Chapter 78

This day was overcast, the sky gloomy, with the air so humid that water droplets kept falling. Xu Mo looked up at the sky, a smile on his face: Judging by the weather, it seemed like it was about to rain. However, this kind of weather was actually perfect for training his sense of touch.

He was currently training his sense of touch using the same method as before: a drop of water on his body, focusing on the subtle changes in sensation as the water evaporated and gradually left his body. However, with the enhancement of his sense of touch, he no longer needed to place the water drop on his navel; it could be anywhere on his body.

The only difficulty was that, since he was sensing subtle changes, the amount of water on his body couldn't be too much, or it would affect his perception. Because of this, every time the water evaporated, he had to stop and add more water, which inevitably interrupted his focus.

This humid weather was different. Water droplets would occasionally fall from the air, replenishing the moisture on his body before it could fully evaporate. This allowed him to maintain his focus without interruption, which is why he considered it a good day for training his sense of touch.

When he reached the lakeside, he looked at the lake and the sky, hesitating for a moment. The weather seemed to indicate that it could rain at any time. If it did, the rain from the surrounding mountains would converge here, causing the lake to rise rapidly. The place where Xu Mo was training was low-lying, and the rising water would quickly flood it, submerging him.

However, his worry lasted only a short time before he dismissed it: If it rains and the water rises, I'll stop training and get out of the pit. But it's a pity to encounter such good weather for training and not be able to do anything.

He arrived at the lake, looked down into the pit, and saw that the grass and leaves at the bottom were covered in water droplets, very damp. Xu Mo frowned, jumped into the pit, and threw out the wet grass and leaves. He then went into the forest to find some dry leaves and spread them at the bottom.

Just as he was about to go down again, suddenly...

"Ao...roar..."

A loud roar came from the distance, deep and resonant. The entire valley seemed to tremble with the sound. Xu Mo was startled: It's the monster in the cave!

It was no wonder he was surprised. Although the monster was ferocious, it lived deep in the cave and rarely ventured out, nor did it make any sounds. Today, however, it had suddenly roared, which was unusual.

Moreover, Xu Mo could tell that the roar carried a clear sense of urgency and agitation, as if it had been provoked by something.

But the monster roared only once and then fell silent. Xu Mo shook his head, put the matter aside, and jumped into the pit, focusing on training his sense of touch.

Soon, he entered a state of concentration, fully focused on the training of his sense of touch, feeling the water gradually leave his body. This time, his perception was clearly different from before.

The drop of water on his chest seemed to suddenly grow larger, as if it had become an extension of his body. He could clearly feel the shape of the water drop and even detect every subtle change as it evaporated.

At the same time, he had a strange sensation, as if he could hear the sound of water molecules colliding as the water evaporated. Of course, he knew this was just an illusion, a result of his clear perception of the water drop's shape and the changes as it evaporated.

In reality, the sound of water molecules colliding was so faint that even with his current level of touch, he couldn't hear it. Even if he were to develop his hearing to a spiritual level in the future, he might still not be able to hear it.

Before the original drop of water had fully evaporated, another drop fell from the sky onto Xu Mo's body, coincidentally landing on his navel.

At this moment, Xu Mo had a sudden idea: Since my perception of external touch has changed, why not try to perceive the internal sensations of my body?

The perception of one's own body is the most direct and intuitive, but these sensations are often overlooked because they accompany every movement and action, and are present everywhere. Even from a very young age, people naturally ignore them.

For example, the tip of the nose is always in the field of vision, yet few people notice it, and it never obstructs their view. Similarly, when people open their eyes, the first thing they see is their eyelashes, but they never pay attention to them.

All these sensations are ignored because they are always present and accompany every movement and action, so they are automatically overlooked.

To re-experience these sensations is not difficult. For instance, people usually can't hear their own heartbeat, even in a very quiet room. They might hear someone else's heartbeat more easily. However, in a state of extreme tension, one can easily hear their own heartbeat, even in a noisy environment.

Xu Mo, however, wanted to feel something different. These surface-level phenomena can be perceived by any normal person and don't require a powerful sense of touch. What he wanted to feel were the internal conditions of the body, such as the movement of blood through the veins and the sensation of air entering the lungs when breathing.

These internal conditions, like the inability to see one's own eyelashes or hear one's own heartbeat, are ignored because they are always present and deeply ingrained in the subconscious.

However, re-experiencing these internal conditions is much more difficult than seeing one's own eyelashes or hearing one's own heartbeat. If not for Xu Mo's powerful sense of touch, which was nearly at a spiritual level, he wouldn't have attempted it.

With this in mind, Xu Mo closed his eyes, calmed his mind, and focused on the circulation of blood in his body. After mastering the technique of static breathing, he had gained control over his blood circulation, making it easier to perceive. The challenge was feeling the interaction between the blood and the veins as the blood circulated.

This sensation had been present since before he was born, deeply rooted and integrated into his soul. Every sensation was part of his basic perception, and he used it to perceive other changes. Its existence was a fundamental part of how he judged changes in the world around him.

Feeling this sensation was extremely difficult. It required separating it from his basic perception, which was like separating the soul or mind from the body.

Xu Mo tried, but found that he couldn't perceive it at all. This was because it was part of his basic perception, and he relied on this basic perception to sense other things. Using his basic perception to sense itself resulted in a cancellation, leaving nothing.

He tried again, focusing on the sensation of air entering his lungs and the impact on the inner walls of his lungs, but the result was the same: he couldn't perceive it.

At this point, Xu Mo felt deeply discouraged.

He sensed that to achieve a spiritual level of touch, he first needed to break through these barriers. If he couldn't break them, how could he achieve a spiritual level?

He frowned, deep in thought. Soon, he remembered the ability of "oneness with nature," wondering if by merging with the environment, he could project his senses onto the surroundings and then use that to perceive his internal conditions.

This method seemed feasible, and he felt a surge of excitement, ready to try it.

Just then, another "Ao...roar..." came from the distance, the sound of the monster in the cave.

This time, the sound was much louder and not as闷. Xu Mo was startled: How did the monster come out of the cave?

This was extremely rare, and Xu Mo sensed a potential danger.

"If Mango and the others encounter the monster... Will they be in danger? No, they won't. The monster is too slow, and Mango has learned from past experiences. Upon hearing the monster's roar, he will surely warn the other monkeys to hide. As long as they don't provoke the monster, it won't be easy for the monster to harm them."

With this thought, he felt more at ease and refocused on training his sense of touch.

He activated the ability of "oneness with nature," merging with the surrounding environment, feeling as if he had become the world, and the world had become him.

His senses returned to his body, and he re-experienced the internal conditions.

This time, as soon as his senses returned to his body, his mind went blank with a "boom."

But after a brief moment, he regained his clarity, feeling a change in his perspective. His entire body was clearly presented before him, as if he were an outside observer examining himself.

He could clearly feel everything inside his body: the expansion and contraction of his lungs, the dilation and constriction of his blood vessels, and even the movement of his intestines.

He was startled, then overjoyed, realizing that he had achieved a form of internal vision.

"Quick! This is a rare opportunity. Focus on the sensation of blood flowing through the veins and the changes in your body."

Just as he was about to do so...

"Ao...roar..."

The monster's roar came again, this time from a nearby location.