P’an, the capital of Karen State.

Although it was the capital, its population was just over ten thousand, making it essentially a small town.

Including the surrounding villages and small towns, the total population might reach four or five hundred thousand, with most residents living in the countryside.

The area is close to both Thailand and the sea. Not far to the east lies the Tannantaweng Mountain Range on the border between Myanmar and Thailand. The range is over 300 kilometers long, 75 to 100 kilometers wide, with an average elevation of 1,000 to 2,000 meters and a main peak at 1,964 meters. It serves as the watershed for the Klang River and the Bin River (the largest tributary of the upper Mae Nam River).

Speaking of this mountain range, its name is rather peculiar. Anyone with a passing knowledge of geography might be surprised, thinking, ’Doesn’t China also have a Tannantaweng Mountain Range? Why is there one on the Myanmar-Thailand border too? And why is the middle section called the Nu Mountain?’

That’s because many mountain ranges were named much later. Originally, "Tannantaweng Mountain Range" was just a general term for the mountains east of the Nu River.

The Nu River is over three thousand kilometers long. It originates from the southern foothills of the Tangula Mountain on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, flows through two major provinces in China, and changes its name to the "Salween River" upon entering Myanmar, finally emptying into the Andaman Sea of the Indian Ocean. Naturally, the river is flanked by continuous mountain ranges, with each section bearing a different name.

Four of Southeast Asia’s major international rivers all have their sources in China. The Mekong River, for instance, is known as the Lancang River in its Chinese section before it flows into Southeast Asia and becomes the Mekong.

P’an didn’t have any local specialties worth mentioning, but the street-side curry rice, fried fish cakes, and potato chips seemed decent, so Li Xiang bought some to try. He had acquired a random assortment of US dollars and Myanmar kyat in Northern Myanmar, so it was no big deal to spend some of it now. After all, it was all old currency.

Many of the locals were Buddhists, so there were various temples and grottoes. The tourism industry was relatively developed, and the area seemed more peaceful and prosperous than Northern Myanmar.

Lots of foreigners were walking the streets. Li Xiang, wearing a hat and sunglasses, had Asian features. He had also activated his "Bright Pearl Darkens" skill, making him less "resplendent," so he didn’t stand out too much.

Still, some women couldn’t help but stare at him. There was nothing to be done about it; he was just too handsome, even with the skill active.

His destination was a famous local Bat Cave, rumored to be home to countless bats—so many that no one had ever bothered to count, the kind that could blot out the sky.

Bats are creatures that typically sleep during the day and come out to be active at night. Once they’ve eaten their fill, they return to their caves to sleep. Previously, when Li Xiang had hunted bats in a natural cave in the Mao Lan Karst Nature Reserve in Qian Province, there were still plenty of bats inside, even though it was nighttime.

This time, he came during the day to scout the location and familiarize himself with the terrain, still planning to make his move at night. Even if there were fewer bats in the cave after dark, he figured there would still be a substantial number.

However, he was stunned when he reached the tourist attraction.

In broad daylight, numerous employees of the attraction had gathered near the cave entrance with buckets, wooden sticks, drums, and other percussion instruments Li Xiang couldn’t name, and were banging on them furiously. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

The racket was enough to agitate any person, let alone the bats inside.

Unable to stand the noise, the bats naturally poured out of the cave in a massive, sky-blotting swarm. They came in wave after wave, their wings creating a great rustling roar, while all around, crowds of tourists cheered, gasped in amazement, took photos, and recorded videos.

This tourist attraction’s entire business model depended on these bats.

Some bats tried to return to the cave after flying a lap, but how could they? They were continually driven away, forced to keep flying outside.

’Well, so much for worrying about there being fewer bats at night,’ Li Xiang sighed. ’In the face of profit, even the bats have to change their sleep schedule and come out to "work" during the day.’

He spent some time sightseeing in the area, visiting a few temples and grottoes, before returning to the Tannantaweng Mountain Range. There, deep in the ancient forests, he began his search for potential Extraordinary Creatures.

The mountain range ran north to south, its width varying from tens to over a hundred kilometers. The edge of the range was only twenty to thirty kilometers from P’an City. Li Xiang didn’t need to use his "sprint" ability; at his "cruising speed" of 900 km/h—roughly 15 kilometers a minute—he could get there in just a few minutes.

In a mountain valley, six red muntjacs were grazing. From the shadows, a leopard lay in wait, slowly stalking its prey. Three minutes later, both the leopard and the six muntjacs had vanished into Li Xiang’s system inventory.

The six muntjacs were not Mutated Creatures, but they looked tasty, so Li Xiang took them anyway. With the Apocalypse imminent, there was no point in conserving wildlife.

The leopard, however, was a Tier Nine Mutated Creature. From it, Li Xiang obtained three Tier Eight Mutated Spiritual Medicines: Golden Leopard Spirit Fruits. Aside from these three Spiritual Medicines, no other Extraordinary Items dropped.

Li Xiang took out a Golden Leopard Fruit to taste it. It was sweet with a pleasant texture. Once it entered his stomach, a surge of Spiritual Power rolled through him upon Refinement.

The name "Golden Leopard" doesn’t just refer to the animal; it’s also the name of a plant. Specifically, a herbaceous, twining vine of the Codonopsis genus in the Bellflower family. Its fruit is edible, its root has medicinal uses for clearing heat and promoting calm, and it’s used to treat ailments like nervous exhaustion. It can also be eaten as a vegetable. This plant is found in China’s Guangdong and Yunnan Provinces, among other places.

However, the plant’s fruit is particularly tasty and very easy to digest, and its seeds are tiny. As a result, when animals eat the fruit, they often digest everything, leaving nothing behind. This makes natural propagation by animals in the wild quite difficult.

Of course, the "Golden Leopard Fruit" Li Xiang had obtained wasn’t a common variety, but a fruit from a Spirit Grass awarded by the system.

’Huh? A wild elephant up ahead.’ Li Xiang spotted a behemoth in the distance. In a flash, he was on its back.

The system immediately prompted: "Detected Tier Fifteen Mutated Creature: Mammoth Demon Elephant."