Chapter 498 - 495: Mind Sense

Chapter 498: Chapter 495: Mind Sense

"What we’re feeling isn’t an actual ’gaze,’ but their ’curiosity’!" Zhou Chao said excitedly.

"It’s a kind of wonder and curiosity. They want to understand us, these two outsiders. They want to know what’s on our minds, to understand our inner thoughts."

Zhou Chao clearly articulated the "minds" he was sensing.

It was precisely because of this undisguised "curiosity" that they felt the sensation of being watched, of being observed.

Even though the Block had absorbed many of the light particles, that curiosity still hadn’t vanished. Zhou Chao felt a faint trace of fear, but it quickly disappeared, replaced by his own growing curiosity.

’Why can we sense their intentions?’

Zhou Chao raised his arm, watching the free-floating particles of light pass through his body. An idea began to form in his mind.

’It must be because of these light particles, right?’

He reached out and tried to grasp them, wanting to hold the light particles in his palm, but they passed right through his hand and out the back.

A flicker of emotion from Zhou Chao’s body transferred to a particle. Originally glowing blue, it turned a slightly purplish hue after passing through him.

"Do you have a substance detector? I want to see what these light particles actually are," Zhou Chao asked Li Luo.

"Of course." Li Luo nodded, rummaged through his backpack, and pulled a round, compass-like electronic slate from beneath a pile of snacks.

Zhou Chao took the electronic slate, held it flat in the air, and let a stray particle of light land on it.

Numbers flickered along the edge of the slate. Zhou Chao glanced at the code formed by the digits, then handed the slate back to Li Luo.

"What is it?" Li Luo asked curiously.

"Pure electrons. A free-floating cluster of electrons, something like ball lightning..." Zhou Chao said, looking a little puzzled. "But it’s not as volatile as ball lightning."

"It has a very stable lattice structure. The electrons move and resonate within it in a regular pattern, and it can withstand strong stimuli."

"Stimuli?"

As if a thought struck him, Zhou Chao quickly reached for another nearby particle of light.

Then, he closed his eyes and concentrated, feeling it carefully.

After a long moment, he opened his eyes again.

"This... this is free-floating consciousness. The reason we can sense their ’minds’ is because of these light particles."

"They might come from other animated things, or maybe other living beings. In their free-floating state, each one is a ’thought.’ When they gather, they form an independent consciousness. The voice we heard before came from a collective of these light particles."

Zhou Chao looked at Li Luo and said very seriously, "I know why these light particles are possessing the bodies of other animated things."

"If you think of the original consciousness as a puddle, these light particles are the raindrops flowing into it. As more and more raindrops fall, the puddle becomes a great lake. The original puddle loses control of itself, swept along by all the different consciousnesses, at the mercy of the current."

Listening to Zhou Chao’s explanation, Li Luo pondered for a moment before saying, "So, these light particles are all consciousness? And the strange sixth sense we’ve been experiencing is just because we came into contact with them?"

"Yes." Zhou Chao nodded. "This forest is a giant gathering place for consciousness. It’s filled with free-floating minds. It’s impossible for us not to be affected by them, which is why we can sense their thoughts and feelings."

After hearing this, Li Luo was still a bit doubtful. "But don’t these free-floating consciousnesses need a vessel?"

"Of course they do."

"Then what is their vessel?" Li Luo pressed.

Hearing Li Luo’s question, Zhou Chao raised his head and looked up at the ethereal blue ribbons of light and the ancient trees dotted with specks of starlight.

"The starlight."

"The starlight is the vessel for these consciousnesses. It links the entire forest together, allowing the minds to roam freely within it. They can choose a body for themselves, or they can choose not to, and just wander around."

At this, Li Luo also raised his head and looked at the omnipresent starlight.

"So, when they wanted to ’connect’ with us, they were trying to make us join them... Our bodies would become part of this forest, and our consciousnesses would leave our flesh to become another wandering particle of light..."

Li Luo murmured, stunned, as a wave of fear washed over him.

’Who would ever want to share their body with someone else?’

’What on earth does the Eye of the Stars want to do in this forest?’

’Is it trying to create some sort of ’shared body’? Or does it want a body for itself?’

Li Luo felt the probing of the consciousnesses around him. Their "minds" held only a faint curiosity, but it sent a chill down his spine.

It was the curiosity of a diner at a table, admiring the delicious food before them—devoid of emotion, yet incredibly cold and cruel.

Just as Li Luo and Zhou Chao were contemplating the horrors of the Starlight Forest, some strange figures appeared in Mo Ling’s field of vision.

Mo Ling, who had been listening to their discussion, immediately shifted focus, eyes fixed on the figures.

"They’re heading this way." Mo Ling quickly determined their direction of travel but didn’t make any rash moves.

Because it was a team of humans. A team of fully-armed humans.

Moreover, Mo Ling was very familiar with their combat suits and insignia.

"The Sky Island Investigation Team..."

Mo Ling stared intently at the team. They moved freely through the starlight as if they were intimately familiar with the forest, heading straight for them.

They seemed to have no need for verbal communication. Free-floating particles of light constantly swirled around them, crisscrossing as the red and blue motes seemed to take the place of language, transmitting information.

The group moved quickly, arriving nearby in no time.

Li Luo and Zhou Chao also noticed the figures emerging from the starlight.

The moment he saw them, Zhou Chao froze.

They were wearing the same combat suits, with the same insignia. Even their gas masks were the exact same model.

Zhou Chao looked down at his own clothes, then at the team in the distance, a dazed expression on his face.

’How can this be?’ he muttered in disbelief.

He didn’t hesitate for long, however. He quickly snapped out of it and stepped directly in front of Li Luo.

"Stop! Who are you!" he shouted at the team that was dressed identically to him.

Hearing Zhou Chao’s warning, the team immediately halted, showing no signs of hostility.

The leader took a few steps forward, stood beneath the starlight, and removed his mask.

The moment Zhou Chao saw the man’s face, he was once again lost in confusion.

"Captain?"