xu Dai want to punch someone.
"Alright, finding the medicinal herbs is the priority," Lan Shengxue said, stopping Xu Dai.
"Yes, Miss." Xu Dai took a step back.
Yang Xiaoqiang asked, "Miss Lan, what kind of medicine are you looking for this time?"
Now that they were already here, Lan Shengxue stopped hiding it and took out a photo. The photo showed a lotus growing in a swamp. The lotus was entirely black and looked very eerie.
Yang Xiaoqiang stared intently at the photo, his brows furrowed. "I've been to the Death Swamp, but I've never seen a lotus like this. Other colors exist, though—white, yellow, pink, even green—but I've never seen a black one."
Lan Shengxue was not surprised by these words.
"According to reliable sources, this type of lotus does indeed exist in the Death Swamp, but it is usually not brightly colored and is transparent."
"A transparent lotus flower?"
Everyone was surprised.
"That's right. Actually, we see the colors of things because of the reflection of light. Light hits an object and emits emitted light, which is then reflected and reaches our eyes, allowing us to see the object. Objects absorb and reflect light differently, resulting in differences in color, which is why we see all sorts of colors. This is basic knowledge we learned in junior high school; I believe you all know this."
Lan Shengxue continued, "The reason this lotus is transparent is also related to its special properties, which make it impossible for us to perceive its color under sunlight."
"Then what about this black thing...?" Yang Xiaoqiang asked the question everyone wanted to know.
At that moment, a deliberately lowered voice rang out.
"It must be related to the environment, which is why we see it as black."
With just one sentence, everyone's attention was drawn to Jiang Fan.
"What kind of environment?" Yang Xiaoqiang asked.
Jiang Fan pointed to the photo, "Look, at this time, the sun has just dipped halfway below the horizon. If I'm not mistaken, this special lotus flower can only be found during this time period."
"That's right, you're very smart," Lan Shengxue commented honestly, while glancing at Jiang Fan again.
Zhou Xiaoyan laughed and said to Jiang Fan, "I didn't realize you were so smart."
Jiang Fan was speechless, then joked, "You can't see how smart I am because you're not smart enough."
"Hey! You little rascal, daring to joke with me? Looks like you want to have a go at me." Zhou Xiaoyan said, rolling up his sleeves as if he was about to have a big fight with Jiang Fan.
"Alright, alright, don't you even know what time it is? Stop fooling around and let's hurry up and get to the Death Swamp as soon as possible to find this black lotus," Yang Xiaoqiang said.
Then, looking at Lan Shengxue and the others, he said, "From where we are now, to get to the Death Swamp, we still have to cross the Mist Woods. The Mist Woods is infested with Mist Shadow Flying Crow and Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito."
The Mist Shadow Flying Crow is nocturnal because of the denser fog. However, the Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito is active both day and night.
Jiang Fan had done some research before coming. He had seen the Mist Shadow Flying Crow at the Demon Beast Research Institute before. As for the Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito, although he had not seen them in person, he had read about them in books.
This monster is only slightly larger than a normal mosquito, but it has nine mouthparts. Although the mouthparts are not poisonous, they have a paralyzing effect, so once bitten by this thing, one's movement will be slowed down and a lot of blood will be lost.
"Was the pesticide powder we just sprayed effective against the Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito?" Jiang Fan asked.
Yang Xiaoqiang replied, "Yes, but the effect isn't particularly noticeable. If they're very hungry, they can tolerate the smell of the powder, or we should keep a distance so they don't notice. We should try to avoid bleeding, as fresh blood will stimulate their nerves."
Jiang Fan nodded.
After making preparations, the group walked into the Mist Woods in pairs.
Because it's daytime now and the sun is shining brightly, the fog isn't very thick.
Even those at the back of the line can clearly see the person in the lead.
Jiang Fan released his Psychic Power again, and his meticulous Psychic Power quickly discovered the Mist Shadow Flying Crow hanging upside down in the dense tree canopy.
You won't believe it until you see it; the more you look, the more horrifying it becomes.
Countless Mist Shadow Flying Crow, like plump persimmons in autumn, hung in a dark mass on the branches.
Continuing to radiate his Psychic Power, suddenly! He saw a dark mass chasing after a demonic beast.
What is that lump?
Jiang Fan stared at it closely and then realized that the dark shape was made up of countless mosquitoes.
Moreover, each of these mosquitoes has nine mouthparts, which resemble syringes, densely packed together, creating a creepy atmosphere.
Soon, a Nine-Mouthed Man-Eating Mosquito caught up with the monster and pierced its rear end, sucking in crimson blood through its nine proboscis.