Lu Yao observed that the forest tribe had no belief in gods, no temples, and no symbols like totems. The shaman did not show any reliance on gods like a prophet would, but rather acted like an experienced elder, guiding the entire tribe based on the accumulated experience of their ancestors. This was good news for Lu Yao because if the forest tribe also believed in a certain god, it could lead to a conflict of faith and even a war between tribes.

 

Now, there was a wider road between the Garlic tribe and the forest tribe, and houses were being built on both sides, including thatched huts from the Garlic tribe and tree houses from the forest tribe. The two tribes were becoming closer. Lu Yao was waiting for the complete integration of the two tribes.

 

Suddenly, he heard a faint ringing sound.  The bell rang for twenty seconds or so, then rang again, over and over again.The sound came from outside. Lu Yao lived in an old residential area, and his building was on the outside, adjacent to a semi-enclosed alley. The alley was usually used for parking, and many cars were covered in dust. During the day, there were not many people in the alley, and it was even quieter at night. Lu Yao walked to the window and looked outside.

 

There was only one cement street lamp in the parking alley, and the dim light could only illuminate an area under the light pole, while the rest was pitch black. Lu Yao saw something swaying back and forth under the light, as if something was hanging on the lamp post. He felt something was not right.

 

The street lamp was about twenty meters away from the window, and he could see it clearly. Lu Yao carefully observed and found that a person was hanging from a rope on the cement street lamp post. It was already dark outside, and there was not much noise on the street, so the ringing of the phone was particularly clear in the alley.

 

Lu Yao immediately called the police. "Hello, police? I am in the motorcycle factory dormitory of the Jiuyuan community. There is a person hanging from a rope in the alley outside. Please come quickly." The police asked for the address and details and told him not to act rashly. They would come immediately.

 

After putting down the phone, Lu Yao breathed a sigh of relief. It was best to leave such matters to the professionals. The hibernating cactus servant jumped onto the windowsill at this time. It faced the direction of the person in the alley, and its spikes were tense as if it was very alert.

 

"What? Did you find something?" Lu Yao subconsciously looked at the small thing.

 

The cactus servant nodded.

 

Lu Yao sighed, "It's a pity you can't speak. It would be great if you could."

 

"Great God Yao, you said you can speak, and your humble servant can speak." The cactus servant knelt on the ground, and a strange accent came from its green body. It was difficult to distinguish whether it was male or female.

 

Lu Yao was surprised, "You can speak?""Permission to speak granted, your humble servant can speak," said the follower of the fairy ball. "Otherwise, your humble servant cannot make a sound."

 

Lu Yao thought for a moment. The pixel world and the real world had both been broken, so it was not surprising that the fairy ball could speak.

 

He asked, "What did you find out about the person who was hanging there?"

 

"My lord, that was a demonic ritual," the follower of the fairy ball said respectfully. "Demons use cruel and extreme rituals to gain faith, and they use fear and ignorance to manipulate their followers."

 

Demons?

 

Lu Yao's face changed slightly.

 

"What is the difference between a demon and a god?"

 

"My lord, a demon is a heretical god."

 

Lu Yao understood.

 

A demon… another god player. Besides himself, there were others using the "God Simulator" to get sacrifices.

 

He immediately remembered what Sister Peng had said about the pervert lurking in the parking lot, who would strip people and hang them up.

 

Lu Yao silently warned himself to be more careful and not let anyone discover the simulator on his computer. Once a demon player found out, they would surely try to steal his magical tools and launch an attack on him – that would no longer be a game.

 

He found a small flowerpot and told the follower of the fairy ball, "Without my permission, you cannot move or speak normally. You are a fairy ball, stay here and behave, understand?"

 

"Yes, my lord," the follower of the fairy ball bowed.

 

In the parking lot, the phone continued to ring repeatedly, as if calling for help.

 

Lu Yao looked at the person hanging under the street lamp again. She seemed tired, no longer struggling or shaking, and her body features became clearer.

 

Under the light, the person was wearing a black chest shirt and should be a woman. She was also quite dirty, with many bloodstains on her skin.

 

Lu Yao remembered that there was a telescope at home, and with its help, his vision became even clearer.

 

He actually recognized the person under the street lamp. The victim was a hairdresser who worked at a hair salon called "Model Haircut" across the street from the community. Her work name was Lisa, and her real name was unknown.

 

Because "Model Haircut" had affordable prices, with a set of shampoo, haircut, and blow-dry for only fifteen yuan, Lu Yao often went there to get his hair cut, so he had some impression of Lisa.

 

After being rescued by the police, Lisa was terrified and did not say a word. She wrapped herself in a coat given to her by the police and looked stunned.

 

There were many strange symbols painted on her body with blood. These symbols looked like some kind of distorted Arabic numerals, connected to each other like a chain, wrapping her body layer by layer.The police sealed off the scene and went to Lu Yao's house to take a statement.

 

He truthfully described what he had witnessed, only concealing the parts about the simulator and the demonic ritual.

 

By the time the police rescue and statement-taking were over, it was already two o'clock in the morning.

 

With the Energy Wand in his hand, Lu Yao didn't feel tired at all, and staying up all night was not a problem.

 

He looked at the cactus in the flowerpot on the table, "Have you been to our world before?"

 

"This is the first time your humble servant has come to your divine realm. I was given life by the Forest God, but the divine realm where the Forest God resides seems to be different from yours. There is water everywhere… I am too insignificant to comprehend what kind of existence the divine realm is."

 

"What does the Forest God look like?"

 

"Indescribable, just like you, the great deity. I cannot describe the appearance of such a great being like you. I can only vaguely see some shadows revealed by the gods."

 

Lu Yao managed to pry some information from the cactus.

 

The cactus had no name. It was one of the many cactus servants created by the Forest God, spending its entire life doing chores in the temple. The Forest God created the cactus servants in his world and sent them as a blessing into the pixel world, never recalling them.

 

All it knew was that the temple gradually fell into disrepair, which meant that the Forest God had fallen. In the end, the cactus was buried underground along with the collapse of the temple and was dug out many years later by people from the forest tribe looking for mushrooms and berries.

 

However, only gods could control the cactus, and pixel life forms were unable to restore the cactus to its true form. They could only feel that it was slightly different from other plants.

 

"Since you are a relic left behind by the Forest God, I'll call you…"

 

Lu Yao pointed at the cactus and said, "Little Fire."