"... Hmm, this is probably the area!"
" Sister Liya, are you sure?"
"Yes, don't worry, I can sense that this area is very, very close to His Nordrassil's seedling, so close that it might only be separated by a thin membrane! And this membrane is very, very thin, so thin that it can be crossed with just a poke!"
"Hmm... you know, right? It's a metaphor. In reality, you still need a portal to get there!"
"Yes, I know, Sister Liya, then..."
Inaudible voices drifted silently through the woods.
Shen Heng sat on the head of the Two-Horned Lizard, his gaze sweeping casually over the surrounding area.
The area is covered with tall trees, lush and green.
This area is no different from any other forest.
However, considering what was just said, it can be quickly concluded that after more than two months of searching, it seems that today will finally bring a result!
but...
As usual, Shen Heng looked at Qin Yu.
His gaze was calm, yet it concealed a subtle, almost imperceptible seriousness.
Ever since Qin Yu heard that extraneous sound, he had included it in his surveillance list.
He didn't want to, but he had no choice but to do it.
Fortunately, from listening in these past few days, it's clear that Qin Yu and the other person are independent individuals.
Moreover, the other party did not seem to be trying to instill any ideas or guide Qin Yu.
It serves more of an auxiliary or explanatory role.
If I had to put it into words... it's a bit like the protagonist's cheat ability in a novel, an old man?
Shen Heng was unsure, but he didn't intend to give the other party much trust either.
After all, he plays the role of the old man, and there's no rule that says he can't stab you in the end.
Moreover, the other party may not have any ill intentions towards you now, perhaps it's just because you're not meeting their demands yet?
Of course, some basic trust should still be given.
After all, nothing the other party had said these past few days seemed to be false.
So, should we negotiate directly?
Shen Heng lowered his eyes, deep in thought.
By simply listening in, you can obtain very limited information.
In the past few days, he has only managed to piece together the information from a few fragments of conversation.
The other party was a woman; lively; from the Ruins Realm; her specific race was unclear, and they hadn't heard her talk about it; their perception of their destination mostly relied on her; then there was the Court Council chairman, Jörmungandr, who seemed to be a serpentine Calamity Beast, and so on.
It's useful, but it would probably be more useful if you could ask directly!
So, should we negotiate directly?
Shen Heng thought about it for a moment and finally decided to suppress the idea for the time being.
The most urgent task is to find a way to escape from this place!
Even if he didn't directly negotiate, judging from the other party's current behavior, they would still help Qin Yu!
Moreover, it has only been a few days, and things are still somewhat unstable.
If we could have more time to observe and assess the other party, that would be even better!
but...
After a moment of pause, Shen Heng slowly turned his gaze to the Two-Horned Lizard and the Stone beside him.
When facing an enemy, there's not much to say; just keep your ability to Listening to Inner Voices active.
But what about when facing comrades-in-arms?
Should we keep it on all the time? Or, like we've been doing these past few days, listen for a few days, and if we don't hear anything unusual, then we can rule out that person?
Shen Heng looked at the two Calamity Beast, deep in thought.
"Why is this guy staring at me like that?" The Two-Horned Lizard looked up at him, then looked away.
Stone looked over and grinned.
Nodding slightly, Shen Heng shifted his gaze towards Qin Yu.
The conversation was drawing to a close.
"... So, you're looking for the portal right now, right?" Qin Yu's voice rang out.
"Yes, this can be left to the captain. Although the sound waves will disappear when they come into contact with the portal, the act of disappearing itself is a form of reconnaissance!" the voice in Qin Yu's mind responded.
"Okay, I understand!"
The words had barely left his mouth.
Shen Heng only saw Qin Yu open her eyes and look over.
"Captain, it should be around this area!" she whispered.
Upon hearing this, the Two-Horned Lizard and the Stone also looked over, their eyes shining.
They all knew perfectly well what they had been busy with these past few days.
Shen Heng nodded, as if he knew nothing, and asked:
"Have you confirmed that this area has the highest level of Distortion?"
"Hmm..." Qin Yu pondered for a moment, then said in a low voice, "We can't say that the degree of Distortion in this area is definitely the highest of all spaces, since we haven't explored all of them. But among all the spaces we've explored along the way, the degree of Distortion in this area is indeed the highest!"
As she spoke, she looked up at Shen Heng and said:
"Right now, the only uncertainty is whether the portal has appeared, and if so, where it is."
"Okay, I understand!"
Shen Heng nodded.
Then, he raised his hand.
As the index finger twitched, an invisible sound wave rippled out.
Seeing this, Qin Yu and Stone waited silently in place.
The scene fell silent for a moment.
Beside him, the Two-Horned Lizard watched Shen Heng with gleaming eyes.
To this day, it still doesn't know what this human's abilities are, only that the other party seems to be able to detect situations in the distance.
But if that's all there is to it, the range of possibilities is too vast.
Everything you can see, hear, smell, or sense—there's just so much of it.
Even it, because it awakened the ability to attack with its mind, resulting in a significant increase in its total mental power, is stronger in reconnaissance than ordinary creatures.
With a full-scale investigation, it's even possible to investigate the situation within a radius of over twenty kilometers.
But this distance...
As if realizing something, the Two-Horned Lizard's gaze towards Shen Heng sharpened once more.
"Damn it, if we want to escape later, we have to take this human's abilities into account. We need to be able to get out of their detection range in a short time!"
"But the enemy's reconnaissance range..."
"I don't know the exact size, but judging from the other side's behavior recently, their reconnaissance range is at least twice as large as ours, and possibly even more!"
"Damn it! How am I supposed to escape this area?!"
The Two-Horned Lizard thought with some pain.
If the opponent only had a large reconnaissance range, that would be one thing, but the opponent still has Origin Power, flies faster than me, and can also fight...
"Damn it, what kind of ability does it take to do something like this!"
The Two-Horned Lizard cursed inwardly.
There was nothing it could do; given the other party's situation, it couldn't think of any way to escape!
Even if we did encounter Sixth Tier adult as originally planned, it wouldn't matter!
No, it's not that it's useless, it's just that you just can't find the right opportunity!
Sixth Tier adult would likely be detected and evaded by the enemy even from a distance!
In other words, those who can defeat the opponent won't be encountered, while those who can't... are they just coming to their deaths?