28 Chapter 20: Chance Encounter

"Lady of the Forest, huh..."

As Lu Ping'an became more familiar with this world, more differences between the two worlds emerged.

For instance, because this world has the existence of True Gods, the myths of Earth either disappeared without a trace or were replaced with a different version.

"Speaking of the Lady of the Forest, it reminds me of the Earth's myth, the Goddess of the forest, Diana, and the Forest King in the Nemi region, so similar..."

The ancient Goddess of the Forest, Diana, in Nemi (near present-day Italy) was a goddess of forests, beasts (livestock), and agricultural fertility. She had the ability to heal diseases with holy water, and her priests were called The Forest King.

What was most memorable about her was that her "Forest King" was not fixed.

"Every generation of the Forest King holds a higher status, but they will be killed by their successors. Or, in other words, the victor in the forest battle is the short-lived priest who is destined to die a violent death."

"And their god, who craves blood and carnage in the forest, even if it's just a lowly slave, as long as they successfully kill the lofty Forest King, they can become the new King..."

This scene felt familiar to Lu Ping'an; it was exactly the way Chris played back then.

Was it that the God of Life was so cruel, or was this the nature of the so-called "Life"?

Lu Ping'an couldn't answer, but it didn't stop him from getting to know the "kind" Lady of the Forest again.

"Since I plan on going further on the Gardener's path, I am bound to have more dealings with her... In her Secret Realm, there will be plenty of killing."

According to the information that Lu Ping'an obtained, there were three other Proper Gods of Life recorded: "The Candle Holder," "The King of Harvest and Gourmet," and "Blood Rose of Love."

But honestly, their reputations were quite subtle, and only the "Blood Rose" provided a Gardener's path.

Going further on the same path, there were subtle differences... To put it simply, it was the combat-oriented "Combat Gardener," which was considered heretical by the traditionalists.

There were several Evil Gods in the Life system, but Lu Ping'an did not have permission to access related information.

Considering Chris's temperament, they might be more pitfall-ridden than Lin Nu, and it could involve the so-called Mother Goddess. Lu Ping'an didn't want his surveillance level to be upgraded once again.

"...It's hard to believe that the Lady of the Forest, who craves blood and slaughter, is the most well-reputed God of Life, isn't it?"

Lu Ping'an didn't think this "truth" could deceive everyone since Lin Nu doesn't seem to hide it at all.

She is so popular, with many businesses and medical facilities in the city, mainly because she seemed to be the lesser of the evils... On the human side, people needed a relatively friendly and orderly God of Life.

After calling his family, Xia Qin called to ask where he was.

It seemed like she had something to tell him. He casually said, "I'll be back soon," and Lu Ping'an started heading back home.

Meow, on the other hand, was quite stimulated, exclaiming "I have to train now meow!" and rushed to do some extra training.

It's worth mentioning that when Lu Ping'an was selling the "loot," he encountered their original owner, the Four Wolves of the Wilderness...

"Yo, we meet again."

The young man grinned as he looked at their faces. In a corner of the shop, the once-dominant Four Wolves didn't dare to breathe, stiff as a board.

"Hello, hello!"

The eldest brother was dumbfounded, and the tearful Er Lang, who had been pushed forward, wondered how he ended up meeting this nemesis here.

"Have you eaten? What are you here for? We know this place well; we can help if you need it..."

The next moment, he almost slapped himself in the face.

What else could people do in a dirty-goods shop?

His group were regular customers, planning to get some equipment on credit and do their usual business, and of course, the person across from them was here to...

"Clang!"

Lu Ping'an dumped a sack of "loot" directly onto the table, asking the staff for a valuation.

He sold the other party's stuff right in front of them, looking at Er Lang with a puzzled expression, wondering "What kind of stupid question is that?"

And the staff of the dirty-goods shop were also familiar with the old customer's equipment. After a brief inspection, they looked at the Four Wolves with a subtle expression... This was their stuff, right? Had they hit a steel wall?

"Its total value is about sixteen thousand, but you know the rules here... I'll give you ten thousand, do you want to sell?"

Less than expected, but Lu Ping'an didn't feel like spending time looking for channels and buyers.

He nodded and agreed, and just like that, in front of the original owners, the loot was successfully sold.

"He's too arrogant, too arrogant! I must expose his disguise; he's not a strongman! He's just a newbie..."

Wolf knew everything already, gritting his teeth, he was determined to go all out to expose his fake identity.

"You..."

"Bro, don't!"

"Bro, we know your courage! You're always our good big brother! But don't!"

Then, he was held back by his brothers!

Someone grabbed his legs, others his arms, and some even tugged his head, afraid that he might lose control and bring his brothers down with him.

"Don't stop me! I'm going all out against this guy!"

Wolf's explosive temper, how could his brothers possibly stop him!

Hearing this, Lu Ping'an glanced back at Wolf, just a glance, a smile in his eyes.

Wolf stiffened.

"Is he really a newbie? Is he pretending to be weak to play me."

"Killing people in the Secret Realm is one thing, killing people outside is a crime, but if we attack first, he'll be acting in self-defense...."

"Conspiracy?! This must be a conspiracy! I shrewdly see through everything; I absolutely can't let the conspiracy succeed!"

In an instant, dozens of thoughts flashed through his mind, the shrewd old wolf saw through everything!

"Ouch! How could you guys be like this, I can't even move when you hold onto me like this! Let me go! Let me go all out against him."

So, Wolf was held back by his brothers, even taking a big step back....

"Boom!"

Everyone exerted their strength in one direction, turning into a rolling gourd on the ground!

Looking at the four wolves tangled together in the corner, Lu Ping'an laughed. They were really funny.

He shook his head, checking the decorations in the store, waiting for the cashier to finish before planning to pay up and leave.

But when Lu Ping'an was really about to leave, the "shrewd Wolf" got restless again.

"Is he deceiving me again? If he's really a noob, we'll watch our equipment get sold, Xiao Zhang will spread the word, and the Four Wolves will have no face left in the martial world..."

He had barely started to get restless when his brothers swarmed him and completely tackled him down!

"Big bro, please, on behalf of your brothers! Just hold back, let it go! Life is more important, this isn't the Secret Realm..."

Wolf struggled harder, unsure if losing face was worse than losing life, but the next moment, he didn't have to worry anymore.

The door of the "General Store" suddenly opened, and a group of people came in, among them were some familiar faces to Lu Ping'an.

"....Did you hear, the Dragon Snake gang scum were attacked, and eleven people were blown up on the spot; they don't even know who did it..."

"It seemed like a plant-based explosion, maybe a high-level Gardener, haha, I told them before, this kind of business earns little and offends people, maybe some big shot just didn't like them."

The voices of the newcomers weren't loud, but the store was small, so how could they not hear them.

Plant-based explosion? High-level Gardener? In an instant, the Four Wolves went stiff.

Some gasped in shock, some gulped, and some went pale.

The next moment, four heads instinctively looked at Lu Ping'an.

"Shh."

Lu Ping'an smiled, his thumb sideways, making a zipping motion.

Then, he received a series of frantic nods in response.

"Heh, good boys."

With a smile, the young man paid up and left.

What, he made the zipper motion too high, going across the neck?

Well, it was probably just that he wasn't used to making such a gesture to keep a secret.