Chapter 24 Footprints of Humanity

"Is this the place?"

Standing outside the valley, Qin Chuan turned his head to look at Water Flower and confirmed once again.

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

Water Flower nodded vigorously and hesitated before speaking again.

"Woof!" (The scent of that Shadow Leopard we killed is also here.)

"Um..." Qin Chuan stroked his chin, lost in thought.

He had been in the Dream World for more than ten days, and in his daily searches, he had discovered certain patterns.

Every corner of the Dream World was permeated with Extraordinary Energy, but this energy was not evenly distributed. Places with richer Extraordinary Energy were more likely to contain precious resources or fruits that could enhance experience.

At the same time, locations with dense Extraordinary Energy were also more suitable for the growth of Spiritual Beasts.

Therefore, Water Flower's two findings did not contradict each other.

If there truly were more than one special fruit in the valley, it would mean that the concentration of Extraordinary Energy here was richer than any other place Qin Chuan had found before. It was logical that the Shadow Leopard, as the sole Growth Rank creature in the vicinity, monopolized this place as its den.

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

This made the valley in front of him the safest place.

After all, other Spiritual Beasts wouldn't dare enter the den of a Shadow Leopard.

"Let's go!"

Having understood the situation, Qin Chuan gestured grandly and, taking Water Flower with him, proceeded along the narrow path that led into the valley.

The space inside the valley was not large. Upon entering, they were met with a pungent odor. Following the scent, Qin Chuan spotted a cave in a rock wall, outside of which lay a pile of broken bones.

Clearly, this was the den of the Shadow Leopard.

Putting the exploration of this place aside for the moment, Qin Chuan looked around and soon saw several fruits with a special glow not far away.

There were six in total: three were water-blue Clear Fruits, each of which could give Water Flower an increase of 50 points in experience level. The other three fruits, two earth-yellow and one light green, corresponded to the Earth and Wind Attributes.

Although these three were also special fruits, Water Flower could not absorb them due to the difference in attributes.

The Shadow Leopard had left them untouched for the same reason.

"Woof!" (Clear Fruits!)

Water Flower excitedly approached and circled around the fruits nonstop, gazing eagerly at Qin Chuan and salivating.

Seeing this, Qin Chuan somewhat regretted having used the Experience Gems too soon.

Clear Fruits were only for Water Attribute Spiritual Beasts, but Experience Gems had no such restrictions; by any account, the gems seemed more valuable.

However, the regret lasted only a moment.

He placed the three Clear Fruits into his Item Equipment Bar and spoke seriously, "Your experience is already full now, eating Clear Fruits before advancing will have no effect."

"So, I'll keep them for you, and you can eat them after you've advanced."

"Woof~" (Alright~)

Water Flower appeared somewhat disappointed but quickly perked up and wagged its tail as it looked at the remaining three fruits.

Qin Chuan faced a dilemma because there was only one slot left in his Item Equipment Bar, and the two different Attribute fruits required two slots.

The other slots contained essentials that Qin Chuan had determined necessary during the past ten-plus days: fruits that quickly restored stamina, medicinal herbs for fast healing—and none of these could be dispensed with.

But it felt like a loss not to take special fruits when he came across them.

After some thought, Qin Chuan placed the two Earth Attribute special fruits into his Item Equipment Bar and then tucked the Wind Attribute special fruit into his chest, "Alright, that will do."

If he came across a Wind Attribute Spiritual Beast that caught his eye, he could give it away as a gesture of goodwill.

This was how Qin Chuan handled the special fruits of other attributes that he had encountered before.

Besides someone as fierce as the Shadow Leopard, Qin Chuan was friendly towards his other neighbors.

After ensuring there were no other special fruits missed, Qin Chuan then turned his attention to the inside of the Shadow Leopard's den.

The den was not deep, everything inside could be clearly seen during the day, and the closer to the entrance, the stronger the smell.

Qin Chuan, covering his nose, stepped inside, ignoring the unfinished meat in the corner and the uneven claw marks on the rock walls. Soon his gaze was drawn to a raised stone platform in the center of the cave.

The platform was about half a meter high with a smooth surface, and there was a small depression in the center.

Qin Chuan extended his hand and felt the inside of the depression, a flash of surprise appearing in his eyes.

The inside of the depression was smoother than expected, and it wasn't rounded but felt like it was multiple flat surfaces pieced together; he could distinctly feel the indentations.

It was as if...

There had once been a finely cut Crystal Stone embedded here that had since been removed.

"Too late, huh," Qin Chuan sighed with regret after confirming this.

If things were as expected, there once was a valuable resource here, which had been taken before he arrived.

If it was a Dark Attribute resource, it might have been used by the Shadow Leopard itself, given that it was only Level 12 and probably had advanced not long ago.

If it was a resource of another Attribute...

The possibilities were numerous.

"Woof~" (What a pity~)

Water Flower at his side also realized this and showed a regretful expression.

"It's alright, the missed resource couldn't have been of the Water Attribute." Qin Chuan smiled and comforted himself before walking out of the cave, "Next, we'll explore the surroundings."

"This place can produce six special fruits and condense special resources; the Extraordinary Energy is dense here, which should accelerate your growth."

"I plan to build another simple shelter here."

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

Water Flower naturally agreed with Qin Chuan's idea.

Although there were traces left by the Shadow Leopard, cleaning up would not take much time.

Man and beast stepped out of the valley and began exploring the surrounding environment, adeptly collaborating with one another, with the valley as the central point.

Where to find edible fruits and plants, where special fruits with different effects were, where trees suitable for building could be found...

With the experience of building a shelter before, such exploration was easy for them.

As time passed, the scope of their exploration expanded, and they were now a kilometer away from the valley.

It was then that Water Flower made a startling discovery.

"Woof woof!" (Look at this!)

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

Qin Chuan took the object from Water Flower and his pupils abruptly contracted.

It was... a stone knife!

Unlike natural stone, one edge of this knife was thin and sharp with clear signs of having been honed, something Qin Chuan recognized without a doubt.

And this meant there were other players nearby.

Thinking this, his expression turned serious.

Friend or foe?