Before finishing his second handful of fruits, James Lone heard a notification: [Ding! Light of the Mind has increased to 7 stars! Mental Fire consumption reduced; Willpower +25.]

James Lone was delighted.

As expected, I'm suited for willpower-based abilities!

He thought about how many Physique Enhancement Fruits he had eaten, yet it was still stuck at 4 stars.

But with just a few Light of the Mind Fruits, it had already reached 7 stars!

The difference is ridiculous!

Without stopping, James Lone continued eating.

One fruit, two fruits, three fruits... One handful, two handfuls, three handfuls...

Finally: [Ding! Light of the Mind has increased to 8 stars! Mental Fire consumption reduced; Willpower +40.]

His willpower had finally surpassed 100!

At that moment, James Lone felt as though the world had changed.

It was reminiscent of the first time he consumed a Perception Fruit and experienced a profound transformation.

The world before him was still the same, yet it felt completely different—vivid, three-dimensional, and incredibly real!

To his surprise, James Lone could see "Qi" particles floating everywhere in the air.

The most astonishing part was that this wasn't through his Perception ability—he could see them with his naked eyes!

The difference was enormous.

With his Perception ability, Qi particles only became visible as they were drawn toward him during the practice of his breathing technique.

But now, with his willpower exceeding 100, his naked eyes revealed that Qi particles naturally existed in every corner of the environment!

Although they were dim and minuscule, they were unmistakably Qi particles.

"What is this?"

Curious, James Lone began practicing his breathing technique.

Instantly, the dim, tiny Qi particles around him were attracted to him, gathering together near his body.

As they collided and bonded, they formed larger, brighter Qi particles—particles he could perceive even without his new enhanced vision.

"So, Perception can only detect Qi particles that are large and bright enough, but with over 100 willpower, I can see all Qi particles with my naked eyes!"

Excited, James Lone teleported to the ground floor of the New York Pearl Tower.

The once-bustling lobby was now completely empty, perpetually shrouded in the shadowy violet mist.

Plants had grown through the door cracks and broken windows, spreading all over the floor.

Strange insects crawled everywhere, their grotesque forms becoming more and more unrecognizable as time passed, evolving into creatures that bore no resemblance to their original forms.

James Lone didn't pay them any attention. Scanning the area with his perception, he confirmed there were no powerful creatures nearby.

He entered a safe room, pulled out a large table from his personal space, and sat down. Then, he took out the Flesh Gem.

Soon, the Flesh Gem began absorbing the violet mist.

This time, James Lone noticed something incredible.

As the violet mist entered the Flesh Gem, it condensed into red particles.

Then, the Flesh Gem drained the red particles of their color, transforming the red mist particles into colorless Qi particles!

"So, the violet mist is just another form of Qi!"

James Lone gasped, his expression turning serious.

This conclusion left him deeply shaken.

He remembered that the breathing technique had been passed down through Teresa Taylor's family. Previously, it had been useless, but after the descent of the violet mist, it suddenly became effective.

It was as if this breathing technique was specifically designed for the Violet Mist Era!

If that were the case, James Lone wondered:

Why would Teresa Taylor's ancestors know a technique for absorbing something that didn't exist in the air at the time?

The only explanation was that during her ancestors' time, there were already traces of violet mist or Qi in remote mountains, deep valleys, or other areas far from human civilization.

Alternatively, there may not have been violet mist back then, but Qi might have existed in a colorless, invisible form, going unnoticed by ordinary people.

James Lone thought about this for a while but couldn't make sense of it.

What exactly is the violet mist?

What caused the violet mist to appear on Earth?

Could it be... that the violet mist is what some would call "spiritual energy revival"?

But if that were the case, why do all creatures evolve, grow larger, and become stronger, while humans remain unchanged?

Aren't humans animals too?

What makes humans special?

James Lone silently stared at the gloomy violet mist around him.

The lack of information made it impossible to draw any conclusions.

