Chapter 182 Unable to Leave

The next morning when Qiao Yu and Jiang Zhan came out, Cheng Sinian, Luo Zhenzhen and Yu Qingchuan were already sitting in the reception area, dressed neatly, waiting for them.

Seeing that they looked like they were ready for a meeting, Qiao Yu pulled Jiang Zhan over and sat down. He blinked in confusion and asked, "What's going on? Is there something wrong?"

Cheng Sinian was sitting on the carpet holding Luo Zhenzhen, his chin resting on the top of her head. Seeing the two approaching, he first glanced at the strawberry mark on Qiao Yu's collarbone, which was mostly covered by his collar, but still faintly visible. Then, while secretly praising his foresight, he said lazily, "The teacher said that we can't stay here at the foot of the mountain for too long. We need to return to the cave as soon as possible."

"Go back?" Qiao Yu frowned. "I finally escaped, why should I go back?"

"Because of that stone." Cheng Sinian sighed, "Teacher said we have to find a way to deal with it as soon as possible. Otherwise, it will be basically impossible to leave Mingxia Mountain. We may not even be able to leave the middle peak."

Qiao Yu raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean?"

Yu Qingchuan continued, "According to Professor Kang, the crystal seems to attract alien species. The reason they've been trapped here for so long is because the crystal can't leave the central peak of Mingxia Mountain."

Qiao Yu frowned again. "Attract alien species? How does it attract them? Will it make the alien species move with the changes in the position of the crystal? Or will it be like positioning, attracting waves of alien species to grab it?"

"I'm afraid... it's a bit of both." Yu Qingchuan pursed his lips and continued, "That small crystal was forcibly peeled off by Professor Kang's research team from a large crystal in the alien species' nest. They were originally going to return immediately after obtaining the sample, but they discovered that once the crystal left the range of the central peak, alien species would attack from all directions to capture them."

"Not only can we not leave the Central Peak, but we must also stay as close to the original crystal as possible with the crystal. If we leave the area around the large crystal for more than two days, even if the crystal is still within the Central Peak, alien species will come looking for it."

Qiao Yu suddenly realized, "So that's why Professor Kang and the others have been hiding in that cave?"

"Yes." Yu Qingchuan nodded.

"Then how did they escape the aliens' pursuit?"

"Take medicine." This time it was Cheng Sinian who answered.

Qiao Yu didn't say anything, but raised his eyebrows, motioning him to continue.

"We all know that alien species sense humans by their scent and sounds. But few people know that they use the same method to sense mutant plants. This is why alien species are rare in areas where mutant plants and animals thrive."

"Based on this characteristic, the research institute conducted extensive research and discovered that the scents perceived by all species, whether humans or mutant plants and animals, come from two sources: deep in the blood and on the surface of the skin."

"In other words, as long as we can change the smell of blood and skin, we can mask the scent to a certain extent and avoid being tracked by alien species."

"And it just so happens that there is a mutant plant that has this ability."

"This plant can make the scent of its juice and skin very similar to the stench of alien species, causing alien species and mutant animals to mistake it for its own kind. It then lurks and secretly devours its target prey, thereby strengthening itself."

"The research institute collected a lot of these plants, and then, following the principle of a two-pronged approach to the blood and skin, they recently developed two medicines. One is an injectable medicine, and the other is a powder for external use."

"Injecting the drug into the bloodstream and then applying the powder to the body with water can, to a certain extent, deceive alien species and mutant animals, achieving the effect of 'invisibility'."

"The teachers came here this time and used this medicine."

Yu Qingchuan also nodded beside him, "This medicine is indeed recorded in the research institute. I have seen it."

"These two drugs can only be used by mutants. After ordinary survivors use them, they will quickly undergo a mutant reaction and eventually become mutants. It's no different from being infected with a virus."

"That medicine lasts a long time. One injection lasts about twenty days, but the powder only lasts for five days at most, so you need to reapply every few days."

Fortunately, there are no requirements for the water quality used to mix the medicine powder, and water sources that have been polluted after the end of the world can still be used.

"However, this potion is only effective when the alien is calm. According to experimental results, when the alien is irritable or angry, its perception ability will increase to five times its original level. In this case, the potion is almost ineffective."

Cheng Sinian nodded. "That's why our team can't get out of the middle peak. Once the alien species senses the crystal leaving, they'll go berserk. So, the most urgent thing is to get the crystal back to the cave as quickly as possible. Then, we can work together to figure out how to get it out."

Qiao Yu touched his chin. If that was the case, it would be much more troublesome than he had imagined.

Qiao Yu looked at Jiang Zhan, "Zhan, what do you think?"

Jiang Zhan stroked Qiao Yu's long hair. "Those alien species can indeed sense that crystal stone, and my mental power can't block it. But if they want to leave, there are still some ways to do it."

Upon hearing this, the four of them stared at Jiang Zhan with wide eyes, as if asking: Do you have a solution?

When he left the cave yesterday, he noticed a noticeable movement among the aliens. He was certain they had sensed the movement of the crystal and were attempting to attack them. Clearly, his mental barrier had no effect on the crystal.

But he was also certain that, while his mental barrier couldn't block the crystal's energy, it could indeed block the aliens' perception of them. He soon discovered that the aliens' perception of the crystal was limited to a certain range.

Because after they quickly left the cave a certain distance away, the group of alien species stopped responding.

As for what Professor Kang said, "the aliens discovered that the crystal had left and followed it", Jiang Zhan guessed that the crystal must have entered the alien sensing range at the foot of the mountain or other places during its departure, which attracted a large number of aliens to hunt it down.

In other words…

"In theory, as long as we leave fast enough and keep a certain distance from the alien group, we will be able to get rid of them." Jiang Zhan looked at Qiao Yu's surprised expression and curled his lips slightly.

Qiao Yu's eyes widened when he heard this. "You mean... just like the alien species' perception of humans is limited in scope, their perception of that crystal is also limited in scope?"

"Yes." Jiang Zhan scratched Qiao Yu's nose, "But the problem now is that there are a lot of alien species here. Almost wherever we go, alien species will enter the range of the sensing crystal."

"So, we need to find a path that doesn't leave us vulnerable from both sides."