After resolving Gui Mei's problem, Yue Guan eagerly dragged him out of the city for a sparring match.
On the one hand, he wanted his old friend to get used to his newfound strength as quickly as possible. On the other, he was curious about Gui Mei's abilities now.
Lin Ze'an watched the two of them leave helplessly, then turned and headed for his new residence alone.
However, after passing through one palace complex after another, his pace gradually slowed.
He looked around at the towering, magnificent buildings, and his brows furrowed without him realizing it.
"Life God King, if you want to see me, you can be more direct. There's no need to test me like this."
As he spoke, Lin Ze'an slowly raised a hand. Emerald-green energy flowed from his fingertips, sending ripples through the air.
Wherever the ripples passed, the magnificent palaces around him began to twist and warp.
"Crack—"
A faint snapping sound rang out, and in an instant, everything in his field of vision was covered in web-like cracks.
Finally, with a thunderous crash, the scene before him shattered completely, like a mirror.
The fragments flew in every direction, but before they hit the ground, they dissolved into specks of green light.
Beyond the shattered scene lay a completely different space.
As far as the eye could see, lush plants flourished, and flowers and grasses of every color swayed gently in the breeze.
The whole space brimmed with life, and every inch of air was filled with the refreshing fragrance of plants.
Just then, a rich, pale green light suddenly gathered from all directions.
Then, it slowly coalesced before Lin Ze'an, taking the shape of an elegant figure.
A woman in a long dress appeared soundlessly, her entire being radiating a warm aura that made all things unfold and flourish.
She looked at Lin Ze'an and said gently, "I'm glad to meet you, traveler from another world."
"I believe you've already sensed my presence."
As she spoke, the faintest smile touched her lips, and the flowers around them swayed with her mood. "I am the Goddess of Life of this world."
Lin Ze'an first froze, then bowed slightly to the Goddess of Life in greeting. "Greetings, Goddess of Life..."
But before he could bow, the Goddess of Life stepped forward and stopped him. "There's no need to thank me, much less bow."
She smiled faintly as she spoke. "Though the authority over life you wield has yet to fully awaken, it is no weaker than mine."
"When you reach my level, I'm afraid you'll be even stronger than I am. So let's treat each other as equals."
She tilted her head and thought for a moment, then asked tentatively, "Just call me Xiao Lu, and I'll call you Xiao An. How does that sound?"
Setting everything else aside, the fact that this child had spotted her illusion and broken it so easily was already beyond the ability of many First-Level Gods.
Lin Ze'an nodded, though he wasn't quite used to the name.
But seeing the Goddess of Life's sincere smile, he still called her softly, "Goddess of Life... Xiao Lu."
At that, the Goddess of Life chuckled and casually raised a hand. A table woven from vines and two tree-stump stools grew out of the ground.
She sat down gracefully, then gestured for Lin Ze'an to join her. "I noticed you when you used that Soul Skill."
"I'd thought of making you my successor, but now that we're face-to-face, I realize I was overthinking it."
As she spoke, the Goddess of Life poured each of them a cup of tea formed from dewdrops.
"Let's just get to know each other and have a chat," she said with a smile, sliding a cup over to Lin Ze'an.
Lin Ze'an thanked her, sat down, and took a small sip of tea.
He looked at the Goddess of Life, puzzled. "I thought no one would know I wasn't from this world."
At that, the Goddess of Life asked in surprise, "Hm? You didn't know?"
"We both wield the power of life and can hear the voices of all things. Naturally, we can sense when something feels out of place."
Even every plant had its own unique nature. The auras of different worlds were naturally distinct as well.
She reached out and gently touched Lin Ze'an's brow. "Your soul isn't deeply connected to this world yet. It's like a sapling that's just been transplanted, its roots not yet sunk firmly into the soil."
Lin Ze'an nodded thoughtfully. Though she put it that way, no one besides the Goddess of Life would be able to tell.
"Then, Xiao Lu, does it bother you? Having an outsider stir things up in this world?"
"Bother me? Why would it?" the Goddess of Life said helplessly.
"The only people who bother me are those who trample on life. But you wouldn't do that."
Lin Ze'an wasn't afraid of her, a God King, despite being only a Soul Elder, because of the aura of life on her, an aura that deeply loved all things in the world.
And she trusted Lin Ze'an for the same reason: he had that same aura about him.
Just as the two were chatting happily, a strange ripple suddenly swept through the area.
Lin Ze'an and the Goddess of Life stopped talking almost at the same time.
"What was that...?" Lin Ze'an furrowed his brow slightly and looked at Xiao Lu in confusion.
The Goddess of Life waved a hand, and an emerald-green screen unfolded before them, clearly showing the scene at the Spirit Hall.
As the two watched, a phantom figure silently descended in front of Douluo Hall.
The figure wore blue-and-gold robes, and its features were blurred. What was shocking was that the guards seemed completely unaware of its presence.
"Poseidon?" the Goddess of Life said instinctively.
Poseidon then walked straight through the closed doors and into the hall, stopping before the sacred Angel God Statue.
He paused before the statue for a moment, then slowly raised a hand.
Blue divine power flowed from his palm and silently seeped into the Angel God Statue.
The divine power coursed through the statue, and the entire process lasted roughly the time it took to burn a stick of incense.
When the last strand of divine power merged with the statue, Poseidon's figure turned translucent and slowly faded from the air.
Having witnessed it all, Lin Ze'an's mouth twitched slightly. He turned to the Goddess of Life beside him. "What was that...?"
So that was how Qian Renxue's Nine Trials of the Angel had actually come about?
The Goddess of Life beside him looked utterly bewildered.
The Angel God had been dead for so long. What was the Sea God doing? It couldn't be that he was paying tribute to an old friend, could it?
She reached out and lightly tapped the air. The scene on the screen began to rewind, stopping at the instant Poseidon poured his divine power into the Angel God Statue.
The Goddess of Life studied the path of the divine power closely, her brows knitting tighter and tighter.
Seeing her confusion, Lin Ze'an gently reminded her, "Can the gods here interfere with one another's inheritances at will?"
At that, the Goddess of Life froze. Surely not?
Before becoming gods, the Angel God and the Sea God had been friends. Even if they'd fallen out later, the Angel God was already dead. Would the Sea God really go that far?
Still, she slowly extended her divine power into the Angel God Statue.
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