For now, he set the matter aside.

Keep eating!

He decided to push Light of the Mind to 9 stars first.

James Lone grabbed another handful of Light of the Mind Fruits and started eating.

Finally: [Ding! Light of the Mind has increased to 9 stars...]

Overjoyed, James Lone immediately checked the effects of 9-star Light of the Mind:

[Light of the Mind: 9 Stars (Max level, cannot be upgraded further).You can see the number of abilities a target has and have a certain probability of roughly sensing their effects. The success rate depends on the willpower gap between you and the target.You can unleash mental shockwaves to attack a target's consciousness. The effectiveness depends on the willpower gap between you and the target. If the attack fails, you will suffer backlash.You are absolutely immune to all willpower-based attacks as long as the enemy's willpower is lower than yours.Willpower +60.]

Immune to willpower attacks!

James Lone was thrilled.

With this ability, he no longer had to worry about willpower-based attacks.

Given the rarity of individuals or creatures with willpower higher than his, this immunity made him practically invincible in that regard.

With his 9-star Willpower Link granting him an additional 50 willpower and 9-star Light of the Mind granting him another 60, his willpower value had reached a terrifying 120!

That was 12 times the average human's willpower—a crushing difference.

Willpower Link's abilities, such as forcibly dragging enemies into a mental space or creating illusions, relied heavily on the willpower gap between the user and the target.

Previously, with only 60 willpower, these abilities were impractical.

When he ambushed Olivia Brooks earlier and created an illusion of walls surrounding her, the energy cost had been enormous, and he could only maintain it for a short period.

But now, with 120 willpower, things were completely different.

If the same situation arose, James Lone could easily pierce through Olivia Brooks's willpower bubble, trapping her in his mental space for an extended time.

Alternatively, he could create larger, more realistic, and longer-lasting illusions!

"And I still have two new fruits!" James Lone grinned, pulling out the two Enlightenment Fruits he had just acquired.

"With so many women, who should I give them to?"

After some thought, James Lone opened a portal and returned to his bedroom on the top floor of the New York Pearl Tower.

Spreading his perception, he saw that the women were still asleep.

Effortlessly, he established a willpower link with Elsa Thomas, waking her from her slumber.

"Elsa Thomas, come to my room."

"Hmm? Master?" Elsa Thomas mumbled groggily, thinking she was dreaming.

Then she realized James Lone was contacting her through a mental connection.

Why would James Lone summon her in the middle of the night?

Blushing with both shyness and excitement, Elsa Thomas quickly got up. "Yes, I'll be there right away."

She twisted open a bottle of water and splashed her face with the cold liquid to wake herself up.

Next, she took out a small mirror, applied light makeup, sprayed herself with perfume, and changed into a semi-transparent black lace nightgown.

Before leaving, she decided to put on a pair of black high heels with red soles for good measure, then hurried to James Lone's room.

Upon entering, she was embarrassed to find Lily Green already there!

Lily Green hadn't dressed up—she was wearing a simple, loose cotton pajama set.

Seeing herself all dolled up in contrast, Elsa Thomas's face turned red.

Lily Green, on the other hand, felt a pang of annoyance when she saw Elsa Thomas.

A scheming woman!

Lily Green cursed inwardly, berating herself for being so careless as to show up without makeup.

James Lone glanced at Elsa Thomas with a smile and pulled out the two Enlightenment Fruits.

"These are rewards for you—one for each of you."

These two women had been with him for a long time but only had one ability each. Even newcomers like Winnie Morgan had two abilities.

Although Winnie Morgan and the others had joined him with abilities already, these two still deserved to be rewarded.

He couldn't show favoritism.

The two women froze momentarily, then exclaimed in excitement: "Thank you, Master!" "Thank you so much, Master!"

"Master, what kind of abilities will these give us?"

James Lone replied casually: "You'll find out after eating them."

The two women, confused but eager, each picked a fruit and ate it.